Why I Chose to Work and NOT Intern
Hey everyone,
It seemed that everyone and their mother had an internship this summer..except for me. And I'm sure many of you were wondering why that is, right?
As a political science student I'm sure its surprising to come across a student in this field who wasn't interning this summer. Tack on the fact that I'm an incoming junior and I'm sure you're even more confused. I mean, isn't it expected that college students start to intern at my age? The answer is more complicated than you think.
I wanted to make this post to disprove the judgement, and potential stigma, around those of us who chose not to intern. Sure, it looks like everyone is doing it, but there's more to it than just an application.
So why is it that I chose to work full time instead of intern? Honestly, a huge part of it was for the financial aspect. I pay for college on my own and, in making the decision to intern or not, I realized it was more suitable for me to work instead of intern.
But what about paid internships? Sure, those are real and there are options out there, but the point I'm trying to make it that the money from a paid internship would not equate to the same amount that I could come up with working full time. I could have certainly applied to some, but I knew that with my upcoming semester abroad that it would not be wise of me to intern and then turn around and just expect the academic year to pay for itself. College just doesn't work like that.
Secondly, internships are not easy work! Finding the right internship, for myself, was a daunting task in and of itself. I would like to do something political, but I also enjoy journalism and PR. So the question then becomes, do I work in a state capitol or for a company managing their online presence? Do I try and work at a consulate or do I work for a magazine and work with PR or marketing? If I'm honest, the latter sound so much more enjoyable and entertaining. My goal is to figure out a way to combine my interest with passion, and this is where I'm hit with a major roadblock.
Whatever your reason for not interning this summer, or not working and choosing to intern, stand by it! Don't feel pressured to have your entire life planned out and do not feel that one summer you don't work or don't intern is going to ruin your academic career. That's just ridiculous.
How did you spend your summer? Let me know down below.
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