skills. But such occupations are not going to do much in the way of honing professional work skills or building relationships with people who can introduce you to new opportunities.

If you need an internship that offers a salary or a stipend, so be it. There are salaried internships available, which will probably pay on about the same scale as flipping burgers. Just remember, the non-financial compensation internships offer in terms of building relationships, contacts and skills will be far greater than any dollar amount.

5) You really want a big-name employer on your resume.

Despite the fun often poked at it, name-dropping is and always will be a big game. Depending on your field, there may be some impressive companies, institutions or organizations which would bring star luster to your resume.

If this is the case, then think about which ones those would be. Are these companies located in the town in which you go to college or live? If not, do they sponsor interns from out-of-town? Many do.

Later in this book, I've listed some internship guides and directories. Many of these will index companies, institutions and organizations by field. Use these resources to write to the companies and to learn what it takes to get into the programs to which you aspire.

6) Your career or job goal requires a combination of experiences.

In addition to whatever you are majoring in, whether it be science, medicine, education, law, accounting, communications, psychology, or anything else, there is one other field to which you should have exposure—business.

Contrary to what many people think, business is about much more than making money. First and foremost, business is about serving needs and making wise use of human and material resources. In legitimate business, profit is the by- product only when these two requirements are met. These principles apply not only to businesses and corporations. They also are appropriate for government agencies, churches, schools and non-profit organizations.

Whatever your course of study, learn the ABC's of business, and likewise, examine your career goals. Remember to keep this in mind when you are pursuing and researching internship opportunities.

Why Internships Are Growing

According to the National Society for Experiential Education, interning is

 

The above is an excerpt from The Last Guide to Finding a Great Internship You'll Ever Need, which is available for sale for $17 in our bookstore or for free to those who subscriber to our free career newsletter. Students know that good experiences helps to build a good resume and that good resumes help you land interviews, yet how many of us have been shown how to interview well so that we can get hired? Written by Keith F. Luscher specifically for the job hunting students who use CollegeRecruiter.com. To get hired, you must know how to interview well. Read this book and you will. To receive a free copy, subscribe to our free career newsletter.

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