University: University of Exeter

Course: Mathematics Degree

Country: UK

Heading to: Sydney, Australia

For how long: 10 weeks

Starting: June 2010

Programme: Accounting Internships programme

What do you hope to achieve/ learn on your internship?

I think one of the most valuable things that I will learn is to stand on my own two feet.  Living alone abroad, especially so far away from home, is daunting but a necessary step to prepare for the “real world” after university.  I also hope to gain some relevant work experience which will look great on my CV.

What do you think this internship/ placement will add to your CV?

As of now, my CV is fairly bare as far as work experience is concerned.  An internship in Australia would definitely be a great addition and will hopefully make my CV stand out more in this increasingly competitive world.

Why are you travelling to Australia for your internship?

To be honest, it was a bit of an impulse decision!  But I have always wanted to visit Australia and I love travelling and visiting new places so this will be another country to add to that list.

If you’re interested in a summer Accounting internship or a graduate Accounting placement, click through to the Accounting Internships page for full details on the programme and example internships.

Name: Clémence

University: Euromed Management Marseille

Course: Master Entertainment & Media Management

Country: France

Heading to: Sydney, Australia

For how long: 12 weeks

Starting: May 2010

Programme: Event Management Internship programme

I applied to Intern Options because in the framework of my studies I’m searching for a 3 months internship aboard, from May to July, and I want to do it in Australia, in event management, and Internoptions can realizes it for me!

During this internship I would like to improve my skills in event management, marketing, communication, customer relationships…I would like to see how we organize an event from the request of the client to the day of the event and how we communicate on an event, to make marketing research in the area of the corporate market and development of new event styles.

This experience will add something special to my CV, some added-value…More over I’ll improve my english level, which is very important.

I want to do this internship in Australia because it’s a destination which has always made me dream, and I want to realize this dream. Everybody at home is gonna be really jealous!

Intern Options is currently talking with Sydney Events companies about an events internship for  Clémence. Her internship search should take around one month. We will be posting more information once Clémence has been offered an internship position in Sydney.

If you’re interested in a placement year event planning internship, summer internship or a graduate Event Management placement, click through to the Event Planning Internships page for full details on the programme and example events internship company and positions descriptions.

1. You get some fantastic work experience on your CV that makes you stand out from your peers
2. You don’t have to work for very long to get this quality international work experience

Actually I thought of a third

3. IT’s SYDNEY, living in Sydney myself for six months was some of the best times I have had, Sydney is not a place that will disappoint!

So What are the Benefits?

On top of the three main reasons above, there are also a number of other beneficial outcomes that our students tell us about. Like testing if PR or advertising is the industry for you. One of our students (Simone) commented that if she hadn’t spent 12 weeks in Sydney working in an advertising agency, she probably would have wasted a graduate job pursuing a career in advertising. Simone is now in a PR position working in internal communications and loving it! Luckily her employer in Sydney was able to give Simone some experience on internal comms and this is what she preferred rather than advertising work.

There must be Some Negatives

The obvious negative is that the internships are unpaid. You will need to take enough money to pay for your living costs for the whole time you are in Sydney or Melbourne. If you would like help with creating a budget see the second article in this series on How to Budget for your Summer 2010 Internship

So What is the Big Deal with a Summer Internship in 2010?

41% of students surveyed think their CV is not good enough to get a job in the UK and 31% don’t know where to start looking.

This result from a survey Intern Options conducted over the last six months didn’t surprise us, but it did reinforce how bad things are for recent graduates in the UK. This is why Intern Options saw a 75% increase in summer 2009 internship applications.

Students graduating are very aware they need quality work experience on their CV before they graduate. At the end of the day it all comes down to who has experience on your CV. It is getting harder and harder for employers to distinguish between graduates just by your degree, something else is needed… Work Experience.

The Sydney and Melbourne summer internships are designed to give you intense work experience over a short period of time. This is why the internships are unpaid, because that way we can dictate to employers that the internship purpose is for your learning, and nothing else.

