The disadvantage of being a freshman in the internship world

We know we’re unqualified


Staying in your college town for the summer has so many great benefits. You can launch ahead in classes and credits, explore everything on campus you missed on the walk to lecture, make lots of different friends, and embrace opportunities like internships or research. This year, I’m stoked to be spending my first summer in my college town, Madison, WI.

The Terrace is, without a doubt, the best place to hang in summer.

But, alas, there is one drawback to this great time of my life. I’m a freshman.

Being a freshman has its obvious disadvantages. Until you reach sophomore status, you’re regarded as a “stupid freshman” who does naive and cliché things to make the most of your college experience.

You know you’re a freshman at UW when you wear this free t-shirt and throw up the W in front of a tapestry in your dorm room

One specific disadvantage that never really occurred to me was the lack of experience many freshmen have in the fields of their majors. A big reason I decided to stay in Madison was for those special opportunities that I couldn’t get at home, particularly an internship. As a Strategic Communications student hoping to eventually go into advertising, it was quite difficult attaining an internship pertaining to my major because many of them required significant experience. And as a freshman, I have little experience in the fields I want to work in (advertising, PR, marketing, etc), so I had little credibility when applying to internships. While I understand where these companies are coming from – they want people who know what they are doing – isn’t the point of an internship for people like me, without experience, to gain experience?

So instead of interning this summer, I’ve resorted to working. Don’t get me wrong, I need money more than I need oxygen, but I would have loved experiencing the career fields of my future. However, though I am only working, I’m already learning from my job what I believe I can apply to a future internship.

Work really hard: Becoming a consistently hard worker will sharpen your work ethic, and it will show, both of which will definitely pay off in the future, benefitting yourself.

Smile: Smile at everyone in every situation – your co-workers, your customers, your bosses. It creates trust and stimulates kindness. It’s amazing how far a smile can get you.

Suck up: Yeah, co-workers hate it, but bosses love it. There are so many benefits to being buddy-buddy with the guy in charge (being assigned easy tasks, getting off early, getting a pay raise, etc.) all because you’re extra nice to your boss.

No matter what I am doing this summer, I know I will have a blast and make great memories. And isn’t that what’s most important?