How To Be Successful In Your College Internship

Hey ya’ll! I am really excited to be writing about college internships because I am currently working as an intern for Travel Partners and the Buckeye Cruise for Cancer and I love it! This is my first “real job” and I am only 4 weeks in and have learned so much. So I am going to share some of my tips with you about how to be successful in your college internship!

Make A Good Resume

A good resume is crucial when it comes to applying for jobs! It needs to be organized, aesthetically pleasing, short to the point, but full of important information! I don’t recommend putting your picture on your resume because there are a lot of mixed reviews about that. I am going to show you the resume I had in high school and submit for the sorority rush process, and then my current resume. (Everything in black is personal information)

My old resume made in Word:

My current resume made in Canva:

As you can see, my new resume is SO MUCH BETTER. Some people say that I shouldn’t have included color, but I felt it represented me well. I think it is up to you and depends on the job you are applying for.

Canva is a free design program that is perfect for any graphics but also has several resume templates.

Networking/ Friend Referrals

I found my internship by reaching out to my family and friends to see if they knew anyone in the tourism industry that I could meet. One of my friends reached out to (my now boss) and recommended me to her. That recommendation really helped me get my foot in the door and secure the job!

Dress To Impress

My work has a more causal attire since our day to day tasks are constantly changing. However, I still try to dress really cute. For me, this means jeans, sweater, jewelry, and cute shoes. I realize this is normal for most people, so wherever you are working, make sure that you are dressing well and look put together. People notice these things, especially when you first start working.

Show Up Early!

This is easy. Always show up early. It is important to be consistent and reliable.

Come To Work With Fresh Ideas

When I was first hired, my boss mentioned that she wanted help with the social media accounts and keeping the excitement about travel alive during this pandemic. I spent a ton of time brainstorming ideas for content, creating a color scheme, working on the brand identity and other fun ideas to present to my boss on my first day.

Not only was this fun for me to do but my boss loved it. She appreciated my enthusiasm, desire to work, and wanted to implement several of my ideas!

Be Willing To Be Put To Work

This is self explanatory. Always offer to take something off of their plate to make their life easier. Whether it is to organize the office, sort products, post and respond to the comments on social media, make sure that you are always busy. Do not just sit there and wait for them to give you a task. Find something that needs done and do it. You can always just ask.

Communicate Well With Boss

Be very clear when you first accept the job about the days that you need off such as vacations even if they are months away. It is also important to be checking in with your boss about their needs and expectations of you for the day or week. Since I manage social media, I am constantly coming to my boss to show her my progress and explain the new content I created.

Shadow & Listen In On Meetings

I have learned so much from listening in on meetings. This is when you learn the little things like industry terms, and the process of planning events or trips (in my case). It is also really exciting to see how things come together and see everyone involved in making it happen.

Take Notes On What You Are Learning

Whenever I am invited to listen in on meetings, I make sure to be an active listener and take notes. These notes are just for myself to look back on. I usually write down the new terms I am learning, the purpose of the meeting, and who is at the meeting. These notes will help you out in the long run, and it’s fun to look back at everything you learned.

Learn As Many Names As You Can And Get Their Contact

I work at a small office with about 12 employees so it is really easy for me to get to know everyone on a more personal level. My goal has been to use my lunch breaks, or group tasks to ask questions about my co-workers and superiors. I want to know what their education level is, what job they had out of college, why they chose to work in the tourism industry, how they ended up working for Travel Partners, and any advice they may have for me. Bonus if you can get their contact information and establish a relationship! This can benefit you in the future when it comes to networking and referrals.

Work Hard and Stay Passionate

Last but not least stay passionate! It is extremely important to work hard during your internship and represent yourself well. If you are passionate about what you are doing, then working won’t feel hard. Internships are the perfect opportunity for you to try something out and discover your passions. If you don’t feel passionate about what you are doing, this is your sign to try something else.

I can’t wait to keep working and share all of my experiences and things I have learned. For all of my fellow college students, good luck with you internship! You will kill it!