Then there are startup companies. It is quite difficult to judge a good startup and equally challenging to decide if you should begin your career with a startup. Internships provide a good platform to experience the startup environment and work culture. If you are at a crossroads choosing a multinational company versus a startup, targeting an internship can be your best option.

Finally, categorize the companies according to job profile, location, pay range or company distinction based on your preference.

Job Openings:

Circumstances such as company financials and leadership changes  are out of your control. These affect the number of openings in a company. All the companies in your list from above may not be open to hiring. Hence, it is the time for the second task: finding openings.

Of course, it is overwhelming to search all openings in a day. It is also difficult  because you lose motivation after a while. A simple solution would be to pick a category from the list above and work on that for 3-5 days while applying as you search. Then move on to the next category. 

Multinational companies, typically software companies, tend to post a generalized job description for internships to attract large pools of applicants. You need to read between the lines to understand the expectation. If that doesn’t help, reach out to either a current student who did an internship in that company, a former student working there or any current employee of the company. The common complaint is not hearing back about your question. This is partly due to the way you communicate, which we will discuss next.

Communication:

If you don’t ask, you don’t get answers. There are so many unanswered questions in everyone’s LinkedIn messages. The primary reason for this is not framing the question properly. While you are concentrating on your daily job, you want fewer distractions. The easier and more relatable the question, the more likely it is you will receive an answer. 

Most people love to answer the job-related questions and move on rather than get to know others personally before answering so they don’t have to shift their focus. A message starting with your name, university and major information immediately distracts and the question goes unanswered. One  possible way to frame the question is to ask the question upfront and add any introductory message below. Make sure to include  the job ID and the link to the job posting to encourage a response.

The internship process is highly stressful for grad students because their post-graduation job prospects partly depend on internships. Tailoring your resumé according to the job is one of the key aspects to be successful in securing the opportunity. There are multiple workshops around the year to get guidance and feedback on your resume. The search process starts once you have a well-crafted resume. Of course, a simple internet search and uploading a resumé can sometimes get you an internship offer, but you might have to be in the right place at the right time. The three steps above help find the opportunities from a larger pool of companies and create a stress-free environment, so you can choose the right option with a clear mind.