For students looking to be a step ahead of the rest, real world experience like an internship can be the way to make the transition from unemployed to newly employed. Nine out of ten graduating seniors don't have any experience in the field that they intend to enter. Students who have internships before they graduate get a chance to see if they are really cut out for their chosen profession.
Internships are also a way to network and make contacts with future employers.
It's a win-win situation, because if student interns do a good job, companies might make an offer to hire them after they graduate, Jacobs said. Students who would like to have internship experience need to prepare early. Moffat advises students to be ready to start looking for internship opportunities by fall quarter. Many students think that because most internships are in the fall they can wait until spring break to start looking. But that's not so, he said, because most of the deadlines are in February and March.