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Why You Should Consider Interning at a Small Startup

You Should Consider Interning at a Small Startup

 While evaluating summer internship options, your preference will understandably lean toward large, well-established companies, especially multinationals. What you may fail to realize is that there is immense value in interning at a smaller company, especially when you’re just making an entry into the industry.

Working as an intern in a tech startup, for example, may not come with the top-brand recognition typically sought after by your friends in, say, finance. You will, however, gain valuable real-world experience from that internship that may otherwise be inaccessible as an intern in a big-name company.

Below are reasons that support the choice to work as an intern in an up-and-coming enterprise.

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Real responsibilities

Time is a valuable resource in startups. All team members, including you, the intern, are critical to the company’s success. What this means is that your contribution to projects will have a palpable and likely immediate impact on customers.

Posting your first article to a website or pitching a product idea for the first time is certainly intimidating. All the same, you stand to learn a lot by pushing through your fears and grabbing hold of opportunities as an intern. Having critical projects under your belt is a huge plus when looking for a job after graduation.

Moreover, having real responsibilities cultivates within you a confidence that you can effectively handle new projects. Further down the line, when your friends are framing leadership in the context of group assignments in college in their cover letter, you can showcase real successful projects that you participated in.

Real-world lessons on how businesses operate

Getting internships in large multinationals often means your exposure covers only a very small portion of operations in which you’re directly involved. With numerous other interns and a multitude of employees, exposing yourself to every aspect of the business is next to impossible.

Conversely, it is almost impossible not to be involved in every part of the business in a startup, especially when it’s at its infancy stage. Whether it’s being within hearing shot of design debates and having a casual conversation with the head of marketing over lunch, being an intern at a startup means you’ll invariably participate or witness all business operations since everyone is kept in the loop at most startups.

Testing multiple paths

Still not sure what you want to do after you graduate? Well, exposure across various teams within a company helps you feel out various areas that interest you. For instance, if you’re an intern in a small digital marketing startup, you may find yourself researching keywords for the marketing department one day, and writing blog articles for the communications department the next day.

Furthermore, as an intern in a small startup, you can easily reach out to colleagues in other departments if you want to learn more about something you know little about. As an intern in the design department, for example, you can set up lunch with the head of engineering so you can learn more about that field.

 

Author Bio:

Toni M. Kersey is a Seattle-based blogger, author and editor. In recent years, his work has been featured in various career and human resources websites where he writes on career-related topics including finding internships, switching jobs, etc.

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The Practical Experience You Should Expect to Gain as Intern in a Hosting Company

The Experience An Intern Should Receive in a Hosting Company

If you are a computer science or computer engineering student, a web hosting company is one of the places to do your internship. Internship is about getting practical experience that will prepare you for the work place.   Before you start your internship, you should at least have a basic understanding of the web as well as how it runs. You should for instance have technical level knowledge of:

  • What a website is and how it operates
  • Different types of websites
  • Where a website ‘exists’
  • What is a hosting company and why is it so important

Have an open mind as an intern

Though you might know a lot about how hosting services work, you need to go into your work place with an open mind, because every company is different. One company will be drastically different from another in terms of:

  • Choice of hosting software
  • Hosting Hardware specifications
  • Types of hosting services provided
  • Service delivery methodology
  • Customer interaction processes
  • Sales and marketing processes

Companies also have different policies of what an intern can and cannot do. This will greatly affect your learning process. However, a frank discussion with your internship supervisor should get you exposed to most of the company’s operations, which include the following:

Technical work (in the field or in office)

Different hosting providers offer different hosting services. The most popular service offered by the company is determined by customer demand and demand is dependent on the amount of effort the company invests in marketing its services.   You will learn how to host different customer accounts on some or all of the following services:

Shared hosting: This is the most commonly preferred service by individuals and small business owners for the simple fact that it’s inexpensive.

