Internships can be hard to come across because of the hidden job market. The listings you never see online that are always filled by personal recommendation or internal hiring account for nearly 70-80% of all job listings. Christina Spearman, Vice President of Career Development at The Rizzo Career Center, said helping students understand this situation is a huge reason why she is continuing to do this work at Loyola.
“What drew me to this work was trying to address inequity and trying to remove barriers. There are a number of barriers for folks as to why they might not even know that [The Career Center] exist[s] or, know that we exist and don’t feel comfortable coming in, or maybe don’t understand all the ways we can support them,” Spearman said.
Between barriers and the tedious nature of it all, finding an internship can be a difficult process to go through alone. Focusing on timelines for applications is one of the first things Spearman asks students to consider.
“Sometimes we also have to look at timing, when are you hoping to do this internship. It varies across industries but some of the timelines are very far out, and so you can miss opportunities if you weren’t aware. Some timelines are a lot more flexible. So, I think I first want to understand a little bit more about where you see yourself headed, and then how is this internship helping you get there,” Spearman said.
Dr. Kevin Hula is the Departmental Internship Coordinator for political science at Loyola. He is a big believer that an internship is not just something that goes onto your resume after you finish and then forget about it. There is substance to an internship – skills and knowledge that matter to employers.
“So typically, in business they might say, ‘Okay, I’ve worked for company XYZ, and I increased productivity by 29% percent.’, You’re talking about what you achieved, what you’re capable of. If all you have is a list of positions and there’s nothing you can describe that was valuable that you did there, employers are rarely going to be impressed,” Hula said.
Students may also carry a belief that locations have associations with greater prestige. Finance and accounting students might feel that not being in New York is a letdown. Not being in D.C. can be disappointing for some political science students. However, Dr. Hula makes it clear that being a small fish in a big tank can sometimes really limit the scope of your learning experience.
“If you are doing nothing but opening envelopes in Washington D.C., compared to working for an attorney in Podunk, Illinois, where you are actually getting real courtroom experience and learning about the law and doing stuff, I’d take Podunk, Illinois, anytime,” Hula said.
Only after a student makes the decision on where they want to apply does the mind-numbing process of working on their resume and cover letter begin. Spearman said, while it may already seem like there is a lot of work involved in preparing everything, truly chasing success may take even more work.
“If you met the CEO of a company you wanted to work in and they said on the spot, ‘Do you have a resume?’, you should have something you’re really proud to hand them. But if you’re applying to a job or internship, you should be matching the keywords and tailoring those documents. That takes a little more time but it’s really not about quantity but quality,” Spearman said.
The Career Center is a completely free service that is open from 12-3 p.m. for walk-ins. They also have many free services on their website that can help you with anything work-related.
