My Summer Internship - The Story of One Intern

chillibreeze writer — Shreyas Joshi

The summer after your sixth semester is different. It is different for many reasons; and that it could be your final ‘long vacation’ being last, if not the least important, on this list. What sets this summer apart is that many of us get the first glimpse of what our lives are going to look like a couple of years down the line. Yes, it’s the internship season.

I was fortunate enough to be selected by an American financial giant as a summer intern and the ten weeks that I spent there introduced me to a knowledge set almost completely disjointed from what we learn or are supposed to learn in college. It would only be opportune to share a couple of things I learnt in the process.

As an intern I was supposed to not only get an overview of the work that is done in the various divisions within the firm but also of how it is done. Now that the topic of work culture has come up, it would only be appropriate to mention what most interns experience when they set foot in such an environment for the first time: a huge culture shock! And this is not because there is anything wrong with the way things are in an academic setup and even less in a corporate environment. It’s just that the priorities, the means and the aims are so dissimilar. Whatever be the reasons, the earlier one gets over it the better. Predictably, one does commit some rookie mistakes in the process, or that’s what I will say to justify the ones I made.

The best way out is to identify what exactly it is that you are going to do as a part of your internship and what you intend to learn from it. And to think that one can get away with functioning the way one does in college is a cardinal sin. The failure to adapt might very well make your internship seem more like an internment. It is necessary to realize that it is not sufficient to just get the results, and that efficiency is crucial and quality cannot be compromised.

The necessity to make oneself comfortable and be productive in a new and challenging environment makes one learn much more; and more often than not the hard way. I understood how vital it is to think clearly and to be able to communicate one’s thoughts in a way that reflects this clarity. The ability to do so is decisive when it comes to making your presentations effective, apart from the many small but essential elements that go into making a presentation complete. Time is of paramount importance and so there couldn’t be a worse idea than to beat around the bush when asked about the status of your project. The deadlines are very real and unlike Douglas Adams you can’t love them for the whooshing sound they make as they fly by.

It is very important to be able to look at an internship as more than a bullet on your CV and to optimize the gains in terms of education. The key according to me was to be receptive to new concepts and methodologies, to be open to suggestions and appreciative of criticism and of course, to make a lot of mistakes along the way. It’s the best if not the only way to learn.

Chillibreeze's disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not reflect the views of Chillibreeze as a company. Chillibreeze has a strict anti-plagiarism policy. Please contact us to report any copyright issues related to this article.

Out of 5 “chilies”, our editorial team gave this article...

—About our writer:

Shreyas says, "A Computer Science engineer by education, I have been a quizzer and a debater through my school and college years. My other interests which include reading history among other non-fiction and listening to a wide variety of music followed from my interest in quizzing. Besides these activities I have trekked for the past 4 years, mostly in the Sahyadris in Maharashtra."

>> Read more articles written by Chillibreeze writers:

More resources for Writers on Chillibreeze.com

Chillibreeze offers Indian writers the opportunity to work on customer projects. We are also India’s biggest writer network and a one-stop shop for Indian writers and editors. The writers’ section on Chillibreeze offers freelance writers and editors a variety of tools to advance their careers. Resources for writers include:

Assessment of your writing, editing and proofreading skills

Writing courses

Expert Feedback on your article

An opportunity to promote yourself on our website

Top websites for Indian writers

Tips and resources for Indian freelancers

Book Publishing services

And more………………..

Explore our writers’ section using the links on our left-hand side menu.