Whether you have watched the 2015 Warner Bros. movie ‘The Intern’ with Robert De Niro acting as the Intern in the film, or perhaps you have been an Intern yourself, or a business who has hired Interns, it is fair to say that Interns are increasingly becoming a part of the Business fabric in the UK.
The competition for graduate jobs is arguably one reason why more and more students and graduates are seeking to complete an internship either during their studies or soon after completing their degree. With hundreds of thousands of students graduating each year from UK Universities, and many competing for the highly sought-after graduate job schemes, one way for students to stand out, is by completing an industry work placement or in many cases an internship.
According to the think tank and social mobility advocate, Sutton Trust, a recent survey authored by two staff researchers, Carl Cullinane and Rebecca Montacute, under the heading ‘Pay As You Go?’ revealed the following with regards to the number of students taking up an internship –
- 39% of graduates in their twenties have done an internship, including almost half (46%) of young graduates under 24. The average intern completes almost 2 internships each (1.8).
- Almost half (46%) of employers’ report offering internships, with large employers twice as likely to offer them as small businesses.
Indeed, when talking about internships, what often gets the headlines are the unpaid internships, and rightly so, with living costs in many big cities rising, more should be done to support students as well as employers. (According to the survey from the Sutton Trust, over a quarter of graduates (27%) have completed an unpaid internship, with 70% of interns completing at least one unpaid. Over half of unpaid internships were over 4 weeks in length (53%). 11% of unpaid internships undertaken were over six months).
However, for the purpose of this article, I want to focus on the traits and qualities that makes ‘The Perfect Intern’. Now ofcourse, no one is perfect, but we can all aspire for perfection, and in my 5 years plus of experience working with Interns and graduates, speaking and engaging hundreds of students and Interns over the years, I have come to some conclusions or summary of what makes a top Intern.
The 7 Key Traits & Qualities –
1.Great Attitude –
They have what I call the ‘Causal’ type personality, so they look inward to determine the issue or problem, realising it is not always the other person’s fault, part of the issue could be them and how they are responding to the challenge or task placed in front of them.
For example, the Intern is persistently late into work does not always seek to blame the weather or the transport system, though, in fact, the weather and transport may be the problem, the top intern focuses on small improvements, deciding that they must make the extra effort to get into work early and on time. Essentially, they are not in the blame business.
2.Communication –
This trait or skill is right up there with ‘great attitude’, the top Interns have great communication skills, developed over many years while at school, college and indeed at University. They know and get the art of communication, is a two-way street and listen attentively as much as they would talk.
3.Reliable –
The top Intern is someone reliable, they always turn up, and often on time. I remember in the past working with an Intern who lived about a couple of hours away from work, amazingly, the Intern was often the first person in the office. It was not a surprise in the slightest when the Intern was later hired by a global firm. Top Interns aim to keep their word and rarely let you down.
4.Enthusiasm –
They have an upbeat and engaging disposition on life, ofcourse like any human being, they will have their down moments, but in all, they tend to remain positive on their views.
They tend to have a spark, and not just airy-fairy, but a real desire to connect and learn more.
5.Adaptability –
‘The Perfect Intern’ is willing to try and give it a go. They realise and understand the internship process is a learning process, and indeed an essential part of their education.
In the past, I have had Interns who took up an internship and completed it, though at the beginning they were unsure if it was the right role for them. This becomes a reference point for the Intern in future. As with most things in life, especially with regards the workplace, you will have jobs or work to do that you won’t at first like or wish to take up but going through that process will only make you in my opinion mentally stronger in dealing with adversity, and consequently, make you more adaptable.
6.Confidence –
Like the book title goes, Feel the Fear and Do it Anyway, by Susan Jeffers, the top Interns tend to ‘feel the fear and just do it anyway’. They are prepared to confront their fears and learn from the process.
There are certainly some sections of society that believe people are born confident, whether it is nature or nurture, confidence is something that can be developed and indeed enhanced through taking constant actions and steps towards a set objective. ‘The Perfect Intern’ realises this fact and are prepared to work in growing and improving their confidence skills.
7.Team Player –
Though the ‘The Perfect Intern’ can be driven by wanting to be successful for themselves, they have an almost innate ability to get along with people of diverse backgrounds and cultures, they go beyond and out of their way for the benefit of the team to make sure that the team wins, and that it gets the desired results.
They are essentially willing to put in that extra graft for the team to get over the finish line.
Ofcourse, the list is by no means definitive, but in my estimation, these represent key traits and qualities that most top Interns possess. There are three other traits that I would add, and these additional three underpin the above seven traits and qualities. They are: Emotional Intelligence, Resilience and a Lifelong Learning Mentality. A mixture of internal and external strength and awareness.
As previously mentioned above regarding the subject of ‘Confidence’, all these traits and qualities can be developed and improved upon, so long as there is the will to learn and a realism and honesty of what needs to be improve in yourself.
No one really knows exactly what the future world of world will look like, regardless of the potential impact of AI or robotics. However, one thing that is almost certain to remain constant, is the search for ‘the perfect intern’.
Femi Yusoof
Shareternships – placing talented students
Looking for an Internship?
Want to place an Intern?
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E: femi@shareternships.com
