Many interns dream of sealing the deal with their employer after an internship, especially after spending an extended period with the company. You might have fallen in love with the workplace culture, the work the company specializes in, or even your colleagues.
While some tech startups and firms primarily run internship-based programs, many others routinely offer a limited number of full-time positions to deserving interns. With these helpful tips, you can improve your chances of getting that call-back after your internship.
1. Be Professional
It goes without saying that professionalism is everything in a corporate workplace. One of the most effective ways to convince your employer that you would be a great addition to their full-time team is to let them know you’re an excellent person to work with.
You can do this by sticking to the work ethic and culture of your workplace during your internship. Even the most basic acts, such as being punctual, polite, and respectful towards everyone you interact with, can go a long way in showing that you’re a professional.
2. Find a Good Mentor
Getting a mentor during your internship is a great way to increase your chances of being retained because they can be a shoulder to lean on when you encounter difficult or confusing assignments.
Mentors could also be a resource to help you understand the ins and outs of the company. A good mentor could guide you in carrying out your duties and teach you to excel in your intern role. If you’re not sure how orwhere to get a mentor, just look around you.
During your internship, you’ll interact daily with a diverse set of colleagues, each with unique experiences, skills, and advice to share. Don’t be afraid to ask anyone of them to take you under their wing. They would also be glad to recommend you for a full-time position.
3. Be Innovative
Creativity will open doors for you. You should express your innate creativity at every chance you get. This could be through various tasks and assignments or your general approach to your work as an intern.
Show your colleagues that you can offer them fresh and innovative solutions to different problems; this will make you indispensable and increase your chances of being retained in a full-time position.
4. Learn Actively
Take full advantage of your internship by being present and trying to be actively involved in the company’s projects. Ask meaningful questions when you encounter challenging concepts, and be open to receiving all kinds of feedback from your supervisors and colleagues.
This will show them that you’re not afraid of constructive criticism and are interested in growing as an active company member. An excellent way to ensure that you’re participating and learning actively during your internship is tomake detailed notesof essential details in your routine.
Start a physical or e-journal and use it to keep track of all the amazing things you accomplished while interning. It will also help you to stay grounded in the learning process and point out areas of improvement.
5. Build a Good Network
Make a real effort to get to know the people around you throughout your internship. Since you’ll most likely spend most of your day with your coworkers, you should cultivate cordial and personal ties with them while you’re there.
You can connect with others by asking insightful questions, offering assistance, and being respectful. When your internship is over, tell them how much you enjoyed working with them and how you hope to stay in touch with them.
You could even offer toconnect with your coworkers on social media. They will appreciate your willingness to keep in touch with them and will gladly welcome you back into their team.
6. Be Versatile
Another good way to make yourself an asset during your internship is to show your coworkers you’re versatile. Versatility is your best bet at making the best of whatever new situations you’re thrust into is genuinely expressing your interest in learning from these new experiences.
Unexpected opportunities usually arise out of nowhere, and that strange project could be the highlight of your entire internship. Your work on it could help you solidify yourself as a potential part of the company. You might alsofind the right bossand a department that suits you perfectly.
7. Show Off Your Skills
Don’t hold back when you have an opportunity to let people know what you may do. Your skills may be creative, like writing or design, or more technical, like analytics or programming. They could even becore soft skills for tech professionals.
Whatever kind they are, you should use them as best you can, when you can. You can offer to assist your coworkers or other interns with projects you think you would be good at.
Likewise, you may volunteer for those that make you doubt your skills a little because they’ll be chances for you to get honest feedback about your limitations and add to your growth.
Showing off your skills is also essentially a way of selling yourself to your employer by showing them that you have something that could benefit their company.
8. Communicate Your Desire to Join the Team Full-Time
This is the most important tip of all. In addition to demonstrating that you’re the right person for the job, you’ll also need to communicate clearly that you want it.
You can do this by mentioning your desire to remain with the company to your colleagues, especially your mentors, and supervisors. They would give you the best recommendations and support you during your transition.
You should also express your interest directly to your employer. Request a meeting with them and let them know how much the internship has impacted you and that you would love to join the team full-time.
Interning With Full-Time Prospect
While interning, you may discover that you’ve found the perfect place to kick off your tech career. With this discovery, you need to make a plan to leverage your internship into a full-time position.
Maintain your visibility, foster connections with your colleagues, and strive to make a significant impact. Alternatively, at the end of your internship, you might discover that you’d prefer a career change.
Whatever the case, you can apply these valuable tips to transform your internship into a full-time role whenever you’re ready to settle.
