Last spring, I was gearing up to graduate and was waiting for the job offers to come rolling in. Instead, the only opportunity that came my way was a summer internship. At the time, I was making plenty of money waiting tables, but I knew that the added experience of an internship would add to my credentials– even if it meant taking a pay cut. So I moved to upstate New York to a place that was a five-hour drive from everyone I would care to visit.

When I first got there, I quickly realized that this job sucked. My boss, the woman who had hired me, misinformed me when I had inquired about the hours, the workload, and the learning potential of the position during my interview. However, by the end of August, when it was time to pack up and move on, I realized I had just had one of the best summers of my life.

Before I go into the ways that you, too, can make the most of your summer internship, let me explain why mine was so terrible. I had been hired by a nonprofit regional theater company as an administrative intern for their summer season. As an English major who was trying to break into theater, that sounded right up my alley when my boss had described my duties. However, when I arrived, I quickly learned that the majority of my time would be spent serving as assistant house manager — ripping tickets and listening to patrons bitch for 8 shows a week. Read More »

Learning the ropes of an internship is one thing, but becoming accustomed to a big city for the first time while starting an internship can make those first few days all the more nerve wracking.

After scoring two internships in New York City last summer, I couldn’t have been more excited – and then the realization of living alone in a city I didn’t know anything about terrified me. From the moment my plane landed at La Guardia, I was a nervous wreck until I made it through my first few days.

By the end of my time as a summer intern, though, I had the interning and city gag down pat. In fact, I couldn’t get enough, so I decided to come back to New York in January to intern again. With three different internships under my belt in one of the biggest cities in the world, here are some tips that helped me become a big city intern faster than I thought was possible. Read More »

Internships are a vital part to landing a job after college and with this increasingly competitive job market and a failing economy, we can use all the advantages we can get. Internships are an easy way to get your foot in the door at the company of your choice where you will meet valuable contacts, get insider information and learn the tricks of the trade.

News to you?

Don’t panic – there’s still time to apply and, lucky for you, we’ve done half the work already and found the 9 coolest internships out there. (The 10th was interning right here for CollegeCandy.com, but we already have some rockin’ lucky ladies lined up. Sorry!) So ladies, break out your blazers, your resumes and start booking those interviews because here’s your chance! Read More »

Is the spring semester half over already? Sadly, it’s true. And while some of our peers will be looking forward to spending the summer at one pool party after another, many of us are currently scouring job listings for summer internships.

Internships are a great way to add experience to your resume, make industry connections, and discover what kind of career path you really want to follow. While school’s in session, it can be hard to fit an internship into your schedule; in the summer, however, you can devote more hours to the gig.

Unfortunately, just because you sign up to work a 40-hour work week from May to August, it doesn’t mean you’re going to get paid like a fulltime employee. Read More »

Do you volunteer your time for your favorite cause? Volunteer to work on the presidential campaign? Pass out pamphlets for women’s rights? Throw paint on people sporting fur coats?

I know I do some of those things. I am a huge supporter of animals’ rights, but even I think that PETA is a bit extreme when it comes to getting their point across. And it appears that some of their members are taking that extremism even further.

PETA intern, Jennifer Thornburg, Cutout Dissection.com convinced federal courts to change her name to support Cut Out Dissection Month in October.

Now, I don’t know if it’s fame, pure insanity, or a real dedication to the cause, but this girl is making a bold statement. This is originality and creativity at its finest. All in the “name” of community service!

So why did this 19 year old intern do this? She wanted to raise awareness about the six million animals that are killed for dissection each year. The animals suffer painful deaths. She hopes to raise awareness amongst students and teachers to say no to dissection, and yes to alternative ways of anatomy.

Around PETA and to her fellow interns, she is known as simply Cut Out, but her parents still call her Jenny. She loves introducing herself as Cutout Dissection.com because it engages people in conversation about dissection efforts, thus leading to ways they can get involved and help the cause.

