Internship program is a period of supervised training required for qualifying for a profession. It follows a specified number of academic credits or classroom years. Interns are usually college or university students, but they can also be high school students or post graduate adults seeking skills for a new career. An internship may be either paid, unpaid or partially paid. Internships may be part-time or full-time; typically they are part-time during the university year and full-time in the summer, and they typically last 6–12 weeks, but can be shorter or longer. Internship positions are available from businesses, government departments, non-profit groups and organizations. Due to strict labor laws, European internships are mostly unpaid, although they are still popular among non-Europeans in order to gain international exposure on one’s résumé and for foreign language improvement.
Two primary types of internships that exist in the United States are Work experience internship, Research internship or dissertation internship.
Work experience internship will be in the second or third year of the school period. The placement can be from 2 months to sometimes even one full school year. During this period the student is supposed to use the things he/she has learned in school and put it in practice. This way the student gets work experience in their field of study. The gained experience will be helpful to finish up the last year of the study.
Research internship is done by students who are in their last year. With this kind of internship a student does research for a particular company. The company can have something that they feel like they need to improve, or the student can choose a topic within the company themselves. The results of the research study will be put in a report and often will have to be presented.
Fee for Internship
Some companies will find and place students in internships for a fee, such internships are mostly unpaid. In some cases companies charge to assist with a search, promising to refund their fees if no internship is found. Another form of paying for internships is through charity auctions, where a company with an internship will select a charity to get the proceeds of the auction. In some cases, companies have created internships simply to help charities. In the United States, and other countries with down economies, internships have been a form of work for many experienced workers who have been laid off due to budget cuts. This adds another factor into preparing for internships for students- how to make someone who is still in school look better than someone who has been doing the job for years!
Internships by countries.
United States
Many internships in the United States are career specific. Students often choose internships based on their major at the university/college level. It is not uncommon for former interns to acquire full-time employment at an organization once they have enough necessary experience. The challenging job market has made it essential for college students to gain real world experience prior to graduation. Nearly all interns working in the United States must be paid, and at least the minimum wage, for their work in accordance with the Fair Labor Standards Act.
United Kingdom, Canada and Australia
Internships are often referred to as ‘sandwich placements’ in UK , Canada and Australia and are validated work experience opportunity as part of a degree program. University staff gives students access to vacancies and students apply direct to employers. Some universities hold fairs and exhibitions to encourage students to consider the option and to enable students to meet potential employers. In the modern labour market graduates with work experience in the form of sandwich placements are not only deemed more desirable to employers but also research has demonstrated they attain higher level degree classifications than those graduates without such experience.
Spain
At Spanish universities it is uncommon to do an internship during the education period. The real working experience for students starts when they are done with their study. However, Spanish companies are getting more used to having students doing an internship at their company nowadays. Mostly these are international students from other European countries. Spain is a popular country for students to go to for a short period of time to do an internship.
Germany
In Germany there are different kinds of internships as well. As in most other countries, most students take their internship during the fourth or fifth semester of their degree. In some fields of study it is common to write the final thesis in a company. Another type of internship has emerged, the post graduation internship. The high unemployment in Germany during the last years has made it hard for people to find the right job, especially for people that have just graduated and lack work experience.
France
At the French universities it is also most common to do an internship, in France called stage, during the third or fourth year of your studies. The duration of the internships varies from 2 to 6 months, but very seldom longer than that. In France it is also becoming more popular to do an internship after one has finished studying. Mostly for students that did not get the chance to do an internship during their study career, and try to gain some working experience this way.
Some of the Top Internship topics given below. Just some examples to know what is expected from an intern through an internship by a firm. Hope you will have a serious search to find an apt internship to develop a booming career.
- Entertainment Marketing and PR
- Journalism / Media
- Paid Branding, Ads, Innovation Summer Internship
- Event Marketing Academic Internship
- Arts Management Internship
- NISH Summer Intern Program
- Summer Internship at NYC PR Firm
- SEO Career Program
- Aeura Bio-Pharmaceuticals
- Internet Blogging and Marketing
- Architect-Interior Design.
