High school students who have an opportunity to complete an internship will have a greater perspective on what they would like to, should and should not major in when they apply to college. That’s if the internship is completed before the end of the summer before their senior year. There’s nothing wrong however, with doing an internship after senior year. You just won’t have the benefit of that experience occurring before you complete college applications. I am excited to begin Career Week at DCCS next spring. This will be a week long internship that is mandatory for every junior at DCCS to complete. It will take place at the end of their junior year which I think is a perfect time for a high school student to do an internship. Below are a few very important reasons why I think internships are very important for high school juniors to complete.
- It gets them out of their comfort zone. More today than in the past, high school students do not learn the value of hard work and how to respond in situations that are difficult or unpredictable. I would encourage every parent to read this article by Alex Chediak. In the article Alex says, “Our wealth, technology, and digital economy have radically changed this pattern. We now emphasize the protection of our children rather than their productivity. While our kids may be safer, they’re also softer — more hooked on comforts like AC, their own bedroom, an Xbox, etc. They are unfamiliar with manual labor at a time when lifelong learning and flexibility are more important than ever in our disrupted economy.” I couldn’t say it any better. This isn’t true of every high school student but it is more common today than every before. This is why encouraging our teens to drive when they are able and encouraging but also making them get a job is critical for their overall emotional, mental and spiritual growth from a teen to an adult. In today’s society, because they live in more “comfort” than previous generations, they may not want to do these things, but it’s on the parent to push them. After working with 16-18 years olds for over 18 years now, I definitely see more maturity in the kids who drive when they are able and have a job.
- They will understand more what they want to major in and also what they do not want to major in. When I coordinated Career Week with juniors at the previous school I worked at, it was great to see the perspective that they had once the internship was over. Some students were encouraged to keep pursuing the career field their internship was in, others didn’t want to rule out continuing to pursue that career field, but were exposed to some things that surprised them or were more difficult than they thought. Then there were some students that completed their internship and realized that they didn’t want to pursue that career field anymore. To get these perspectives while in high school before you apply to college is invaluable. This will allow seniors to get more specific when entering a major to pursue in their college applications and also write with more confidence about why they want to pursue that major in essays they will write when completing their applications.
- They are beginning to establish connections and network. This is a very important aspect to career growth and having more future opportunities. If a high school student can begin networking then they are able to build on those connections earlier and have more connections when they are in college and beyond. I hope this internship may lead to working more with their supervisor in the summer. This is also helpful when they apply to college because now they can have their supervisor/boss write them a letter of recommendation to include with their application. We all know the phrase, “it’s not what you know but who you know”. While the “what” is still important, the “who” can be just as or more important depending on what major a student pursues and what opportunities they take advantage of to work for that “who” or who else that person knows while still in college. In Jeff Selingo’s book, There is Life After College, he calls these individuals “sprinters”. These people begin working while even still in college or get a job quickly right after college and their career earnings far exceed the two other individuals he talks about, the “stragglers” and the “wanderers”. I would encourage you to read his book.
I am looking forward to working with next year’s juniors as we prepare for the first Career Week at DCCS. I would encourage any high school student, however, to take advantage of an opportunity to intern, work, job shadow or any opportunity that get’s you to serve others and takes you outside your comfort zone. I understand we are more busy today than ever before but these are invaluable experiences that will give you new perspective, understanding and wisdom that you wouldn’t have had otherwise. God will use these experiences to grow you more and more into the person He wants you to be. I am providing links to two articles written by Alex Chediak that refer to vocation plans and choosing a major. I read through these articles with the juniors in my Career Stewardship class every year and they provide a great perspective on both of these topics.
