If you're a recent grad yearning to work at a startup, internships are a great way to get your foot in the door and gain firsthand experience. That said, internships are sometimes confused with free labor — so if you're looking to kick-start your career, find a company that values your skills and compensates you accordingly (either financially, or with training and experience).
Plus, some skills are more highly valued by your future startup employers than others, which can also help you narrow down your search for the perfect internship. To find out more, I asked 12 members of Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) which types of internships they strongly recommend. Their best answers are below.
1. Get an internship in sales
Right now, skills like graphic design, software development, UI/UX and other tech skills are pretty hot and are likely to be recommended by many founders. But these skills, like others in the technology world, will wax and wane over the next few years. And no startup really wants a not-quite-ready developer or designer. Instead, get an internship in sales. The one thing that any startup founder is going to value above all else is the ability to generate revenue for the company. If you can come in and immediately bring in dollars, you’ve set yourself apart. If you can do that, you’ll have a job at any startup in the country. — Joshua Dorkin, BiggerPockets
2. Find a startup offering a variety of tasks and real responsibilities
Make sure the internship offers a lot of hands-on experience and allows you to really contribute to the company. With that in mind, don’t be afraid to take on an internship at a startup that you are unfamiliar with if you'll be given more responsibilities. Look for a startup company where you will have the opportunity to work on a variety of different projects across departments, so that you have the opportunity to discover what you do best. Choose an internship where you will be given real responsibilities that truly impact the business. Ask questions during the interview to find out what types of tasks you’ll be doing and how involved you’ll be in the business as an intern to make sure it’s worth it for you. — Diana Goodwin, AquaMobile Swim School
3. Look for startups with a history of hiring (and paying) interns
Many startups either don't hire interns at all (it's too tough to create a process around) or bring on anyone that will work for free. Find the sweet spot. Startups that hire interns and pay them will put them to work. That means you can expect a really meaningful internship and, hopefully, unusual access to some of the high-level decisions that go into building a young company. — Tarek Pertew, Uncubed
4. Seek out a fast-growing startup with a smaller team
The reality of being an intern can be far from glamorous — long hours, tasks no one else wants to do, and usually little responsibility in the company. In contrast to this, if you jump into a fast-growing startup, you’ll probably have a very different internship experience. When a startup is growing faster than they can hire, everyone is very involved (interns included). By being in this fast-paced, growing startup realm, you’ll have many more opportunities to learn, and take on responsibilities that would usually be taken on by experienced professionals. Fast-growing startups promote testing and failing (with the notion that you’ll learn from it) while an established startup might be more risk averse. — Ranan Lachman, Pley
5. Get to know the founders
Hang out at meetups, do your research and try to talk to various founders to get to know them first. If you like hanging out with them and you can see how they can help you learn and how to reach your goals, then it's worth applying. This approach requires the prospective intern to be proactive, and it also makes a great impression on those founders looking to hire interns. Personally, I wouldn't remember prospective employees or interns if I meet them once at a networking event. But if they come to two events in a row I will and have a much deeper conversation about their goals and what they want to learn. And of course talk to other employees and/or interns working there if they come to a local event to gauge how excited they are about the company. — Daniel Theirl, Rubikloud Technologies
6. Learn all aspects of the business
I think startups are a great way to learn many different things and make it possible for interns to get their feet wet in areas they would not otherwise get experience. Startups also allow employees to be exposed to more integral parts of the business, giving them invaluable experience. Students will be more prepared when they graduate to understand more specifically what they want to do in the future if the intern has seen many different sides of business. — Jayna Cooke, EVENTup
7. Make sure you have the opportunity to take risks
Something that many internships lack is the chance to think outside of the box and take risks. When you work for a startup you will need to take on many roles and go the extra mile to add value to the company. We need employees who recognize when things can be done in a better way, voice their opinion, come up with fresh ideas and don’t fear mistakes. These skills simply cannot be obtained from a tedious, structured internship, but rather from one that promotes creativity, risk-taking and team-building, where every voice is heard. — David Tomas, Cyberclick
8. Make sure you get autonomy, exposure and impact
Internships at a startup should include the following opportunities: exposure to senior leadership on a regular basis, an autonomous working environment, projects with an impact on the bottom line, cross-functional projects, access to financials and a technical skill. For example, you should be able to be in meetings with the CEO, on sales calls, working directly with developers, understanding the company's cash flow and adding technical skills (Excel, coding, financial valuations) to your skill set. The exposure to all sides of the business will help you determine where you fit on a startup team. — Faraz Khan, Go Direct Lead Generation
9. Look for smart people you want to work with
Find a job where you see people doing lots of cool stuff and where you think people are smart. This allows you to learn new things and be productive. I've had jobs where I was paid well, but I didn't learn a thing. I call this "trading time for money" and it's never worth it. In contrast, some of my best experiences were unpaid and I was able to get lost in hours of work where I really learned how things worked and how to create value. These opportunities had great role models where I asked people the "hows" and "whys" of what we were doing. Take notes and reflect on what you've done during the experience so you can tell a good story during a future interview that shows engagement and self-awareness of the experience. — Alex Fang, Aurrion
10. Focus on the real benefits
Remove the "cool factor" from the equation and focus on the internship's real benefits. It's easy to get seduced by a trendy company, only to be disappointed when you realize the work you do isn't meaningful. Prioritize opportunities where you can make a measurable impact, so afterwards you can say, “I worked on X which led to Y." Aim to work with mentors who are not only smart, but also accessible. In your interview, find out who you’ll be working with and how closely. You'll want someone on your team who will advocate for you. Remember, internships are trial runs for real-world careers. You might realize you'd rather pursue a different job or field, and that's OK. Finding that perfect career fit is all part of the process. — Stephen Gill, 50onRed
11. Intern in an understaffed role
It's all around good job hunting advice: go where you're needed. The best case scenario for a startup minded intern is a quick promotion from intern to full employee at such a company. The simplest way to do this is to find a startup that has a shortage of workers in an important function (maybe it's customer service, or coding, or sales, etc.) and do that for them. Taking advantage of scarcity increases your value to the company and provides easy upward mobility and job security. To feel out these opportunities, just ask what a company needs the most during your interview with them. — Manpreet Singh, TalkLocal
12. Make sure the work is relevant
Internships are becoming the new full-time job after graduation for many grads. When looking for an internship, take one where the work is relevant to the job you want to have once you graduate. If you've already graduated and are looking at a specific company but they only have internships, take the internship. There's a good chance that if you do a good job, that internship may convert to a full-time job once the summer ends. Ask the employer upfront if this is a possibility. If it is, then do your best work that summer. — Roberto Angulo, AfterCollege
Originally posted July 10th, 2015 on Mashable.
