Hi everyone! This is my first blog entry so I’ll briefly introduce myself. My name is Robyn Hicock and I am currently doing an internship between my 3rd and 4th year of Software Engineering. My internship is for 16 months and I’m working for IBM in Markham, Ontario.
My internship has been awesome so far! I’ve learned so many new things and have met some amazing people. I’m on a team at IBM that travels around the world to teach a course to business partners. The picture below is actually from one of my business trips to Warsaw, Poland. In fact, I just finished teaching a course with my coworker in Frankfurt, Germany last week. Right now I’m in Paris, France! This is truly my dream job. Moreover, I probably never would have gotten these opportunities if I hadn’t applied for an internship a year ago.
I think the part that surprised me the most about internship was that interns are given just as much responsibility as full time employees. And that’s a wonderful thing! Interns are fully trusted with important projects, and what they accomplish actually makes a difference. The experience you gain, and networking opportunities you are given as an intern are extremely valuable.
I’ve also been told that it’s easier to find a job after graduation if you have experience from an internship or co-op. If employers have a choice between someone they don’t know, and someone that has proven they can do the job, then they’d probably pick the person with experience. Furthermore interns get paid, so there’s really nothing to lose.
So if you are a student thinking about an internship or co-op, I’d say do it! I’m definitely glad that I did.
- Robyn
Hey,
I completely agree with you. An internship is a valuable experience and you shouldn't miss out!!
Posted by: Tu Tran | 12/03/2009 at 07:01 PM