An internship is one of the best ways to get an early advancement in your career. By completing an internship, you are getting real-life, relevant experience in your ideal work environment, when a lot of others your age may not get this for several years.
In this article, we will teach you about internships, how to get one, and how old you have to be to start one.
Table of Contents
What Is An Internship?
An internship is described as a professional learning experience that offers you practical and relevant work in your desired field. It is usually short-term, and companies will offer short-term experience helping out and learning some of their skills.
The work you would be doing will not be anything too major, and if it is, you will usually have a guide or someone to help you.
Internships are also great for the company and employer, because they bring fresh, new ideas and perspectives int their work place. If they like your work, it may mean that these employers may build a pipeline for future staff.
An internship will help you develop your skills and meet any short term goals, as well as providing a clear and professional look at the kind of job you might want to be doing in the future. Usually, internships do not consist of more than 25% administrative work.
There has been a tradition amongst companies in the past of allowing interns to handle clerical work for free in order to save time and money, but that is not common now, because interns gained no experience from this.
How Old Do You Have To Be To Get An Internship?
An internship is for anyone of basically any age. You can be an intern from the age of 14 years old, but a lot of employers and companies will have their own age restrictions, meaning you may have to be 16 at most places.
A lot of places decide to set the minimum age as 16, but some may say 18 or older. Either way, you can be an intern in most sectors by 16 or 18, and you can intern at absolutely any age. An internship is meant to be to gain experience, and you are never too old to learn new skills.
Do I Get Paid For An Internship?
It depends on the position and the field you are in. It is more common to be an unpaid intern than it is to be a paid intern.
The whole idea of internships is to gain valuable experience that may count as academic credit towards your graduation, and to get an idea of what it’s like in the working world, rather than getting paid.
Some sectors such as law and medical offer pay. Most of the time unpaid interns will gain credits for their college graduation, or even a qualification.
How Do I Get An Internship?
There are lots of routes to find internships. Sometimes, people find internships at their dream companies by simply networking and reaching out to people who may work there.
An internship does not necessarily have to be advertised for you to be an intern somewhere. Aim high – apply for all the internships you can find, and don’t forget to offer your services to other companies, too!
Internship Websites And Job Sites
Job sites are excellent places to find internships. This includes websites such as Glassdoor, Indeed, LinkedIn, and Idealist. You will find some intern roles on these websites, and they may be paid, too.
You will also find internships on dedicated websites such as Chegg Internships, and Internships.com. Internships.com is one of the leading places to find an internship.
To add, there is also Internships-USA, InternQueen, CoolWorks, Looksharp, and HerCampus to find certain internships.
School/College
School or college is another great place to find internships. Your connections with teachers and assistants will serve you well, and your place of education will have a lot of career opportunities and resources.
Almost all colleges and schools have a dedicated career site where companies can be set up with students for internships and graduate jobs.
Social media is fast becoming one of the best places to find jobs and internships. Work on your networking skills and put yourself out there.
Reach out to those you already know, and offer your services as an intern to anyone they may know. Reach out to those on social media who are in similar positions that you want to be, and offer your services to them and their company.
Job Fairs
Your school or college may also run career and internship fairs. You are absolutely bound to find some great information about internships here, and possibly land one. These fairs allow you to connect in real life with these companies and the hiring decision-makers.
Direct contact
What Are The Benefits Of An Internship?
There are countless benefits to an internship. The first and foremost benefit of completing an internship is to gain valuable experience and have an idea of how it is to work in this sector.
You’re learning new skills that put you in good stead to get a job, as well as assuring yourself that this is the sector that you do want to work in (or not at all).
Doing an internship helps you make future decisions, whilst networking and learning the ins and outs of certain companies and sectors.
What Would I Do In An Internship?
In your internship, you will probably watch how everything works at first, and then you will help work on relevant projects, gradually learn about the sector, network, and develop your intellectual or physical skills.
An internship allows you to take the time to help out, as well as develop your own skills and assist the employer, too. You may sit in on meetings, take part in presentations, learn about the company, take part in research, and contribute problem-solving fresh ideas.
What Sector Has The Most Internship Opportunities?
Government and law sectors have a lot of internship opportunities, as well as the business, marketing (especially digital marketing) media, data, finance, and medical sectors. Internships are available wherever you want to look.
Final Thoughts
Internships are a great way to gain valuable experience, and they are available in all sectors of the working world. It is common for internships to consist of those from 18-25, but you can essentially be an intern when you are 14 or 16 and older.
They are great to further your experience at any age, and they will set you in the right direction in the working world.
Always check with the specific organization or company offering the internship to confirm their age requirements and eligibility criteria.
Many college-level internships are open to students who are at least 18 years old due to legal and liability considerations.
Some internships may have specific age restrictions or requirements, so it’s important to carefully review the internship posting or contact the employer for clarification.