By Dustin Hennessy, Account Services Intern
Organized apprenticeships first began in the late middle ages and were common among craftsman. Today, we refer to these positions as internships. Here at Madison+Main, we place a lot of importance on our internship program because we understand how valuable an intern can be on our team. Initially, we have had between two to three interns per semester but this summer… we’ll have six!
What are the benefits for us?
1. Find future employees while evaluating talent – Internships bring talent. At Madison+Main four of our current employees started out as interns.
2. More productivity – With interns around, the Madison+Main-iacs are given additional perspective on projects as well as extra manpower.
3. More hands on deck – Internships give us the opportunity to help young adults gain experience and reach their goals, while also providing us with an extra set of hands at an affordable rate.
4. Great for small businesses – Since Madison+Main is a smaller agency we can offer interns more focused training, a wide range of hands on experience and mentoring from our outstanding staff.
What are the benefits for interns?
1. Experience – It can be extremely difficult to find a job, especially without experience, and most employers won’t hire you without it. An internship offers a solution by providing students and recent graduates great experience.
2. Determining your career – Internships offer participants first hand experience in the field, which is important for helping young adults decide their future career paths.
3. Secure employment – In many cases, an internship will lead to a job. According to the National Association of Colleges and Employers’ (NACE), almost 60% of the 2007 – 2008 interns were offered full-time positions and of those almost 84% accepted.
4. Networking – As an intern, we get a lot opportunity to meet people within the industry. And as you know, networking + our newly acquired intern experience can help land a job!
As an intern, I recognize the outstanding opportunity I have and look forward to learning from Madison+Main.