There are many ways to find an internship - even during the Covid pandemic - and it is easier than searching for socks in a laundromat as long as you look beyond your nose.

Go searching formally and informally

You’ll find internships advertised all over the place! A great place to start is on Elabonline and AUT talenthub right here at AUT. This is where organisations advertise internships and graduate roles specifically for students.

Elabonline
Some of the roles will be targeted just to AUT students and graduates – others to all New Zealand university students. Sign into Elabonline, look up Jobs, specify ‘Internships’ and a list will unfold in front of you.

AUT talenthub
All these roles are exclusively for AUT students and the Internz staff get closely involved, helping organisations choose short lists and helping students prepare for interviews.

Most of the larger organisations do their internship recruitment in the first half of the year for summer, but other companies keep looking out for students throughout the year.  

External options
Many of the roles on Elabonline will also be advertised on SEEK and Trade Me and Nxt Step.  So spread your net wide and set up profiles and email notifications on all these job boards, as well Elabonline.

Another very important source of internship information is LinkedIn. Make sure you’re connected on LinkedIn to all the organisations you’d love to get work with because they often advertise on their LinkedIn channel, wanting to source students and graduates who show genuine interest in their organisation by keeping up to date with what they are doing.

The same goes for other social media channels.Join organisations' Facebook pages, Instagram, Twitter. They are all valuable avenues of connection and places where - increasingly - employers are advertising internships and other roles.

And don't forget the organisation's own website career or recruitment pages. A recent survey of employers by Elabonline’s parent organisation, UniCareerHub, found that 77% of employers expected students to sign up to their website’s career page and follow their LinkedIn page if they were interested in working for them.

EMPLOYERS ON LINKEDIN

2/3 employers use LinkedIn as a recruitment tool
75% of them use it to advertise roles
48% use it to check out applicants

(Source UniCareerHub 2020)

Grace's experience

Grace Davies has done two internships while studying and says she has gained immensely from the experiences. A friend, who'd already done an internship, suggested it to her when talking about being prepared for the workplace after university.

Grace started attending employer speaker events organised by the Employability and Careers service to find out what employers were looking for with internships and get an insight into their companies.

She also kept an eye on the Nxt Step website where many corporations, government agencies etc. list their internships and graduate programmes.
“Different companies advertise in different parts of the year so it is worth checking in regularly and applying to the ones that are relevant to your course and interest you. LinkedIn and SEEK are also websites where employers advertise entry level positions," says Grace.

A double degree student in design and marketing, Grace's first internship at NZ Transport Authority (NZTA) involved design and her second with Fisher & Paykel was in a marketing capacity. She found the Fisher & Paykel internship through Nxt Step and the NZTA opportunity was pointed out to her by a design lecturer.

Silent/Hidden opportunities

Not all organisations advertise internships. Some students get internships by rocking up to an organisation and simply asking if there is an internship opportunity available. This might sound hard, but employers are usually open to having a discussion with your about it. (See Kirria's example below).

Other students ask their part time employers about potential internship opportunities. For example, someone working in a retail shop may ask if they could do an internship in the marketing division etc. If you’ve got a good track record with your employer, they will be happy to help you if they have the resources to do so. Do be aware though, that some employers may be reluctant to take on an intern because of the cost and responsibility of health and safety and workplace requirements – so don’t take it personally.

Which leads to the thorny question of payment. Some internships – an increasing number in these uncertain Covid times – are unpaid. You need to decide whether the experience and possible foot in the door is worth giving your time for free. If unpaid, I’d strongly suggest you do it on a part time basis so you have capacity to earn some money or continue studying around it.

Kirria's experience

When Kirria Person heard Spacetime managing director Alex Bartley Catt speak at an AUT Edge Award presentation she did some online research and decided she would love to get experience at Spacetime.  “I couldn’t see any job or internship advertised on the website at the time so I decided to go to their office and speak to them in person to show my passion and eagerness to work for the company,” says Kirria.

She was lucky enough to get a coffee meeting the following week with the managing director.

“We had a nice discussion on how I could add value to the company and that’s how I got my placement,” explains Kirria, who is studying business and information systems.

Even though NZ went into lockdown in her second week at Spacetime, Kirria had an inspiring and fruitful internship with Spacetime.

Be Professional by Being Prepared

Remember to apply for internships as if you would a full-time graduate role. You need to show your passion and interest for the industry and organisation and be able to describe your skills clearly and communicate well.

If you need to get your CV or LinkedIn profile up to scratch, or wish to practice interview questions, sign up for a workshop at the Employability Lab now through Elabonline (under Upcoming Events/Employability and Careers workshops).

Want to know more about what internships are? 

Want to read more about Kirria Persons internship?

Want to read more about Grace Davies internship?

Despite Covid 19, there are still a number of internships on offer from organisations so take heart and get looking.

Written by AUT Employability and Careers writer Angela McCarthy