Getting internship is not as easy as some may think. Internship is a way of getting hands on experience on the related field that they want to pursue in the future. Many people have the false hope that if they make good enough resume and send it to almost every company they can find, then they will definitely land an internship or a job. I would like to burst that bubble for you. It’s not as easy as you think and definitely not hard either if you follow correct procedure from the very beginning.

Most people do not even think about internship before the very final moment comes and the college demand you to do internship. That is the moment of panic for most people. Here I have broken down into steps that you can follow in order to get the internship that you want.

Prepare yourself with the necessary skills

The market has really grown, even in Nepal. There are many competition that you need to get through. Starting early will definitely give you a huge boost to your career. Especially in IT field, you need to get the core concepts of programming, networking and problem solving from the very beginning. Getting internship doesn’t mean that any person with zero skill can get it. You need have at least basic knowledge. Some companies will hire you even if you don’t have much knowledge. However you will need to convince them that you are able to learn as you go. Getting yourself into skill training programs can help you a lot, however learning through online courses will do just fine.

In Nepal Web Development is really booming, so you will have better chance in this field.

Write a professional looking resume

Even if you are really skilled and have great portfolios if your resume is bad, chances are you won’t be even in their consideration. The importance of writing of good resume/cv can be overlooked. Consider a scenario. Ram has a good skill set. He has done few personal projects and is looking for internship. He got overconfident and didn’t cared to write a good Cv. Shyam in order hand doesn’t have much knowledge, however he took his time and made a stunning looking CV. It’s very likely that Shyam will get the opportunity. It’s all about making a first impression.

Search for the right Company

Now that you have a great resume, it is time to send them to the right company. The goal of the internship is get experience on the field that you want to pursue in the near future. So if your interest is towards programming, building software, it’s really illogical if you choose internship on networking just for the sake of getting through college credits.

Choose companies that may hire you by the end of the internship. Decide if you’ll be able to commit full time or just few hours per day. It’s very important that you don’t stress yourself and over work. Have a clear mind and you will find a company that will offer flexible time on your internship tenure.

You can search for vacancies on newspapers, social medias, websites, college resources, job fairs or even you friends and families networks.

Always remember to have multiple options and don’t rely on a single one.

Send your resume with an engaging cover letter

Now that you have a list of companies, send your resume to all of them with a good cover letter. Most companies will ask you to send them on their email. Be sure to be honest and formal. Don’t brag yourself too much.

After you have done that, it’s all about waiting for the reply.

The dreaded Interview

So you just received a reply from a company and they asked you to come for an Interview in their office. Panicking, overthinking and overdoing is the last thing you want to do. Just calm yourself and don’t pressure yourself to nail the interview. No matter how experienced people are, everyone gets a bit nervous on interviews. Be sure to dress yourself really nice, gather all your documents including your resume and neatly organize them into a file.

Once you are in the interview room, be confident and don’t try to show your nervousness. Be as polite as possible and speak in crisp clear tone. Use definite terms such as “I can do this”, “I will do this” and not use terms such as “probably” and “maybe”.

You can also prepare yourself beforehand to answer standard questions. If that helps you.

Be persistent and proactive

This is the step that most people miss out on. You gave your interview and now you are waiting for the final confirmation if you are selected or not. Most people will just wait. That’s not what you want to do. What you need to do is have some kind of communication with the company. Employers look for people that really wants the position and look for commitment.

Accept the offer

So finally you are offered the position. Before you jump with joy and start your celebration be sure to think if the position is truly what you want. If yes by all means go for it and if not you can try on another on that interest. You

Congrats, you just got your internship. Be sure to work really hard and impress the company you are working for. Make them want to hire you at the end of the internship and pursue your dream job.