Internships

[jeepster]

So I'm thinking of cutting out of school early to do a Senior Internship in the stead of going to school. I have to locate one, and while the school can help me find one, as well as my parents or friends, I'd like to do it sort of on my own. I've never done an actual internship anywhere, I've worked places and I have a pretty menial job (only Saturday's for chicken feed, but I work all summer), but not much that applies to a "real-world" job. So what I'm wondering is - how do I go about finding, securing, and getting ahead in an internship that intersects my interests and could prove interesting for a short period of time (April till June, most likely)

Intern's, or past intern's, please advise.

This is trash, so feel free to throw in funny stories.

[jeepster]

Also, I have access to NY for this, so I'm thinking I wanna do something in the city. I'm perusing craigslist right now, but it looks like these jobs require a lot more in terms of a substantial resume.

[fndmybetterhalf]

from my experience, your school is your best resource as far as internships go. skip craigslist, you won't find much there. most schools have like a career services where they find you jobs and internships accroding to your major and such.

id try that out. if not, another way is to just hustle it. call up companies that you wanna work for and just be persistant about it.

[jeepster]

oh yeah, i'm in hs

my school can only offer so much in terms of available internships, but i'm looking to expand a bit but a lot of internships are looking for undergrads, so the field narrows a bit more with that. in the unfortunate way.

[chromesquared]

I don’t think your plan is the wisest one, but if you are really intent on getting out of HS I think that taking the GED and then taking classes at a decent community college is a pretty good option. Realistically, a BA/BS is the minimum when speaking from an internship/job getting standpoint I think, but by doing the above you can start to rack up college credit instead of just wasting time in HS (doing similar work and getting no credits). Plus I would guess that most employers don’t even really sweat a HS diploma/assume everyone has one/don’t really care (provided that u have a college degree). Also, you can get a bit of a jump start and possibly graduate from college earlier (if u intend on going). 2CENTS

[fndmybetterhalf]

oh yeah, i'm in hs

my school can only offer so much in terms of available internships, but i'm looking to expand a bit but a lot of internships are looking for undergrads, so the field narrows a bit more with that. in the unfortunate way.

oh...not sure how practical it is to do an internship in high school to be honest. colleges (if you're planning on going) mainly look for GPA's and SAT scores, not your experience. hold off on internships til your soph/junior year of college and finish up school.

[breams]

Don't overlook the personal hookups either just because you want to be independent. They can take you a long ways, and if you aren't willing to take them, there is always someone else who is.

[off bowery]

If you can play an instrument holler at me, ill get you an internship in ny.

[keagan]

I don’t think your plan is the wisest one, but if you are really intent on getting out of HS I think that taking the GED and then taking classes at a decent community college is a pretty good option.

kind of off topic, but I am wondering what you would consider a "decent community college". I am taking my GE's at a cc. I've been looking around.

Can I goto a cc or public anything out of my state? How about out of the country?

[Handlethevibe]

What the hell is a decent community college? A community college is a community college.

[sidneylo]

Fuck internships.

[jeepster]

I'm not skipping out on school, exactly. it's a form of work-study. i get an internship, i do that, plus a little academic work on the side, i get credit in the classes i'm taking based on the amount of time i work and whether or not i have out of school work for current classes. it's a school function, so i'm not dropping out or anything like that. it's just an internship instead of going to the last 6-8 weeks of school. it sorta see it as a good work experience/better way to end school than actually busting my ass to finish up with a decent gpa.

my thought is: i'm going to college in the fall, and working all summer, so it's always good to build my resume up before i get out on my own, right?

[PaperSt.]

^ decent usual means a good transfer rate to major colleges. i.e. how respected it is as an institution.

jeepster, what kind of field are you looking into? that might help with an answer a more realistic answer.

For the most part though your going to have to have some college under your belt first because a company is basically hiring you as an intern until you finish a degree so they can hire you full time, if they like you of course.

[jeepster]

I'm mostly looking in the field of art related interning, like working at a gallery, or helping in a studio. i've also looked into working at a record label, working at a photo studio, working with writers, Oak-nyc was offering some internships that i have bookmarked, and various other things. mostly what i'm looking for is something that will bring together art, music, and media and will allow me to do something interesting, as opposed to strictly excel and coffee runs. i dont mind data entry, but i'd like to get a little hands on experience. that's asking for a lot, but i can adapt well to certain jobs and i'm a pretty diligent worker

[sidneylo]

I'm mostly looking in the field of art related interning, like working at a gallery, or helping in a studio. i've also looked into working at a record label, working at a photo studio, working with writers, Oak-nyc was offering some internships that i have bookmarked, and various other things. mostly what i'm looking for is something that will bring together art, music, and media and will allow me to do something interesting, as opposed to strictly excel and coffee runs. i dont mind data entry, but i'd like to get a little hands on experience. that's asking for a lot, but i can adapt well to certain jobs and i'm a pretty diligent worker

You have one luxury I don't have—time.

