40+ Ways to Land Your First Internship

Finding the Right Position in a Competitive Market

A sobering statistic

In January 2010 nearly 10% of grads from the previous May

were still unemployed (1 in 10 after over 6 months).

Road Map

Today’s Road Map1. How to think about job seeking2. How to get your materials perfect3. How to network and get job offers

Why Internships?

Internships are not just for junior year summer – they are

the #1 gateway to jobs!

Internship Facts• 70% of interns offered a job in

2008• 50% take that job• 20% higher wages for previous

internship experience

HOW TO THINK ABOUT JOB SEEKING

Section 1:

1. Treat the Search Process Like a Job

2. Look for something Different

Just because you are interested in marketing does not mean you need to or should go intern at a big marketing firm

3. Look at Non-ProfitsAbility to get hands on experience and make an impact

3+ Volunteer

4. StartupsImpact the bottom line, develop a portfolio of real work

5. Small Business• 99.7% of US businesses have under 500 employees• Firms under 20 employees make up 18% of all jobs

Guess that Famous Ex-Intern

6. Don’t Get Discouraged

Bill Gates

Congressional Page

Harvard

Microsoft World’s Largest Non-Profit

Guess that Famous Ex-Intern

Brooke Shields

San Diego Zoo

Model

Actress

Guess that Famous Ex-Intern

Patrick Ewing

Congressional Finance Committee

NBA Career

Various Movies

Guess that Ex-Intern

This is ME!

Arnold Worldwide Marketing

National Audubon Society

Law School

Founder of InternMatch

The Career Web

Policy/Government

Sports

Non-Profits

Film

Business

Modeling

??????

Where are Internships Now?

• Class and School Work• Extracurriculars• Clubs• Sports• Greek Life• Etc

• Socializing• Friends• Band• Happy Hour?

Internships

7.Prioritize internships/the job Search (like an extra class)

Why Internships Should Be at or Near the Top

Internships

• Class and School Work• Extracurriculars

• Clubs• Sports• Greek Life• Etc

• Socializing• Friends• Band• Happy Hour?

Internships

HOW TO STANDOUTSection 2:

9. No typos (45% with just one typo are thrown out immediately)

10. Get TA recommendations

11. Professional Experience on top – employers need someone who can hit the ground running

12. Want to be a Marketer – Write a Blog!Go to WordPress.com right now!

12. Want to be a programmer – Write some Code!Post completed projects on Github

13. Want to do PR – Get a story published!

14. Want to do accounting – Learn QuickBooks!

15. Want to do management – Run a club or Greek House!

16. Want to do journalism – Write for the University Daily!

17. Cover Letters… compliment your employer, everyone likes flattery.

18. Cover Letters… mention something specific about the company, something you like, some idea you have, some press they got, etc.

19. You are building a personal brand

20. Should I design my resume – not unless you’re an art student, but maybe put the company’s logo on it.

21. Get Business Cards

22. Make a personal blog

23. Make personalized letter head

24. Make personalized thank-you cards

25. Always Follow-Up

26. Follow-Ups should be short and very positive:

Hi Nathan,

Thanks for taking the time to speak with me yesterday. I really enjoy how your company focuses on generating deep online relationships, this is something I have found important in my own writing for the Daily blog and why I always follow-up with guest bloggers when they write for me.

I look forward to hearing back from you.

Regards,

John Doe

27. Put class projects online and link to them

HOW TO NETWORK AND GET HIREDSection 3:

28. Go to events (Chamber of Commerce, Local Associations, etc.)

29. Use MeetUp.com and TeachStreet.com and other professional services

30. Talk to teachers, family and friends

31. No one hires on the first date – build relationships.

32. Ask Questions. Ask about how they got to where they are now, ask for industry feedback, ask for tips on how to break into the industry.

33. Expand outwards – ask if they know anyone else you should be speaking to.

34. Remember to Follow-Up (Always Follow-Up!).

35. Get on LinkedIN

36. Get your LinkedIn friends to intro you to their LinkedIn friends

37. Get rid of any suspect photos on Facebook or make them private

38. Make Your Facebook picture the same as your LinkedIn picture, the same as your InternMatch picture, the same as your business card picture (personal branding).

39. Find a way to make the process interesting for the other person – Can you help them? Can you give them some new college insights?Keep connecting!

40. Stay optimistic and have fun!

Thank YouNathan Parcells

Founder/CMO

InternMatch

nathan@internmatch.com

301.873.8435

Sign up at www.internmatch.comand get 3 recommended positions!