• Discover a new career
For adults, it can be difficult to switch careers mid-stream. Maybe this is true for the most part because they have no experience in that newly-intended occupation. For younger comrades, it may be possible to get that experience, and sometimes a job offer, doing an internship. On the other hand, for slightly older folks, there is the presumption that they are too old to do an internship. Such is most definitely not the case.
Naturally, it can be a different journey for the adult internship applicant. Lots of companies primarily looking for interns imagine someone between the ages of 18-25. Still, this doesn’t mean that they would not be interested in older applicants. Also, it’s achievable to get internships outside the traditional campus-office track.
• How to set up an internship
There’re numerous approaches for you to set up an “adult” internship. The first one is to take courses at your local college. There will no doubt be an office that specializes in placing interns in the community. The main plus of this approach is that this is usually a well-organized effort that has many, many listings from which to choose. This may be predominantly true at community colleges because they are geared toward the adult, non-traditional student.
It is almost certainly best to let all concerned know that you are not a traditional age student. Some internships end up being almost completely grunt work. Owing to your age and experience in a different field, you may be able to persuade the employer to consider a more experienced applicant because of what you can bring to the table. Also, if you’re not concerned with doing some of those grunt work tasks, you should emphasize that. Some concern can be that you would not be willing to do what other interns have done for them.
Another approach for setting up an internship is using your business contacts. While you are going in a different direction doesn’t mean that you cannot avail yourself of people you have met. Working in finance, you now want to work in public relations, start contacting all of the PR folks you have met throughout the years. You perhaps be surprised how many are more than willing to help. Similarly, friends and family can be a good place to start. Though, be careful. Consider working for family and friends is not always a good choice.
There are a number of good locations for internship information. In the online world are excellent choices for internship listings primarily because of the broad range of openings. You can regularly tell from both the book and online listings whether a particular internship is a good choice for an adult applicant.
• What to look for in an internship
You should keep away from internships that have you doing only menial, paper-shuffling tasks. Although they may be appropriate for college students looking to break into an industry, you are likely hoping to land higher up the food chain. What is the difference? Producing an internship with a New York publishing company could land you a job as either an editorial assistant or as an editor. At the same time as that 22-year-old may be able to survive on what an editorial assistant makes, you cannot. The assigned type of tasks you can make the difference between being an editorial assistant or being an editor.
Of course, there will be some of that work in much internship, but the kind which you should find are the ones that are very specific about what you will learn and where you will learn it. The benefit should go to the company that has a long, successful history with providing internship opportunities.
Internships can come in two varieties; those that pay in cash and those that pay in opportunities. If you are lucky, you find one that does both. If you’re lucky enough to have sufficient funds, you should choose the best internship regardless of the money involved. If you must count on the money, you should consider that most internship do not pay well.
Therefore if you really want to change your life and/or your job, getting an internship, the right internship, can be the best place to begin.
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