Bummer Internships

Understanding Your Place in the Office
Will Help You Avoid Frustration

By Nakisha Williams
The Wall Street Journal Online

Narria Rice thought her dream had come true. She had secured an unpaid summer internship in a fashion-design shop. The 22-year-old Ms. Rice, who majored in textile-product design and production at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, had looked forward to using her education and jumping right into the design process. But early on, she found herself in her boss's office for an entirely different reason.

The first one to answer an officewide intern page, Ms. Rice was asked to report to her boss with paper towel and Windex, she says. The boss then pointed to the floor: A dog had had a slight accident. A half-hour later, the receptionist told Ms. Rice that the boss needed someone to clean up a more serious dog accident.

"They didn't make me do these things, but it wasn't like I was going to refuse-it was my internship," says Ms. Rice, who also handled such unglamorous tasks as ironing dresses and making copies.

Lessons Learned

Internships are a critical part of corporate recruiting. In a 2004 survey of 360 companies, nonprofit groups and government offices by the National Association of Colleges and Employers, 84% reported having internship programs. About 45% of those employers filled full-time staff positions out of their intern pools.

As the statistics show, not every internship ends up as a dead end. But for people who go into the experience with unreasonable expectations, an internship gone awry can feel like a wasted opportunity or a disheartening reality check.

Experts say there are ways to salvage an unhappy internship or at least to ensure that you leave with some contacts and lessons learned.

While recruiters often cast internships in their best light, intern work itself can be dull, if not demeaning. Experts say: Buck up and make the best of it.

"It's very easy for interns to make themselves the victim and blame the institution when the internship isn't living up to an expectation," says William Coplin, a public-policy professor at Syracuse University and author of "10 Things Employers Want You to Learn in College." Interns should realize a company doesn't owe them anything, Mr. Coplin says. "You have to pay your dues and earn the right for a company to trust you," he says.

Experts advise interns to focus on the little tasks to give employers confidence that they can handle bigger assignments. Do what you are asked to do on time and with minimal complaining. Be eager to work. And if your boss isn't communicative, in assignments or feedback, don't let that stymie you.

"If you have a boss who doesn't have time to speak with you, try talking to other people around the office to get feedback-be flexible," says Bradford Agry, a partner of CareerTeam Partners, a career consulting firm. "Perhaps other workers are more accessible and have more time to help."

If nothing else, a positive attitude can help you make contacts in the industry, experts say. "Use the environment, resources and the people to get good recommendations or build contacts for the future," says Mr. Agry.

Greg Shtraks, an international-affairs major from George Washington University, had visions that through his 2003 summer internship with the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, he would make a lasting contribution on Capitol Hill. The reality wasn't quite so grand.

"I was hoping I'd be doing research and constantly talking to important people," Mr. Shtraks says. "Instead, all I did was gather statistics and open mail."

He fell prey to a common mistake made by prospective interns: forgetting that most interns are at the bottom of an organization's hierarchy and may not get to do the front-line tasks that go to upper-level employees.

Mr. Shtraks says he concentrated on his duties and shifted his energy to networking, making sure to meet influential people in the office and gain more perspective on how the government works. The insights he gained helped him fine-tune his interests, and this past summer, he landed an internship with the Democratic National Committee.

Move On

If an internship does turn sour, don't panic: These are just trial runs, and part of the point is for you to get a feel for the industry, experts say. If your internship isn't what you had hoped, consider it a learning experience and ride it out. Or look for ways to move on.

That's what Ms. Rice did. She says she realized she had focused too much on the panache of the company and hadn't asked enough questions about what the internship actually would entail. Bent on making the most of her summer, she left after two months of the four-month internship and moved to another opportunity-also unpaid-with Vibe magazine. There, she says, she worked with stylists and went to showrooms to pick out clothing for photo shoots. And there were no dogs.

But Ms. Rice says she doesn't feel like her internship at the design house was entirely a waste.

"Being there, seeing the environment and seeing what everybody has to go through taught me one big thing," she says. "I do not want to be a designer."

To learn more about career and job-hunting strategies, visit CareerJournal.com.