Are you wondering how to get a good internship in graduate school?
Well this comprehensive guide will assist you in your search for a good internship site.
Although this guide is specific to Master of Public Health (MPH) graduate students, it can be applied to a plethora of other graduate level programs. And even undergraduate programs.
I will approach this guide in 4 steps:
- Long-Term Plan (Internship & Beyond)
- Finding a Good Internship Site
- Applying for Your Internship
- Excelling at Your Internship
Getting a good and worthwhile internship in your MPH or other graduate program is going to be important for success in your career afterwards.
One factor I will not speak much about in this article is paid vs unpaid internships. I really think it’s in your best interest to get a paid internship or some sort of compensation such as a stipend or paid attendance at a conference.
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1. Long-Term Plan (Internship & Beyond)
One tool you can use to preface any of your internship searching in graduate school is taking a Career Assessment Test at MyPlan.com. I will confess that I never took this, but I know they are a couple other sorts of assessments you can take to help you narrow down your career interest.
First
You will need to figure out your desired career plan.
You will have to visualize what internship, experiences and mentors would best fit into your desired career plan. Remember that your career plan could always change. Especially when you get more internship experience and find out what you like more.
Finding a career plan is basically just looking at what sort of job field you would want to work in. Maybe it’s doing something in the non-profit sector or maybe in government or multinational agency. Alternatively, this can be which job titles or duties you will want to do in your career.
You will want to have an idea of what career plan you desire so you can find a good internship to match.
Maybe you hope to intern at specific a specific company, industry, or department within an organization. These are a good few ideas to think about before you decide on your where you want to ultimately intern.
Then you’ll want to know if you want an internship site where your university is located or some other city.
Does you graduate program allow for you to intern in another city or internationally?
That’s something you will have to find out from your internship coordinator. Once you find that out, you’ll want to think about which location you will want to intern.
Internships can be posted for specific periods of times like: 4-8 weeks, summer, 3-months or longer. So you will need to know what flexibility in your life and graduate program you can have to do a certain internship.
Time-constraints on internships are probably the biggest challenge in finding a good internship site outside of your university area. But it can be done with diligent work and follow up from you.
Anecdotally, persons who intern for an out of city organization are more likely to get hired after their internship.
Another thing to consider would be which sector you will want to build your resume and network within.
Then
Informational interviews can be utilized as a tool to gain more insights into an organization or more specifically a position within that organization.
These interviews allow you to learn about someone’s career path while also learning what projects they are working on. This can be a great way to get a networking connection for a future internship.
Additionally, this can be utilized to better understand your field and see if the work this person does aligns with your future vision or career plan.
This person can also become a potential mentor.
Next you’ll have to think about if you want to work for a Small vs Large organization. Or For-profit vs Non-profit. Keep in mind smaller organizations tend to have bigger roles for graduate interns that do bigger companies. While being in the for profit vs nonprofit sector could affect the type of experience you gain as well.
Lastly
You should be thinking about if you want to be working more independently, on a team or just with your mentor/preceptor when looking at internships. This will be an important discussion to have in the application and interviewing process.
If you aren’t actively searching for an internship in this semester and you aren’t working, I would highly suggest that you either volunteer or become an active member in a student organization or an other cause.
This will be important as you are able to be gain new knowledge and experience while being altruistic and helping others.
By doing these extra activities before seeking an internship it will show future internship sites that you are going beyond just your academic obligations. And by doing this you will be gaining valuable skills and/or relationships for your future internship and jobs.
2. Finding a Good Internship Site
So you’ve gotten a solid grasp on the type of internship you would like to have. Now it is time to search for the internship site that you want.
How do you do this you ask? Well there are going to be many resources that can be used to learn about internship sites that spark your interest.
Here is an extensive resource list to use for your internship search:
Internship Coordinator
This is your best bet as they have seen all the internships that every single student has done throughout your program. They will be very knowledgeable about internship sites that will align with your interest.
Make sure to get to know your program’s internship coordinator.
School Career Website
Your school’s career website is the perfect place to look for internships. Companies are posting on here to get graduate-level students, which is not always the case for other job searching websites.
If you are going to use this as a resource, it is best that you act as quickly on new opportunities as they tend not to have many availabilities while being in high demand.
Internship or Career Fairs
Internship or Career Fairs are going to be places that you could potentially hit gold for your internship site. Like your school’s career website, these employers will be seeking persons in graduate-level programs which makes it an ideal place to look. However, you should ensure to make a meaningful and lasting impression on who you speak to as they usually speak to dozens of students at different universities.
To set yourself apart in this environment:
- Have your elevator speech ready to go
- Research prospect organizations that will be at the fair
- Ask, “How can I make myself stand out among applicants?” to the employers
- Follow-Up in a thoughtful email
Professors or Mentors
Professors and mentors just like your internship coordinator will have a great idea of the internship landscape at your university. They also may have the potential to connect you with individuals whose work aligns with your interest.
This being said, you have to make sure to put your best foot forward so that you can prosper through your professor or mentor.
Older Cohort Students
Individuals in the cohort above yours will know the ins and outs of the internship process. They will know first handedly which internships are best suited to what interest and can really help guide you in the search for the right internship.
Starting these conversations early on during your graduate program can put you in the front of the pack when it comes time to apply for internships.
Alumni of your Program
Just like older cohort students, alumni can really help guide you in your process of getting the right internship. Alumni of your program can usually be beneficial in two ways:
- They either know of the good and worthwhile internships; or
- They have internship positions available as they work in organizations nearby
If you are able to connect with Alumni that resonate with your career plan, professional goals and passions make sure that you are putting in effort to keep these relationships alive.
