Congratulations! You are now taking your career to the next level by experiencing internship. But in order to get that on-the-job(OJT)experience, you must undergo real life interview as well. Aside from your good grades and plausible wit, there are things that you need to prepare to nail that internship interview. Prepare your notes and let’s get started.
Clean up your online presence
While your resume focuses on your achievements and the work you have done, your Facebook and Twitter (and even Instagram) profiles are reflections of who you are as a person, outside of the workplace. The posts you make on your profile are reflections of your beliefs and opinions on certain issues, and your potential employers will be on the lookout for those.
Make a backtrack on the pictures you have posted on your wall, and the articles you have shared. Delete any post which can potentially compromise your image as a person and as a professional. Make sure your profile looks professional even when you are online.
Set your goals
Ask yourself why are you applying for an internship for this company. Your interviewer is going to ask you what do you want to achieve after your internship with them. A good interviewee has a personalized answer for this kind of question. Show them you are passionate in the field that you would like to pursue by sharing them your goal. Having a goal is important not only to ace your interview but also to serve as your motivation to go to your OJT everyday, should you be accepted.
Tweak your resume
Your resume serves to sell your skills to your prospective employer. Make sure that your paper looks good not only in terms of aesthetics, but more importantly you should present yourself as a professional even if it’s still on paper. Are you applying for a media production company? Make sure to highlight all the works you have done while you were in school. Hoping to land an internship spot at IBM Philippines? Include your award winning capstone on your achievements list. It’s good to know that you should tailor fit your resume to the company and field you are applying for. Write your resume in a way that it can show the company what you can do to help their organization.
Dress to impress
Your internship will serve as your training when you enter the real corporate world. You don’t have to go all out and wear uncomfortable outfits to impress your employer. You can wear a simple smart casual attire as long as you look clean and well put together. Your employer also takes into consideration how you present yourself to other people, so make sure that you are dressed well when you attend a formal interview.
Practice your questions
Your potential employer is always going to ask, “Why should we hire you?” Make sure that you have your answer to this question memorized by heart. Practice answering questions with your family and friends to get a feedback on how you can compose your answer better.
Having a clear goal of what you want to achieve in your internship makes you a better candidate which will reflect on your resume and interview. There may be other applicants, but the most important thing to remember is:
Be yourself
It’s not always the smartest, the one who have the highest grades, or the student who come from the best college in Manila that gets accepted in internship positions. Most employers put more stock in attitude and passion, than skills and credentials. Be honest in answering their questions because honesty gives you more confidence. Don’t be afraid if they will like you or not. As long as you stay true to yourself, you can easily nail your interview.