Here’s a look at some websites you can use to grab the most suitable internship for you

Get linked in

A host of websites can match you with prospective employers in your specific field of interest. A look at how to get the most out of them and put your best foot forward

Retail management student Harshil Bhadra, 19, was looking for marketing internships last year. However, through the placement cell on campus, he received offers only in fashion sales. “That’s when a professor suggested online portal Twenty19, which connects students to internships,” says the student of HR College in Churchgate. 

“After applying for three roles, I landed a marketing internship at Porsche,” says Bhadra. “If not for Twenty19, I would have to independently research the companies, and wouldn’t know if they even take interns. Besides, I had so many options to choose from.” 

It is that time of the year when exams are almost over and students are looking for internships for the summer holidays. Like Bhadra, students from across the country are using online portals to view options beyond their offline networks. And it works both ways. Recruiters also reach out to many more internship applicants, without physically visiting campuses. 

“Digital platforms have made our lives much simpler as now we can view several profiles, shortlist the best ones, assign them tests — all on one platform,” says Hamsaz Vasunia, HR head of DCB Bank. “These are also good platforms for employer-branding, and saves us a lot of time and effort.” DCB bank has a programme called Top Recruit Program for campuses, through which the entire process of hiring interns and employees happens digitally. 

Here’s a look at some websites you can use to grab the most suitable internship for you. INTERNTHEORY.COM What started as a college utility website in November 2013, soon began receiving registrations from students across the city. That’s when Anshini Jhaveri, 23, co-founder and graduate of DJ Sanghvi College of Engineering in Vile Parle, decided to manage the portal full-time, with three friends. 

“While on campus, it was difficult to trace companies willing to hire interns,” says Jhaveri. “There is a huge communication gap in this sector, where both students and recruiters are looking for each other. Our effort is to bridge this gap.” 

The website saw 4,500 new registrations last month, against the 1,500 registrations the month before. Recruiters include: Viacom 18, BookMyShow, Walt Disney India, Porsche and Life Insurance Corporation of India USP: Applications get auto-rejected in seven days so students don’t have to wait endlessly to know the status. The portal also provides personal assistance to students over phone or email, where they guide them about the different streams, which profiles to look for, how to apply, etc. How it works: Students can browse through the available internship options without registering on the website, but will have to make a digital CV if they wish to make an application. They must also upload an introductory video, to showcase their personality. 

While you can apply for as many positions as you want, you can only take up three internships a month, as some can be project-based or as short as one week. “This is to ensure that students are genuinely interested in a role and not just applying for the sake of it,” says Jhaveri. 

All communication between the recruiter and student takes place over the portal. As soon as employer shortlists a candidate, they get the student’s contact details, and can then follow up directly for interviews or tests. 

Students can also ask the employer questions about the profile, via the website.

“The process was smooth and I received an interview call in six days of applying,” says Katha Mehta, 19, first-year BMS student at Lala Lajpat Rai Institute of Management in Mahalaxmi. “In October, I interned with BookMyShow for a month as a content writer, and the experience was wonderful. The good thing about the website is that they constantly keep in touch with you through the process, and have A-list companies listed.” LETSINTERN.COM The website began operations in April 2013 and has received 5 lakh applications since. There are about 28,000 organisations and 2.6 lakh positions on offer. According to LetsIntern, more than 50,000 students have been successfully placed. 

“While 70% traffic is from the top 6 cities of Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Pune, Chennai and Kolkata, 30% is from Tier-II cities such as Lucknow, Jaipur, Durgapur, etc,” says Gaurav Misra, vice-president – growth. While 2013-14 saw 3,500 sign ups a month on the website, this number increased to 15,000 in 2015-16, says Misra. Recruiters include: Amazon, AirBnB, Housing.com. The website also works to get students global internship opportunities at companies such as NASA, Microsoft and Google USP: Offers virtual internship and work-from-home options How it works: Students can browse profiles without signing up. Advanced search options allow you to search by location, interest, course, etc. 

The website has a CV-building tool. 

Once you click on a position, you will need to sign up; if the company requires you to take a test, you can do that over the platform too. If you have been shortlisted, you will be notified over SMS, email and on your LetsIntern dashboard. 

According to data collected by the company in November, 80% of internships on the portal were paid. 

“I came across this portal on a random Google search and then went on to do 4 digital marketing internships through them,” says Gordon Fernandes, 21, an IT graduate f rom St Andrews Colle ge, Bandra. “Even after I was shortlisted, I could take the company’s test on the platform itself, which saved me from physically going to their head offices.” INTERNSHALA.COM Sarvesh Agrawal, an IIT-Madras alumnus, founded Internshala as a blog in December 2010. 

"Back then, I would look for internship options on the internet and post them on my blog," says Agrawal. "After a phenomenal response from students, I decided to take this up full-time." 

Since the website launched in October 2011, it has seen 1 million registered users, increased from 2.4 lakh last year, to 7.5 lakh this year. Recruiters include: Kolkata Knight Riders, Uber, Godrej, DLF and Porsche. Agrawal says that a few Members of Parliament and Members of Legislative Assembly have also hired interns from the platform. USP: All listed internships are paid How it works: Students can sign up free of cost, and search for options based on stipend, location, profile, etc. Students can track their application status via the websites, and will receive notifications with each update. They can also take tests given by firms on the website, as part of their recruitment process. 

"After finishing the Class 12 exams, I was looking for internship options for the holidays," says Aditya Kulshreshtha, 18, an engineering student from Bhopal ." In just four days, I was interning with Your Filmy Wedding, a wedding photography firm in Kanpur. Internshala was very helpful, constantly communicating with me about the status of my application. They also guide students as to how to reply to employers. In case somebody is lucking out, they train them on how to crack the best options.” TWENTY19.COM “We provide colle ge event information for students to take part in various contests and conferences and also help students learn over 70 industry relevant skills and build projects hands-on,” says Karthikeyan Vijaykumar, founder and CEO. 

The website, star t ed in March 2010, has seen an over 190% increase in the number of students applying for internships over the past two years. They have over 4.5 lakh active applicants. Recruiters include: Uber, Ola, Inmobi, Reliance, Adobe, Biocon, Dunn & Bradstreet, Leo Burnett, Nielsen USP: Along with internship options, the website also helps students participate in contests and conferences where they can meet prospective employers How it works: Students must provide details of prior mini-projects in the relevant domain, to help employers understand their skills. 

“I have completed three internships through Twenty19,” says Sherly Hephzibah, 19, an English literature student from Chennai. “The website had clear details of the job and they handled the application very professionally all through. I was floored by the many options available to me on the platform.”

Source | Hindustan Times | 23 March 2016

Regards

Pralhad Jadhav

Senior Librarian

Khaitan & Co

Upcoming Event | National Conference on Future Librarianship: Innovation for Excellence (NCFL 2016) during April 22-23, 2016.

Note | If anybody use these post for forwarding in any social media coverage or covering in the Newsletter please give due credit to those who are taking efforts for the same.