Every student dreams to secure a good package after college. But why have this mindset when you have the opportunity to start early? Pandemics and Lockdowns did cause a lot of trouble in the entire world, but that does not mean that we should sit idle. There are so many opportunities for students or there. Even if you don’t earn enough to support yourself or your family, you definitely can start from a small amount. As you gain experience and climb up the corporate ladder, you start making a sustainable amount. Starting is the hardest step. Today, I will share about my journey on how I started earning by doing internships right after I completed High school.
After my boards, I did appear for competitive exams like most of the students, but I always had my goal in my mind, which was to study abroad. So I knew I had to take a drop. I did not join any college that year and started doing my research on all countries offering my subject. At the same time, I knew that I couldn’t sit idle for a year, so I started finding out activities I could do. I knew that my interests were in things related to science, technology, and earning something.
I tried looking for internships at first, but after looking at the requirements, I soon realized that I needed some skills first. So I started learning skills like graphic designing, creative writing, digital marketing, etc. Since I had no one to guide me, I did not understand that mere learning would not help one needs projects to display their skills. I also had no idea where to stop learning and start practicing the things I’ve learned. I was trapped in tutorial hell.
But after a point, I did understand that I need great projects, and that is when I joined an unpaid internship at a local event management company. I worked there as a graphic designer. A friend who was working there told me about this internship and referred me as well.
Two really important things I learned from this internship were how to work in a professional setting and that networking was very important. I did gain invaluable experience and some work experience to show in future applications.
"There's Always A Scope Of Improvement"
I then start searching for more internships on Internshala. I found 2 more unpaid internships in digital marketing and social media managing.
After these 3 internships and months of searching, I got a paid internship in content writing. It was a real estate company and, they were developing a township project, for which I had to write blogs. The contract was for 6 months, the lengthiest internship I’ve ever got, and the pay was great too. At the end of the first month, however, he started saying that he had no money to pay us. I immediately knew that this person was a fraud. I had to follow up with him for 3 months before he gave me my full payment.
After that, I had a few exams here and there, so I stopped doing any internship for a while. In April, I tried again and found another Internship based on a recommendation from a friend. I did thorough research on the organization this time.
This journey truly has been a rollercoaster ride, from having no clue as to where I should start from to actually earning something. I learned a lot and, these internships would surely boost my application and make me a lot more marketable than my peers who didn’t try. I am glad that I used all the time I got productively and didn’t waste it sitting at home. Learning new skills has kept me busy and productive, and the money I make always helps me purchase things on my own that I earlier would have to ask for money from my parents. I hope that my story inspires you to start learning and starting something new.
: By- Ria Prasad
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