In the middle of a tutoring session with a student, she mentioned that her schedule was packed. She’s working multiple jobs this semester, and her classes are getting harder and harder.
“I still have to apply for internships,” she said.
“I didn’t have an internship,” I said.
“Wait! How did you get a job?”
This took me aback, of course. Internships were far and few between in my mind, and less critical for getting a job. So let’s dig into some practicalities. There are more job opportunities than there are internships. People without internships get jobs all the time. You’ll likely have more luck with getting your dream job if you have an internship — that is also true. However, you can still get a job. In my office alone, there’s only one internship for every three or four new developer positions.
After this, I went to ask our internship recruiter, Dylan Goings, for some advice.
Add practical experience.
In a conversation with Dylan, we had a chance to talk about what makes a resume look good if you can’t add list an internship. He shared that he’s looking for any other work experience that you can show, all the better if it’s practical experience. You’ll look better if you can show that you can work in your field. Without that, you can still share details about yourself.
Mainly, it shows that you can play well with others, show up on time, and use your time effectively. Maybe you worked at a coffee shop. Highlight how you were able to tackle big problems with your fellow workers when you ran out of a key ingredient, or how you navigated an interpersonal conflict. Highlight times when you showed up early during a busy season. Highlight how you would prep your workstation to be better prepared for the morning rush, or how you prioritized conflicting orders.
If you are unable to list a job on your resume, list something else that can exhibit some of these attributes. Were you able to work as a teacher’s assistant for a semester? Was there a large-scale group project that you were able to work on? (Hint: If you are still looking for opportunities like these, reach out to your teacher or teaching assistant! Make sure they’re aware that you are looking for these opportunities. Ask if they know of any other opportunities outside of school that you can step into.)
Other options include career fairs and personal projects.
Let’s talk about what else you can do. Dylan had suggested that we should list everything we can. “There’s no effort too small,” he says.
Next on our list is a project. This can be a capstone, a portfolio, or a personal website. Even if it’s very bare-bones, you can show that you can use git, git commits, write good commit messages, and follow good branch hygiene. It’ll look even better if you can show an additional contributor. It shows that you can work well with each other and with a backlog of tasks.
What else can we do? Let’s take a look at other ways you can show up. Showing up at career fairs is a good start. You can show that you’re interested in a job and are working actively to seek them out. Show up on LinkedIn, with a well-filled-out profile and a message to the recruiter. You’ll impress even with something as simple as writing,“It was nice to meet you. I really appreciate this particular company value. Can you tell me more about how that value shows up in the workplace?” In addition to career fairs, seek out MeetUps and local groups in your field and practice your small talk. You never know who you’ll meet!
“Think about what the internship conveys.”
We’ve gone over this in abstract, but let’s make it concrete. What does an internship tell recruiters? It tells them that you can work well with people, that you can work in your field, and that you can show up on time and manage time effectively. There are many ways to convey these positive attributes to recruiters and show them that you can be an effective developer.