Dedicated hosting: A customer who pays for a dedicated hosting service will have control of an entire server. This option is expensive and is usually preferred by large companies who not only want privacy and, but also quality performance.

VPS hosting: This is a form of dedicated hosting, only that the servers are virtual and not physical. Though the physical servers that host these ‘virtual machines’ are shared, customer gets more bandwidth and space than with shared hosting.

Cloud hosting: you will finally get to understand how the world of cloud hosting works in reality.

Customer support

An important service that keeps a hosting provider in business is customer support. If the hosting service has a 24/7 customer support line, you will be required to spend some time answering customer calls and responding to their queries and resolving their problems.   You will learn how to interact with the different systems and software that the customer service department uses to deliver great service.

Sales and marketing

Even though your interest is in the more technical aspect of the company, you should spend some time with the sales and marketing team to understand how it generates demand for the company’s products.   You will also learn how the sales team:

  • Explain to customers the differences between each hosting service
  • Helps customers decide the hosting plan that is right for them

The amount of exposure you will get during your internship will help you on your first job after graduation. You can check reviews of hosting companies to see which ones have a great internship program.

Author Bio:

Jayson Bryune is a freelance content writer. He has written many articles on different categories like Technology, health, travel, career, education, jobs, interview etc. He has experienced firsthand the need for a good hosting service and advises others to read reviews on Inexpensive Web Hosting before deciding on a hosting service.

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Overcome the Lack of Experience and Secure a Job After Graduation

Fresh graduates nowadays are nowhere as optimistic as they used to be. The job market is getting more competitive, student loan rates are going up and every job post seems to require years of experience.

Many college graduates find themselves stuck in a circle: they cannot get a job because they don’t have the experience, and they cannot get experience because they don’t have a job.

The truth is, there are many things you can do to overcome the lack of experience. Hiring managers need to know that you have the skillset and commitment they need. Often, working experience and past references are the easiest ways to show off those qualities. However, they are not the only means available. You can prove your worth in many other ways. Here a few things you can do to prove yourself to potential employers:

1.       Internships

Internships are often reserved for college students and newly graduate, so there is usually no working experience required. While working as an intern, you will naturally gain real-life experience and get connected to professionals in your fields.

Here is a quick fact: 85% of companies use internships as a way to recruit for full-time positions. Therefore, besides gaining experience, there is a chance that you will be able to score a job offer before even getting your diploma.

2.       Volunteering experience

If internship opportunities are hard to find in your area, look for volunteering experience as well. Most non-profit organizations, and sometimes even businesses, depend on volunteers during the busy season. Major in accounting? Check with your local library or Chamber of Commerce and see if they have a volunteering tax support program during tax season. Education major? Look for after-school programs and tutoring opportunities.

Do not worry either if your volunteering experience isn’t too relevant to your field. Most volunteering positions require commitment, leadership, and teamwork, which are always beneficial in the eyes of hiring managers.

3.       Professional Networks

While still in school, students can easily find student groups or associations on campus that are focused on their fields. Joining these groups is a great way to expand your network and learn more about the career you chose. Plus, membership in a professional network will look good on your resume, and can also be a great conversation starter during an interview.

4.       Professional Certificates

While your diploma is worthy proof of your academic abilities, having professional qualifications or certificates show your interest in the field. Advanced certifications also show your willingness to learn, which is a major plus if the employer is looking to give further training on the job. You can also use these certificates to steer the conversation away from your lack of experience and focus on your ambition and learning capabilities instead.

In the end, what employers are looking for is how well you will meet their needs in the business operation. By being creative and showing your capabilities in different ways other than working experience, you can certainly overcome the lack of experience. If you have any of the qualifications or experience above, be sure to highlight them in your resume and during the interview. Remember, it’s not only about what you have done, but also about what you will be able to do for your new employer.

Author bio:

Vanessa is a professional blogger and copywriter, who is passionate about education, lifestyles and travel topics. Currently, she is working with Interesting Facts, an online collection of random facts on different topics.