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Where do I start?

Begin your internship search by considering career interests and goals for the future. What experience would you like to have? Are you looking primarily for getting skills, learning about an industry or making contacts? What time commitment can you make to the internship? Is compensation for the internship an important factor? Researching and thinking carefully about what you hope to get out of an experience will help clarify what strategy to use.

Speaking with a career counselor can also help provide more guidance and direction. After discussing your skills, interests and goals, you and your counselor can develop an effective strategy for finding an internship that best suits you.

Indentifying and Researching Internships

Focus your search by clarifying your priorities. Ask yourself important questions, such as:

• What do I want to accomplish through this internship experience?
• Am I looking for a structured or unstructured internship program?
• Where do I want/need to work geographically? Will I need transportation?
• What kind of organization do I want to work for? For example, do I want to work for a large or small company, or for-profit or not-for-profit? Do I want to work in a specific industry or perform a specific function?
• Will I need to have another job to provide me with an income?
• How many days per week can I / do I want to work?

If you want to know where other Columbia students had internships, check out the Internship Database to get basic information on companies, titles, hours and experiences of your peers.

General Strategies

• Understand the timeline
  • It is key to research and understand the recruiting timelines for the industries you would like to intern in. Take note of when the internship applications are due. For many well known internships, you will need to apply sometimes 3 or more months in advance (for example, the State Department and many internships in large consulting firms recruit early). Additionally, make sure you have access to Lionshare's on campus recruiting system to be able to upload your documents with enough time.
• Prepare your application materials
• It's a good idea to have the following materials prepared:.  Searching and applying for internships can be very time consuming, so being prepared and organized will help you use your time wisely. You don't want to be in a situation in which you've missed a deadline for an internship posting because you were waiting to get transcripts or contact information for your references. You should have the following prepared, with only a need for polish and customization, depending on the position:
  • Resume
  • Cover letter
  • References (At least two, with full contact information)
  • Transcripts
  • Writing Sample

Check out this Internship tipsheet for a list of helpful websites to start searching for internships.  Columbia University also sponsors several internship programs that support undergraduate students in their internships.  You can also find many books about internships and where to search by visiting CCE's resource library. For a list of titles and brief descriptions on what books are available, click here.

Strategies for students studying abroad in the spring semester only

Apply and try and set up interviews for internships before you leave the country. Some companies will actually interview students early if they are going abroad, but this is usually on a case by case basis. If you can not set up an actual interview, see if there is some way that you can set up an informational interview so that you will have connections in the field. If you are applying during the time that you are abroad, see if there are any breaks during which you might be returning to the US, and use this time to set up interviews. Alternatively investigate whether it is possible to do phone or videoconference interviews for the position. Some companies may be international and have a branch in the country in which you are studying, so try to set up an interview at the local branch of the company. Please note, most companies prefer to interview a candidate in person before hiring them so it is best to try and set up interviews before you leave the US. As with students studying abroad for the Spring semester, it is critical that you start thinking about what industries you would be interested in applying to and plan in advance. Use any breaks that you have back in the US to set up interviews or networking opportunities and be proactive in using contacts and your network to help you find an internship.

Where to Find Employers

• LionSHARE
• CCE Internship web site
• Internship Directories & Reference Books (located in the Career Resource Center)
• Internship/Job Banks
• Networking and Informational Interviewing
• Career Fairs and other career-related events on campus
• Professional Associations
• Former Employers and Personal Contacts

Finding a US internship for the summer after your overseas experience requires some advanced planning, and consideration of the semester(s) that you will be abroad and industry to which you are applying. In general, the majority of industries tend to post and recruit for summer internships in the spring semester. However, there are some notable exceptions. Many financial and consulting internships require that the applications for the internships be completed in late December or early January, and many State Department positions (and positions in embassies) have application deadlines of November 1st. In general, the larger the company/organization and more competitive the internship, the earlier the application deadline will be.

Before Accepting an Internship

You should find out as much as you can about the internship before you accept it. Discuss the opportunity with your career counselor. Check with your peers. Ask the employer any specific questions that you need to have answered. Some questions to consider:

• Will I get to do the kind of work I am interested in?
• What percentage of my time will be spent on hands-on work versus observing others?
• What percentage of my time will be spent doing administrative tasks?
• Are interns considered employees-in-training and treated as part of the team?
• May I speak to former or current interns? (Ask them what they liked and did not like)
• What kind of supervision will I receive?
• Will my performance in the internship be reviewed or discussed with me?

Do not be seduced by style over substance. A great company name does not necessarily mean you will have a great internship experience. Working for a smaller company can give you more hands-on experience than working for a large corporation

Additional Tips

Take advantage of any resources that you may have access to in your host country. Consider applying to international companies/multinationals that have offices in the country in which you are studying and investigate interviewing at one of the branches abroad. Contact the career services at your host university to determine what resources and internships listing search support. Take advantage of networking with alumni through resources such as the Columbia Career Connections database and alumni clubs overseas.

In addition, you should not forget to:

• View CCE Internships for the most up-to-date information about Columbia specific resources and internship programs.
• Sign up for LionSHARE. Request "Temp Time" when creating your profile to get emails on great temporary positions - some of which count as internship experiences.
• See a career counselor to get started on your search or focus your search!