Internship Importance
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The Importance of Excelling at Your Internship

Internships give students an opportunity to experience what a job in their career field would be like. They provide the individual with a taste of their future, enabling them to see if they enjoy what that major has to offer, and if not, internships can lead to students changing their minds about a career field. Internships are a great thing to have on a resume as well, showing employers what you projects you have accomplished and skills you have honed.

Toni Taranto, a senior sports communication student, had an internship with the New York Jets football team. A few days after Taranto submitted her application, she received a phone call and was invited to a group interview at the Jets facility. “Being involved with a group interview was a different, yet cool experience. I have never been to a group interview before, but it gave an insight to other people, their opinions, and what they had to say,” she said. 

Taranto is a huge sports fan with a passion for football, making her internship more enjoyable. She worked in the training camps alongside the NFL players. Every Sunday home game, Taranto would be on the sidelines, working the game, getting the crowd hyped, and assisting the team with anything they needed.

Yazmin Rodriguez, a senior communication student, also had a valuable internship this summer working for “The Chew”.

“I think that internships are a great thing to complete. I enjoyed my internship, but at the same time, I learned things about myself,” Rodriguez pointed out. “I discovered that there are some aspects of the field that I just do not enjoy. I am happy that I figured that out and had the chance to, sooner rather than lat-er.”

A fellow senior and business student, Alison Maoli interned for a Lexus dealership over the summer. “I am lucky and grateful that I had an internship. I learned something every day,” she said. “Yeah, I did make mistakes here and there, but that is how you learn.”

Hard work is always the key to a successful internship. “Working training camp is really rough because it is long, really hot days,” Taranto remembered. “I was in the sun for hours, having it beating down on me. But, once the season comes, it makes the training camp days totally worth it because working game day is one of the most amazing experiences ever. I got to be the face for the fans and get them pumped and excited. You just cannot describe the energy, and the feeling; it is simply life changing.”

Obviously, Taranto was next to the players, worked closely with them, and eventually got to know them. Not many people can say that. “Even though [the players] depended on me to do things, I still needed to be ma-ture and respect the fact that yes, I am a Jets fan, but this is my job,” Taranto explained. “I had to talk and act maturely, and treat them as if they were average individuals. I could not ask them for their autograph, or be star struck; I needed to act as a professional.”

Lorna Schmidt, Director of Advising for the Communication Department, stresses the importance of getting an in-ternship, and excelling at it as well. “Internships help you get a job,” she explained. “You know what to expect from a work place, good or bad. It’s important to know what you’ve chosen is what you do, and maybe what you chose is what you don’t  want to do. Internships will give you both of these.”

Internships can sometimes be stressful, overwhelming and challenging, but they are worth it in the end. People learn about themselves, their peers, the field, and get a sample of the real world. I had an internship at maslan-sky+partners, a public relations and market research firm, over the summer. At first, I was nervous and stressed; I did not know what to expect and I did not want to mess up and disappoint my co-workers. Over time, my nerves settled down and I grew accustomed to the daily routine. I highly recommend to everyone and anyone to get out there, start filling out applications, and get a jump-start on your future. You will not be disappointed.

IMAGE TAKEN from cortland.edu