So if you were wondering what kind of internship you could do next June to September, check out the Summer 2010 Internships page to flick through company and position descriptions for fashion internships, film internships, marketing internships, journalism internships, business internships, accounting internships, design internships, finance internships, PR or media internship, advertising internships or just about any other kind of summer internship you can think of.

To see example company and position descriptions in your subject area, click through to the Summer 2010 Internships page for full details.

To talk through the kind of internship we can look at for you in 2010, or if you have any questions on Australia or New Zealand, pick up the phone and call the experts on 0207 353 7699.

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Articles in the Summer 2010 Internships series

This is the fourth article in the Summer 2010 Internship series, if you missed the first three articles, don’t fear you can check them out here:

Article One – Summer 2010 Internships – Where to Start

Article Two – Summer 2010 Internships – How to Budget

Article Three – Summer 2010 Internships – What’s the Big Deal

Article Four – Summer 2010 Internships – What do Employers Think

Article Five – Summer 2010 Internships – Get Work Experience Early

This article will give you some food for thought and  start off your research, so you will have plenty of time to find a really good summer internship in 2010!

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If you’re a US applicant please click here:

Summer 2010 Internships for US college students/ graduates

Firstly what is a summer internship and why should I do one?

The major reason is experience, experience, experience.  Anyone reading the papers these days would have seen article after article on the lack graduate jobs, on average 50 people applying for one job.  In some industries like finance, accounting, marketing, PR etc that will be much higher.

There have been a few articles lately on lack of graduate jobs:

BBC article: Graduates ‘need work experience’

Guardian article: Only a third of students expect a good job offer

BBC article: Young face ‘tough job prospects’

So how do you differentiate yourself from your classmates, or the other thousands of students at UK universities who will be graduating with you, with the same degree on paper?

Well you might have guessed it already, work experience on your CV.  A summer internship is a great way of getting some very good international work experience on your CV.  This will not only greatly improve your chance of getting that all important graduate job, it will lead to you applying your theory, learnt on your course over the next year and give you the skills to shine in a job interview.

Paid Summer Internships or Unpaid Summer Internships?

Well the first preference in this area is always to a paid internship.  Obviously you want to be paid right? Well have a think about the other side of the coin for a second, I hear you, you can’t work for free!

BUT, the goal is quality work experience on your CV isn’t it?

The unpaid position you will be offered will be:

• Customised – so will be in the area you want experience in, if you studying marketing then you could be placed into a sports marketing internship or an events marketing internship or fashion marketing internship

• Higher starting position – much better starting position than you could walk into in a paid role with your job confirmed before you leave the UK
• Focused on your Learning – your not working for a wage, you’re working to learn and get quality experience, so this is the focus rather than the “are you worth the £15,000 salary we are paying you”.  So there won’t be any making tea or doing the photocopying, you will be getting stuck in to some really good work, in your career area.

This article will give you some food for thought and hopefully start you thinking about how you could get that first bit of really good experience on your CV next summer.

For more information on planning your 2010 summer internship, or to talk to the experts on Australia & New Zealand, see the 2010 summer internships page.

On there you will see dedicated pages for internships in all professional areas from fashion, finance, accounting, events, design, film and many more.  You will also see company and position descriptions under each industry to help you start.

So if you have just started university or are in your second year, have a think about what work experience you want to get on your CV next year and get in touch with Intern Options to have a chat with someone who has lived and worked in Australia (they know).

To see example company and position descriptions in your subject area, click through to the Summer 2010 Internships page for full details.

To talk through the kind of internship we can look at for you in 2010, or if you have any questions on Australia or New Zealand, pick up the phone and call the experts on 0207 353 7699.

.

Articles in the Summer 2010 Internships series

This is the fourth article in the Summer 2010 Internship series, if you missed the first three articles, don’t fear you can check them out here:

Article One – Summer 2010 Internships – Where to Start

Article Two – Summer 2010 Internships – How to Budget

Article Three – Summer 2010 Internships – What’s the Big Deal

Article Four – Summer 2010 Internships – What do Employers Think

Article Five – Summer 2010 Internships – Get Work Experience Early

One last thing, check out this article, it’s a goodie!

Top Internship Questions Your Parents Will Ask

Cheers for now

Jon – Intern Options