OPINION
JULY 27 - AUGUST 2, 2005
WWW.KANSAN.COM
▼ SACK'S PERSPECTIVE
PAGE 13
GUEST COMMENTARY
Interns need to get a grip
BILL COPLIN Professor of public policy at the Maxwell School and The College of Arts and Sciences of Syracuse University. He is the author of "Ten Things Employers Want You to Learn in College."
Interns have now settled into their summer experiences, and far too many are beginning to feel oppressed and mistreated. Interns who see themselves as victims of injustice need to get a grip. They don't realize that beginning as a photocopying, data entry, fax-sending, mail delivering and list-checking maven is the road to internship success.
Internships are so important to college students because experience in the real world is considered essential to develop the skills employers want. Companies hire close to 50 percent of their interns for full-time positions according to a 2004 survey conducted by the National Association of Colleges and Employers.
Internships are not the only way to get experience. A real job in the summer might provide more of an education depending on the student's interest. Flipping hamburgers may seem like a dead end job. Just don't tell that to current McDonald's President, Jim Skinner, who started that way at 15 in Sydney,
Students should have realistic expectations about their summer job or internship. Students also need to understand that they have to pay their dues as interns. I had an intern once who, when asked to make a copy of a contract by a paralegal in a lawyer's office, quit. Presumably, he thought he should be writing the contracts, not copying them.
Australia, and became a store manager in short order (no pun intended).
Contrast that with another student of mine who took a job with a public interest lobby group in D.C. He told me that all the interns were sitting around complaining about having nothing to do. He volunteered to do all the copying that he could during the first two weeks. The next week he was put in charge of a major campaign for the organization, and the complainers were working for him. Students who told me that they were given nothing to do, failed.
Whether getting a job or an internship, students should see themselves as apprentices. They
are making a bargain with the organization to serve as an apprentice. That bargain requires them to pay for their education with their services.
These kinds of skills get the attention of supervisors and can lead to an experience way above expectations.
Students have real bargaining power to learn more if they have something to offer their boss. In addition to a hard worker who has a good attitude and good people skills, supervisors are looking for skills in short supply. They include Web design; Microsoft Access, Excel and Publisher; and writing skills.
Writing, editing and proofing as well as facility with Word and Excel are skills in short supply throughout the real world. They can be used to leverage a so-so job or internship into a life-changing experience.The next time you hear whining interns, say to them,"ask not what your internship can do for you but what you can do for the people who have been so kind to give you a chance."
Free for All callers have 20 seconds to speak about any topic they wish. Kansan editors reserve the right to omit comments. Slanderous and obscene statements will not be printed. Phone numbers of all incoming calls are recorded.
use?
I'm wondering what's going to happen to all of the red Nike uniforms that have been used. What money pays for that? And what money is going to pay for all the new adidas uniforms? Why is our school raising tuition when we have, you know, money that we just waste on shit we don't even
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When I started at this college, KU Info was awesome! They always answered all my questions. Now it really sucks.
Bring back the old KU Info!
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Uh ... I have nothing to say, I was just calling to see if you guys were still open during the summer. OK, bye.
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Free for All — I'm calling on Catherine's phone and there's nothing she can do about it. 'Cause she's on my phone talking to somebody, killing my minutes, killing my battery. And this is payback, really. So I really hope you print this. Ciao.
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