If you hustle hard enough, you'll get whatever internship you want... but try not to get caught up in that hustle. One thing that I never risked was cutting into my creative juice. If you can do something you're really passionate about and get away with credits, shoot. If not, I would be more selective if I were you. Keep your interests close and work however you can, with or without an internship. It's how I got around... it might not be the fast track but it's something I can call me own.

2cents.

[DaBestSpoona]

school is probably the best resource, and if you have friends who goto ivy leagues or well respected schools use their career center.

[geekbonchic]

Honestly, just start calling places you'd like to work and ask them if they're looking for interns. Even places that don't list any availabilities on their websites can be persuaded if you make it sound like you'll really put in a lot of time.

[dismalfuture]

Honestly, your best bet to get an insta-in is to look up the old boys club, I'd imagine your school can point you toward them, and then see what alumni from your school do what and what they can do for you. As long they're not complete assholes or hated themselves during their time at your school, they will most likely be friendly and take you in if they have space, under the commonality.

[Serge]

Hookups are usually the best way to get an internship. Like no joke, I had an offer for an internship at the Dutch Consulate just because my parents are good friends with the Consul of the Netherlands. Psh, hookups are the only way to go.

EDIT: Sleeping with someone can do the same for you.

[geekbonchic]

Diplomatic immunity included?

[PaperSt.]

You have one luxury I don't have—time.

If you hustle hard enough, you'll get whatever internship you want... but try not to get caught up in that hustle. One thing that I never risked was cutting into my creative juice. If you can do something you're really passionate about and get away with credits, shoot. If not, I would be more selective if I were you. Keep your interests close and work however you can, with or without an internship. It's how I got around... it might not be the fast track but it's something I can call me own.

2cents.

Agreed I got an internship with a skate shoe company a year or two back from meeting someone at a trade show who agreed to interview me. I didn't have any experience but I taught my self photoshop and illustrator years prior to that and was fairly good at that point so when I showed them my portfolio they were impressed and I got the job. It was because of the years of doing it on my own that really landed it, they saw the dedication and skill level despite formal training. They taught me most of what i didn't know, now I have a legit job on my resume. Keep doing what you like and build a portfolio, most of the creative industries care more about talent than school. Plus if you can land a good job they might help pay for you to go to school if they see you as a long term employee.

Edit: Read while listening to Rick Ross- Everyday I'm Hustlin'

[DüM]

I've been an intern. I was late everyday and I missed a couple days because of more important supermeetups, but the guys were cool.

also, agreeing with doing shit on your own, this is how I got it. Though I was lucky in that they approached me.

[hawkeye]

I did the same sort of thing for the last few months of my senior year in HS, they let us out to do a Senior Project which was essentially an internship. The museum that I worked at didn't just want us for 2 months so I had to commit to going in I think every other Sunday afternoon over the Summer, which was fine with me. This might be something they might try to get you with, but you might be able to turn it into a Summer job.

I had another (real) internship at a small PR firm when I was in college. A lot of small companies are dependent on interns, so you might want to try to look up some smaller places within your interests. I know my company, which is fairly large, requires that our interns receive college credit.

[ouss]

Agreed I got an internship with a skate shoe company a year or two back from meeting someone at a trade show who agreed to interview me. I didn't have any experience but I taught my self photoshop and illustrator years prior to that and was fairly good at that point so when I showed them my portfolio they were impressed and I got the job. It was because of the years of doing it on my own that really landed it, they saw the dedication and skill level despite formal training. They taught me most of what i didn't know, now I have a legit job on my resume. Keep doing what you like and build a portfolio, most of the creative industries care more about talent than school. Plus if you can land a good job they might help pay for you to go to school if they see you as a long term employee.

Edit: Read while listening to Rick Ross- Everyday I'm Hustlin'

wish it was like that in france.

wish it was like that in banking.

[chrisj]

kind of off topic, but I am wondering what you would consider a "decent community college". I am taking my GE's at a cc. I've been looking around.

Can I goto a cc or public anything out of my state? How about out of the country?

wtf keagan ur not from london?

[keagan]

who said I was from london?

london is scary.

[m_2]

I've been an intern. I was late everyday and I missed a couple days because of more important supermeetups, but the guys were cool.

also, agreeing with doing shit on your own, this is how I got it. Though I was lucky in that they approached me.

I could not agree more. Im doing my own thing right now and social networking is a necessity. Im a highschool senior as well and I landed an internship at FIT. Which is great for me and I've met a lot of people that can help me out. Now through that I've found a future paid internship and more clients for my freelance design job plus I do real work at my internship rather than bs clerical shit. cliched but sometimes who you know can help more than what you know.

[pwnzj00]

Just adding on to everyone else's two cents...talk to career services or whatever at your school, or maybe be on the looks for postings on public boards on campus for opportunities. I just applied to one and got set up with an internship at a small hedge fund/wealth management group for the summer in New York. We have to pay a little bit, but that's for housing and other activities. When I was looking around, I checked some websites, craigslist, and other shit, but the best way to get the real shit is through personal connects or school alumni.

[Guest spazzz]

we're all forgetting this is high school level shit. who looks for high schoolers as interns?

[Hella Hyphy]

wtf keagan ur not from london?

i though keagan was from australia