Although, I can’t help but wonder what strangers think when she introduces herself at the bar:

“Hey, pretty lady. I’m Jon.”

“Hi Jon. I’m Cutout Dissection.com.”

“What?”

Tell me what do you think: is this amazing dedication or just plain crazy?

Got a burning question, a helpful comment, topics or other things you’d like to us to cover? Think you know the perfect way for CC to take over the WWW? Are you heading to school in NYC and interested in interning for the coolest office ever? (Besides the world’s slowest elevator, our office is the chillest place you’ll ever intern)

Send us a note at jess@collegecandy(dot)com or Lauren@collegecandy(dot)com. CC is also occasionally online — CollegeCandy27 — so add us to your buddy list (we love to procrastinate as much as the next girl)! Our goal is to be everything you could ever need in a website, so we really want to know what’s on your mind!

It’is the beginning of August. Everyone is wrapping up their summer internships and getting ready to begin the new school year. Before you leave your internship, make an effort to schedule a 10-minute meeting with your internship supervisor and any executives you have helped out or done work for. You need to get some “face” time with these employees.

The goal is for you to get just enough face time for them to remember you when you send them an email two months down the line. Don’t be scared to ask for this meeting. You have a 50/50 chance they will say YES. And if they say NO, not a big deal. Think of it as an added bonus if they let you.

If your employer does agree to sit down with you, have a list of questions prepared. You want to learn as much about the executive in the 10-minutes allotted as possible.

What to Say and Do During Your “Exit” Meeting From You Internship

1. Make a list of questions to ask your employer before you meet with him/her

2. Go in the meeting with a notepad and pen Read More »

[When CollegeCandy put out a request for a Secret Intern to write an Internship Diary, we got some truly cringe-inducing stories, but “Elisa’s” experience trumped all.

Currently, “Elisa” is interning for a big, flashy 5th Avenue designer. Sounds awesome, right? Well, read the third installment HERE, and then read on…]

I’M FINALLY FREE!!!

I wish I could say from the intern sh*t, but I was actually stuck in a tiny elevator with 6 people for 45 minutes.

Why? because we were all waiting for cake.

All for a freaking piece of cake on the day I was supposed to start my “diet.” I swear this place does not help me out one bit.

I wish I could say that this place is as exciting…what with today and the elevator fiasco, but I honestly don’t know how much more of this useless crap I can handle. Read More »

Look, sometimes, here at CC, we make mistakes. Maybe we have one more glass of wine than appropriate. Maybe we let our passions trump our work. Maybe we eat all of the candy out of the office candy bowl before 10:30 AM. Whatever the case, when we make mistakes (and are caught. Damn), we believe the right thing to do is to own up to them.

So…Curtis…if you’re reading this right now…we apologize for being…a little less than professional. Read More »

I don’t want to post another of those “F&%k Valentine’s Day” blogs, or the “Not to be all bitter, but F$%k Valentine’s Day” blogs. And yet here I am.

Here’s the thing about Valentine’s Day: It lasts for freaking ever. It’s all, “Have a Happy Valentine’s Day!” and, “How’s your Valentine’s Day going?” and then, “Can you believe there are only 364 days until Valentine’s Day rolls around again?” And the cycle continues.

And then there’s Valentine’s Day At Work. It’s the same for everyone. There’s always:

-The sad single girl who clearly spent all night making pink cupcakes for the staff which no one eats.

-The annoying work couple who crack little post-coital jokes February 15th that make you want to puke or get married over the Internet.

-The boss who schedules you to work until 11pm Valentine’s Day evening because she “assumed you would be free…”

How to tastefully deal with Valentine’s Day? It’s a toughie. Some people have those “Anti- Valentine’s Day” parties, but to work these either need to be flooded with movie stars or take place in the Village. Otherwise they can be reminiscent of those “Anti-Prom” parties you and your Literary Club friends had junior year of high school. Read More »