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Let’s Talk Business: Tips for Landing an Internship

Trying to find your footing with a summer internship? Peer Career Coach Naimat Khani can help.

I’m Naimat, a Human Resource Management undergrad and a Peer Career Coach in the Chambers College's Center for Career Development graduating in December 2025. I’ve landed an internship every summer since my freshman year.

If you’re a sophomore who wants to land an internship in your junior year, here’s my advice on what you can do this summer to help you get ahead. Just follow the Prep, Plan, Prosper method.

Prep:

  • Research companies and internship opportunities (Handshake, LinkedIn, Glassdoor)

  • Review your resume and find your skill gaps (ChatGPT can help find gaps between your resume and the job descriptions)

  • Set realistic goals for the summer and get started! (SMART method, Center for Career Development)

The first two steps of Prep shouldn’t take you long to figure out; however, finding things to do in the summer that can be put on your resume and make you a competitive applicant is the most important step. Please remember that this isn’t a hard step to achieve – it just takes patience.

Plan:

How can you get active this summer? Ask yourself these questions:

  • Do I or a family member know anyone in my field of interest that I can ask to job-shadow this summer? Or can I cold call a professional through LinkedIn?

  • Can I get a part-time job to help me bridge some soft skill gaps? (Communication, time management, etc.)

  • Can I gain some technical skills without spending much money? (Forage’s free certifications, Coursera, MIT, and Harvard’s free coding courses, etc.)

These questions will help you identify what you can focus your time on this summer based on your priorities. You can also visit the CCD before the summer to help you find the right resources.

If you get the opportunity to job-shadow, or find a part-time job (non-field-related work), or even gain some certifications or technical skills, then you have already crossed the halfway point. Congrats!

Prosper:

Summer is here, and you have a few things to do. How can you ensure that by the end of the summer, you are ready to update that resume and start your internship search?

  • Set realistic goals and deadlines – use the SMART goals method

  • Keep a log of everything you do and update it weekly

  • Look for opportunities and plan for the school year. (Clubs, volunteer, and on-campus positions)

I hope these tips will help you get started in the right direction. If you need assistance, feel free to stop by the CCD. We are more than happy to help!


Naimat Khani
Peer Career Coach
B.S. Human Resources Management


"Let's Talk Business" is a series of guest blogs written by members of the Chambers College community. All views expressed in this post are the author's own.

Interested in contributing to Let’s Talk Business?  Get in touch.

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