Five signs it’s time to leave your internship
You’ve managed to score yourself the internship you’ve been waiting for, the one that makes your heart pitter-patter at the thought of all the awesome things you’ll be doing on your day(s) in the office. The one that is just that, the one.
But it’s been some time now and you’ve noticed yourself drifting apart from what you thought was your one and only. Now you find yourself lingering on internship notice boards, thinking about what else could be on the horizon for a talented young thang like yourself. I hate to break it to you friend, but it may be time to move on. Luckily, we’re here to let you know the warning signs you need to look out for.
You don’t love going
When you first started, getting out of bed and getting to work was a breeze. You may have even found yourself waking up before your alarm, full of excitement for the day ahead and ready to take on every challenge that comes your way. Now, everything about your internship feels like a drag and you find your eyes drifting back to the clock throughout the day more often than they used to.
Let’s face it, you’re doing this internship for free, and if you’re not loving every bit of it or learning something that will help pave the way to your future career, it’s definitely time to move on. Who wants to spend time doing something they hate when you’re not even getting paid?
There’s no chance you’ll move further up in your company
I know, I know, we’re all secretly hoping that we’ll be so awesome at our internships that the big boss will personally come out of their office and offer us a job. But if you’ve been at your internship for six months or more and there hasn’t been any indication that a job might be on the horizon for you, it’s probably not ever going to happen. It’s going to hurt to move on, but just remind yourself of the opportunity your company has just missed out on by not offering you a job. You’ve got bigger fish to fry, kiddo.
You’re starting to consider other opportunities
It started with a casual glance at Hijacked’s internship noticeboard every other month, then every fortnight, just to suss out how the industry was looking. Now you find yourself looking every couple of weeks and are seriously considering applying for any opportunities that interest you. If this is the case, I’m afraid it’s time to break-up with your internship before you accidentally burn your bridges. We promise no-one will judge you.
You’re not learning anything new
After a while, your internship can start to feel like a bit of a job, especially if the internship doesn’t have a set end date. But at the end of the day, you really are at an internship to learn as much as you can so that you’ll be work-ready when you final receive that magical piece of paper we’re all working towards.
So, if you’ve reached the point in your current internship where you’re simply not learning anything new and feel that there’s nothing left to learn in your current position, it might be time to say adios and look for greener pastures.
You feel you would benefit from expanding your contact network
Chances are that the first job you score upon graduation will come from your contact network, and what better way to improve that contact network than by interning.
Feel like you’ve learnt everything you can from being at your current internship and are ready to get out there and network somewhere else? Then I think you’ve already made your decision. Trust your gut and go for it, I promise you won’t regret it.
Shannon Coward
Shannon Coward is a third year Bachelor of Journalism and Bachelor of Arts student at the University of Queensland. She enjoys period dramas, doughnuts and a good nap.