So, over the summer, I got a job as an intern at an engineering firm. It was very exciting, the whole process. From drawing out a CV and fine tuning it tens of times before finally hitting the ‘send’ button, to going through multiple technical and personality assessing interviews, before finally landing the job. My internship lasted ten weeks.
This was my first engineering internship ever, so I did not fully know what to expect, although I did have a decent idea of how work life was going to be from conversations with my academic colleagues and other sources alike. It did not take me long to find out though. I was immediately given a project and I was told that upon its completion, the project’s findings would benefit the company’s future works. The task was pretty daunting but when you’re given a responsibility, you CAN’T, in fact SHOULDN’T, shy away from it.
Internships prepare you for life after university. That certificate you’re going to ever so proudly hold in your palms upon graduation is a ticket, to see the bigger world. Cliché of course, but true nevertheless.
The common understanding is that, at your work place, you’re completely on your own. Depending on others for the completion of your tasks is naïve and more often than not, annoyingly interruptive of your colleague’s responsibilities. There are in essence, two traits that would determine a person’s ability to handle the demands of any job. The first, the ability to work independently. The second, the ability to communicate with your colleagues. In simpler words, knowing how to get information by your own and when to ask for assistance, is crucial.
After the completion of my internship about a week ago, a thought kept bothering me; I would have been a more complete engineering student had I managed to enrol into engineering related internships in the previous years of my university period. During the first two summers of my university, I took up temporary jobs at an interior designing company that while did give me insightful experiences with regards to customer relations, didn’t give me much of an interesting platform to work in. This recent internship, however, did. It elegantly satisfied my interests whilst helping showcase my strengths.
Working experiences are important. It will look good in your CV; let’s not pretend we are all not bothered about that. More than that though, you will feel a lot more confident with your works in the future. I have a feeling, I will.