My Big Question is an ongoing biweekly segment exploring various topics and answering your curious questions.
Welcome back to another week of My Big Question. I hope everyone was able to make it through midterms with their sanity intact; I was certainly close to completely losing it.
However, I was able to achieve some balance by attending the hockey games this weekend and setting aside time for myself to get homework done and clean my room. Nothing feels better than starting the next portion of the quarter organized and ahead.
This week’s big question: Where the heck can I find an internship?
On a campus like DU’s, one would assume there are many options for locating internships. I believe that there are, if you know where to look.
First, you can stop by the Burwell Center for Career Achievement. They offer drop-in hours every day for students to get help with resumes and cover letters, practice interview questions, and even pull a few pieces from the Career Closet- students can get up to four pieces of professional clothing for free, and keep them!
As well, the Burwell Center has an online portal called Pioneer Careers Online (PCO), which is easily located through their website. Here, students can make appointments if the drop-in hours don’t work, as well as see a list of potential internships and apply right away if interested.
Another resource is student newsletters sent out by the school through your “du.edu” email address. Series of emails such as The Bridge, The Pulse, and individual newsletters sent out by your school(s) or department(s) (for example, I receive a CAHSS newsletter every week, as well as one for Media, Film, and Journalism Studies) usually contain some information about known open positions on and off campus for students.
Some majors at DU, such as Media, Film, and Journalism Studies, require students to participate in internships for credit. These majors are more likely to provide students with information on internships than others. However, this doesn’t mean it’s not possible to find internships related to your major.
Checking the website dedicated to your major can yield information on any possible partnerships your major may have with companies that offer internships to students. As well, talking with your professors and others in your major can help you gather information as to where they have connections and/or have interned in the past. This can give insight into where it might be good for students with similar interests to intern and gain experience.
Lastly, search the internet for internships in fields you are interested in. I have a somewhat niche interest, publishing, and it can be hard to find internships in that field. However, through research, I have found an online spring internship with Penguin/Random House that I plan to apply to by the end of the fall quarter.
Try searching for internships in the Denver area, or perhaps in your hometown if you plan to return there over the summer. I recommend searching sooner rather than later since some summer internships tend to go fast. The true key to finding a good internship is taking the time to locate one you’ll enjoy participating in—so get started early!
Next week’s big question: How can I make study abroad easy?