Job Searching Sites
Job searching sites like Indeed, Glassdoor, LinkedIn or even Internships.com can also be used to search for internships. However, these resources usually are best suited for out of city internships if you don’t live in a big city (except internships.com).
Finding good internships on these websites can also be harder to get accepted for as the applicant pool tends to be bigger and thus more competitive.
Some great websites to look for Master of Public Health graduate internships are:
- CDC (Centers for Disease Control & Prevention)
- APHA (American Public Health Association)
- PHI (Public Health Institute)
- WHO (World Health Organization)
- HRSA (Health Resources & Services Administration)
- SOPHA (Society for Public Health Education)
Cold Emailing
Cold emailing meaning you send an email to someone you don’t know and hope to get a response. This is usually used when you find an organization you love, but there are no open positions for you. Therefore you just send out an email stating your interest in interning with this organization.
Always make sure to research who is the best person to send your email to and never make these emails too wordy.
Via Networking
Networking can be done through many of the resources listed above. Having good relationships with the right people can help you get the internship you want or connect you with someone else who can help. In the working world, it is becoming ever more common for individuals to get jobs strictly through networking.
Get to connect with people because you never know who’s the person that can help you get to your next step. Which is a good internship in this case.
3. Applying For Your Internship
Now that you’ve narrowed down the good internship sites you want to work at, it is time for the fun stuff. No matter how good of a student you are, if you application is weak then you aren’t going to stand a chance.
Applications for internships usually consist of you submitting a:
- Resume or CV
- Cover Letter
- Personal Statement
- References
- And an Interview
However, you can have very informal application processes (i.e. your professor hires you to work in the lab or at his organization, etc.).
First
You need to know any and all deadlines for the application as well as any timelines for the application process, if applicable.
If possible, it would be great idea to talk to current or past interns at the site. This will be important to see if the organization and the projects aligns with what you want to pursue.
You will also want to know the time requirements and know how it fits in with your school-life balance.
Then
After that, you will want to ensure that your resume/CV, cover letter and/or personal statement are impeccable.
Each application you submit should be tailored to that specific internship position. You should ensure you adjust your experience and skills (in the documents named above) so that you best leverage your experience and skills to match the internship description.
Make sure that you have someone else read over your materials. This will help you submit an application with that does not have any errors. This can be a friend, a professor or mentor, but just ensure to get fresh eyes to look it over.
Lastly
Now that you’ve applied to the internships and are waiting for an interview, it is now time to sharpen up on your interview skills.
Interviews can be nerve wrecking and very frustrating situations, but you know what? The more interviews you do, the more comfortable you are going to feel. So get out there.
Additionally, it could be helpful to know the organization’s mission, values, and vision prior to interviewing.
It is also extremely important to practice for potential interview questions. This can be done by standing in the mirror and talking aloud or with the help of a friend.
(Related: 9 Keys For Success in Graduate School)
4. Excelling at Your Internship
Now that you’ve had a successful application process and got hired at the internship site you wanted, it is time for you to make the most out of this experience.
You will want to ensure that you treat your internship like a real job.
This will be important because it allows you to develop your own personal professional demeanor. You have to remember that the work that you will doing during your internship has real-world consequences. So make the most out of this time to develop yourself and produce work that you are proud of.
Set Goals
This could be personal goals or it may be goals that you and your mentor/preceptor set.
Setting goals allows you to clearly define what are the most important projects and skills you want to attain during your internship. It will also help quantify how well you’ve done by means of evaluation and/or reflection.
This can also be extremely helpful for developing your resume. It helps you by physically (or digitally) writing out “the big picture” goals, which makes it easily transferable to a resume or personal statement.
Mentorship
During your internship, you are going to have the opportunity to build on relationships with your preceptor and other persons at your internship site.
I’d like you to think of mentorship as a way to help you better understand the field and learn how to best position yourself for success.
This is done best by asking LOTS of good questions. During your internship there are going to be numerous times to learn new knowledge in your field.
It will be prudent for you to ensure that you are gaining the most during your internship. This is both by working on various projects and asking good questions.
Feedback & Reflection
Having an evaluation plan can be extremely helpful for your growth during your internship.
This is essentially means of a personal feedback loop. This feedback can be used to know what you know you have to improve on during your internship.
Lastly, it will be important to reflect. This is especially important if there is no formal review or evaluation process during your internship. Remember that every experience is valuable.
Even if the value is you realizing that this specific field or environment is not suited for your future career ambitions.
(Related: 4 Steps to Secure a Job After Graduate School)
Conclusion
In concluding, I have walked you through the essential steps to take to ensure that you can get a good internship during your graduate program and make the most of it.
In recapping, the 4 Steps to get a good internship are:
- Long-Term Plan (Internship & Beyond)
- Finding a Good Internship Site
- Applying for your Internship
- Excelling at your internship
Internships can be great way to set you apart from you fellow graduate students.
For this reason, you should give deep thought about the experience and knowledge you want to gain from an internship. And then seek out the opportunities that are most aligned with this vision of growth that you see.
There are many different resources that you can use to get the right internship for yourself. Look early and you will develop the relationships that can best help you and keep you ahead of the curb.
When comes time to apply for internships, you should have a shortlist of places where you want to intern. Apply to all of them as the internship market is probably going to be saturated. Ensure that you are tailoring every application to the specific skills and experiences asked of in the internship process.
Once you have secured the internship, now it’s time to put your best foot forward and take your growth to the next level.
What steps have you been taking to get the internship that you want during graduate school?
