An internship is a professional learning experience that offers meaningful, practical work related to a student's field of study or career interest. An internship gives a student the opportunity for career exploration and development, and to learn new skills:
Consists of a part-time or full-time work schedule that includes no more than 25% clerical or administrative duties.
Provides a clear job/project description for the work experience.
Orients the student to the organization, its culture and proposed work assignment(s).
Helps the student develop and achieve learning goals
Offers regular feedback to the student intern.
Why Are Internships Important?
As an intern, you get a chance to work side by side with accomplished industry professionals and get a pretty good idea of what an entry-level role might entail. You’ll not only gain real work experience, but also meet and learn from the pros. And you’ll start to build your own network, from your fellow interns to seasoned leaders.One other less obvious but equally important benefit of an internship is the chance to figure out what you don’t want to do. It’s often difficult to know where to even start when it comes to job searching. Internships give you the chance to try a few things out without committing. If you’re lucky, you’ll find something you love. And if not, you’ll at least know what doesn’t work for you. When it comes to something as tricky as finding the right career, the more information you have to work with, the better.