This week I have spoken to several students who have just completed their summer internships. So far the one’s I’ve spoken to had some really amazing experiences. It’s really nice to hear students rave about their internships and how they feel these experiences have helped them in further developing their goals in the career planning process.
If you have not done so already, there’s one last thing you need to do after your internship ends – send your supervisor a thank you note. Take some time to re-iterate what you feel were the best parts of your internship and acknowledge their assistance in helping you reach your goals.
In this past Sunday’s edition of The Washington Post, Marilyn Mackes, executive director of the National Association of Colleges and Employers recommends that you “Keep Working Your Internship, Even After It Ends”. A couple of the key goals of an internship is developing a professional network and hopefully get some glowing recommendations from the company you worked for.
Aside from the valuable experience you received and the positive contribution this will make on your resume, developing a network of professional individuals who are willing to rave to other professionals about your talents and what you have to offer can be crucial to your future success.
I just made the switch from emailing thank yous to hand written thank you notes. It makes all the difference. You know people love it when they thank you for your thank you!
Thank you Ted.
I’ve heard several times recently that employers prefer hand written thank you notes over email. Although snail mail often seems archaic, in the case of thank you notes I really think it is well worth the effort.