Oxford Stories Column: Internships Are Important, Students Must Aggressively Pursue Them

Meek School of Journalism hallway. Photo by Kennedy Glanzer.

As most college professors will tell you, it’s imperative that students try to get an internship before graduating and entering the real world. Having an internship is important because you gain real life, hands-on experience in an environment that you’ll be in after you finish school.
It’s ideal to get an internship during one of the summers you’re enrolled in a university, but for people like me, I couldn’t wait to start working. As I entered my sophomore year in college, I wanted an internship both semesters.
I wanted to start learning as much as I possibly could before I graduated. Instead of working one internship this school year, I ended up landing two different internships for fall semester and spring semester.

Internship program wall inside of the journalism building. Photo by Kennedy Glanzer.

Fall semester, I started working as an intern with HottyToddy.com. At the beginning, it was really hard to balance my schoolwork and internship work. I began to think it was nearly impossible to do both. But I didn’t want to give up.
So I created a daily routine balancing my schedule just right so I could have room for both, but also maintain an important social life. I started as a clueless intern, following people around, trying to keep up, but little did I know, it was the best decision I have ever made.
As the spring semester came around, I got an opportunity to intern with Ole Miss Communications. Just like the fall semester, I couldn’t pass it up.
On my first day, I knew this job was going to be very challenging. It was a lot faster-paced than my previous internships. I thought about taking a break this semester and not pursuing an internship, then I decided I wanted to gain as much experience and knowledge as possible, and this was another great opportunity to do so.

“I’m living the fast-paced life as a college student, maintaining an important internship. It’s not easy, and sometimes I feel so overwhelmed I think about quitting. But my dad always taught me to never give up, and good things never come easy. I had to make an even stricter schedule if I wanted to keep up, but it’s all worth it.“

Not only am I taking advantage of these unbelievable chances, but I’m forming relationships with my incredible bosses, who I look up to the most. It makes the internship more interesting because my co-workers and I are like a family.
I’m from Dallas, so my family isn’t close by any means, but having these internships helps form great, family-like relationships with people I look up to. I know that my work family will always support me no matter what.
My boss also keeps up with my schoolwork, constantly asking how my grades are, or when my next test is. They want me to be successful in all things, not just this internship. I couldn’t thank any of the people supporting me through this journey enough for all the support and love they have given me as I try and balance my work and school life.
One of the main things I’ve learned from this awesome experience is having an internship is important. It’s necessary for college students to jump on these opportunities during the school year.
I understand school is hard, and everyone wants a college social life, but I can’t explain how important and vital they are to all college students’ futures.
I often witness some students stress out because they don’t even know where to start when it comes to finding an internship. My best advice to students who feel that way is to be proactive.
Google is your best friend when it comes to finding jobs. Narrow down where you would want to intern, and reach out to the people who work there. Go to their website, and see if there’s any information on internships regarding college students.
Let them know that you want to be there, and work hard for their company. Let them know you’ll give it your all, and you would love this opportunity to grow.
My previous internship bosses have always loved teaching me and have noticed how enthusiastic I am about work and learning. That’s what company owners and employees want to see from college students. And who knows? Maybe you’ll get hired by the company you interned for after college.

By Kennedy Glanzer. This story was originally published on OxfordStories.net.
For internship opportunities for the upcoming fall semester email: Hottytoddynews@gmail.com.

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