Value of Internships

T. MURALIDHARAN: Experts Speak is an exclusive forum for youth to get advice from industry experts. If you have questions concerning internships, careers, entrepreneurship and start-ups, this is where you can get your answers.

Sincere and focused interns are priceless for organisations. Today, organisations evaluate employees based on work ethics, values and integrity.

An internship will teach you all the above values and give you an understanding of organisational functioning.

Always remember that the subject of internship is not as important as the values you imbibe during the tenure. Go beyond your work scope and learn as much as you can; for your learning will stay with you for a lifetime. Internship is like a bridge between education and employment. Your course curriculum introduces you to various theories and concepts. Internship facilitates understanding how they are useful on the job, in the real world. It provides an opportunity to implement what you learnt during the course. It exposes you to a work environment and various job roles related to your field and provide an insight into expectations employers have from employees. Utilise this opportunity well; you will find it helpful to crack job interviews.

I’m currently pursuing my third-year bachelor’s and wish to enrol for an internship. What are the various ways to get an internship?

The best way to get in an internship is via an intermediary, which in your case can be internship portals like HelloIntern.com and others.

You can register with these portals and get regular updates on internship opportunities. Alternatively, you can also try for referrals from professionals, who can refer you for an internship with organisations.

I am a third-year student of IIT-Bombay, interested in working in the supply chain of leading FMCGs. Please suggest how to proceed to achieve my ambition?

Supply Chain is a very specialised domain and requires excellent skills. In your case, you have two options:

a) You can pursue a course in supply chain along with your B.Tech. Complete both and then directly apply to FMCG companies via their websites. You need to write a strong statement of purpose for taking up supply chain after doing B.Tech.

b) Otherwise, after your B.Tech you can do your MBA from a reputed institute and then you can easily get into supply chain. Also you not only grow your chances for opportunities with FMCG but also with consulting companies, in the supply chain domain.