4 Must-Haves for your internship application

As an undergraduate, you can't wait to secure your dream internship to set you up for success. You want to stand-out from the crowd and impress your future employer. Here are 4 guiding questions to help you perfect your internship application.

1.       What is my story?
First and foremost, figure out your story. Imagine that had an opportunity to speak to the CEO of the company directly and you have 30 seconds to convince him that he should hire you!  

Write this down and use this as a frame of reference as you craft your application.

Many candidates make the mistake of focusing on what you want and why this is such a great opportunity for you, this mindset will not help you stand-out. What you want to focus on is why the company should hire you. What do you bring to the table? What are your unique strengths and experiences?

2.       Does this make me look good?
Eliminate unnecessary filler with ruthless precision. If it doesn’t make you look good, it isn’t necessary.
Make sure to only include things that are relevant. This is an important point. Try your best to include only things that are recent, and are linked to the job that you are applying for.

Note: If you are finding a lack of points, do not worry. Most things can be made relevant once you give it some thought and extract the lessons and skills that you learnt through the task / experience. See point #3 below.

3.       Can this be re-phrased to make me look better?
After you have eliminated filler information, you are left with the task of re-crafting your existing points to make them better.

Take out your paragraph or bullet points from point #1 and use this as a frame of reference as you craft each and every important point left on your resume and cover letter.

Keep in mind the following:
·         Demonstrate what you did / your role
·         Highlight your strengths / skill-sets / personality  
·         Use facts, figures and context
·         Make everything short and impactful
 
4.       Does everything flow?
If there is flow and consistency in your application, you will be more persuasive. Make it easy to follow and understand. Adopt a chronological order and use formatting to your advantage.

Finally, sleep on it and take a look at your application the next day with fresh eyes. Let someone else take a look at your application so that you have some objectivity on how to improve.

If you would like a personalized review of your application, please feel free to email us at [email protected] or submit your application directly here.