How to find an internship?

The research for an internship for a student can sometimes be daunting and this is quite normal. During your school year, when you are already concerned about your exams, it is not always easy to get organised to find an internship. Don't panic, here are our 5 tips to find a host company and get a great internship!

 

Get ahead of the curve to find a good internship

 

It may take you several months to get your internship so start looking as soon as possible - even if the academic start has only been behind you for a few days or weeks. Generally speaking, recruiters looking for interns published many offers throughout the year. So start by consulting the internship offers online. The earlier you do your research, the more likely you will be able to prioritise your applications towards the sector of activity that best matches your professional project.

 

The steps for a good search for an internship in a company

 

Don't rush to respond to all internship offers, think about your professional project and refine it as much as possible. Try to determine what would be the ideal internship for you. Which field do you want to work in? In which professional environment do you want to work? What type of internship will allow you to accumulate the professional experience necessary to experience the profession of your dreams?

After doing this work, you can target the type of company that will best suit you for your internship. Large group? Small company? Start-up? French company? Foreign multinational company? Some online business directories such as Kompass allow you to perform accurate and filtered searches (company size, sector, etc.). You can respond to offers from recruiting companies but don’t forget to send unsolicited applications.

In order to put all the chances on your side, we advise you to personalise your applications, i.e. write a different cover letter and adapt your CV each time you apply for an internship. It is an excellent way to stand out and assert your interest in the internship you are interested in. In each of your CVs, cover letters or even during a job interview, you must show your determination!

 

Use your network to find an internship

 

Even if your professional network is not yet very extensive when you start your studies, some schools can offer you to take advantage of their alumni network or partner companies hosting interns. At IPAG Business School, a Career Center supports you in your research and internship searches throughout your course.

Social networks are also an excellent way to expand your professional network and find internship opportunities. By following the right accounts on Twitter or being in the right groups on Facebook, you can find leads and take advantage of the different career opportunities available to you. Nevertheless, the most effective social network in this field remains LinkedIn, a key player on the job market. You can register your curriculum vitae online and apply directly to internship opportunities published on the platform.

Your friend or family network can obviously help you to find a host company more easily, so don't hesitate to talk about your professional goal around you. All means are good to find your internship at the end of your studies.

 

Set up alerts to look for internship offers

 

To monitor the latest internship offers, don’t hesitate to set up your alerts on specialised sites. Same for Google, for example, save the alert: "internship+position" so you don't miss any offers. Also consider setting up your alerts in English - or in another language - if you want to do an internship abroad.

 

The best sites to find an internship

 

There are many specialised sites on the job market, here is the list of the main ones:

• RegionsJob: this site allows you to write your CV and save it on the platform. Recruiters will be able to contact you if they find your profile interesting.
• Welcome to the jungle: a unique concept with exclusive videos and content published by companies looking for interns.
• Stage.fr: a site exclusively dedicated to research and offers of internships and apprenticeship programmes.

 

At IPAG, our Career Center gives you access to offers exclusively dedicated to the IPAG’ students! For more information, don’t hesitate to contact our Career Center and its teams on the Paris campus (careercenter-paris@ipag.fr) and on the Nice campus (careercenter-nice@ipag.fr).