Career Development and Calling

Internships at Bethel

 
Internship experience makes college seniors 27% more likely to receive a job offer. (2010 NACE study)

Bethel University defines an internship as "an off-campus learning/practicing experience in which students apply a body of knowledge and skills in a structured real world setting" (Bethel University College of Arts & Sciences Catalog). The supervised work-learning experience combines meaningful reflection with career-related activities. Internships help students learn by doing. Through internships, students develop professional, personal, intellectual, and spiritual competencies that match their life goals.

What The Office of Career Development and Calling Can Do For You

  • Career Development and Calling can help you identify your interests, skills, values, and goals so you are better able to articulate your interest in a position and what you hope to gain from it, as well as help you brainstorm possibilities and give you the tools you need for a successful search.
  • A variety of employers post internship opportunities on the Bethel University Online Career Center.
  • Each February, Bethel participates in the Minnesota Private College Job & Internship Fair.

Top Five Reasons to Complete an Internship

  1. Explore a career through hands-on experience. Internships provide you with a way to learn about career fields and discover what you want to do after graduation; or equally important, what you don't want to do. If you are uncertain about what direction you should take with your major, an internship allows you to test out several options while you are still in college.
  2. Sharpen and gain skills. Through work-learning experiences, you practice the knowledge gained in the classroom in a complex, real world setting.
  3. Increase your marketability. Employers are more likely to be interested in you after graduation because you will have education plus experience. Internships help to demonstrate your initiative and ability to learn outside the classroom.
  4. Build a network of contacts. Meeting co-workers, clients, and others in the field of your choice gives you access to potential employers.
  5. Gain confidence in your strengths, abilities, passion, and skills as you find the work that fits you best.

Checklist

Things to Do Done
Research sites
 
Network with friends and family  
Prepare a resume and cover letter  
Talk to your Faculty Advisor
  
Apply to sites  
Follow-up with phone calls, schedule interviews  
Interview & Write Thank you notes  
Decide on offer(s)  
Begin the internship
  

Words of Wisdom from the Experts

"Career Services was a big help to me for finding an internship. They did their part but they let you also search on your own." (Bethel University junior)

According to NACE (National Association of Colleges & Employers), ninety-five percent of employers prefer to hire new graduates who have some work experience. When employers want to hire someone for a full-time position, many look first to their own intern pools. But besides a potential job offer, internships pay in other ways, including in actual compensation. (Job Outlook 2009—Student Version)

NACE also reports that an internship (or several of these positions) on your resume will tell an interested employer that you’ve tested your career up close and you’ve learned some of the basics of the workplace. Employers see internship programs as their organizational talent pools. Employers prize relevant work experience even if it’s with another organization. (Job Outlook 2009—Student Version)

Questions about Internships? Email Career Development and Calling, call 638-6460 or visit the Office of Career Development and Calling - CC 322.