Virtual internships may not have been on your mind five months ago, but they are great opportunities to gain valuable skills and experiences for your future career. Due to COVID-19, many employers have switched their in-person internships to virtual ones, so it’s important to know what you can do to be prepared for success.
Blake Hedrick, ABE Alum and Engineer at John Deere Technology Innovation Center (JDTIC) at Research Park, supervises interns in the Robotics Lab and the remote work being done. As a supervisor, he’s already encountered challenges and opportunities when it comes to switching to remote and virtual work. “Remote work may be very difficult as you may have required physical resources to be able to do your work,” said Blake. However, at JDTIC, he has been able to ship smaller things to students when needed so they can continue work. “So reach out to your employer to see if that is an option and stay proactive on trying to set yourself up as best as you can to continue providing value.”
Blake also recommends making sure you have sufficient bandwidth for the job. “We have had students lose internet connectivity or not have sufficient bandwidth to present during conference calls, so be prepared for that and have a backup plan, such as sending your presentation to a shared location where someone else can grab it and present,” said Blake. Overall, he recommends reaching out to your employer prior to the start of your internship to make sure you have all the hardware and software needed to be successful for the summer.
In addition to these tips for success, be sure to also prepare yourself for a great internship by doing the following:
• Maintain a solid structure. Keep a consistent time schedule, and have a dedicated work space. Remember the flip-side of this is to also schedule breaks, and keep some separation between your work and personal time so you can remain balanced.
• Communicate. Communicate your schedule to both colleagues and those you live with to keep everyone informed of your working hours. Also communicate to stay engaged – use whatever platforms are available to you to stay in touch with colleagues throughout the summer and beyond.
• Ask questions. Don’t assume that asking questions makes you look bad – it’s better to ask and get the answer right than to assume and get the answer wrong.
• Be proactive. Ask “how can I help,” and don’t wait for tasks to be assigned to you. Take initiative to identify a need or ask how you can contribute to a project – these are the things that will help you get remembered for that full-time opportunity. Also be proactive in thinking about how the challenges you face can become a part of your story. Remember, the experiences that you will have this summer will become resume bullet points and interview stories in the future, so make the most of them.
• Write it down. Make sure you're keeping track of assigned projects, skills you're using, and collaboration opportunities. Use a project management system like Trello to keep yourself and your projects organized, and at the end of the summer you'll be able to look back and remember what you've done in better detail.
Most importantly, treat this internship like any other internship – be professional, be punctual, and be ready to learn!