Doing an internship has various advantages. It is good to gain work experience, build your CV and get an idea of what kind of employees the job market is looking for. Furthermore, often students obtain different skills through an internship compared to the traditional education. In today’s society many students complete an internship and for some programmes it is even a mandatory component of the educational programme.  There are many different ways to look for an internship. If you are enrolled in a Vocational Educational programme, there is often a career adviser or internship officer etc. who can help you with finding an internship. Speak with academic advisors, school career counselors, and professors to discover which companies in your target industry offer worthwhile internships where you'll receive real, value-added experience.

Furthermore, often VET schools have partnerships with companies and through these partnerships it is also often possible to find a suitable internship. Schools or companies also organise career events or fairs. During these events it is possible to find information about the different companies and organisations, which are present. These events are perfect to network and get to know possible employers. There should also be information available regarding internships. Another way to look for internships is the internet. There are websites that collect all the open internships and display them. Websites such as LinkedIn could be a good start as well. On the website of the companies and organisations there are also often vacancies listed. Furthermore, it is always possible to approach companies or organisations directly to ask if they are taking interns. A successful internship is one that can help you with the following:

1. an internship that teaches the basic knowledge and skills required to get hired for a full-time job (either in the company where you interned or by one of its competitors);
2. an internship experience that will positively enhance your resume;
3. an internship that helps you develop professional networking contacts that can assist you in your future job search;

Some of the best internship experiences come as a result of prospecting. This means identifying companies or organizations that you want to work for and contacting them directly which can result in some of the best internships around for a number of reasons.

• By identifying companies that don't actually advertise their internships, you will avoid competing with thousands of other applicants who also found the internship listing online.
• By contacting a company directly, you will often get an opportunity to help create the type of experience you are seeking and may be allowed to have some input into what the internship involves.

Create well-crafted, targeted resumes and cover letters that focus on the organization and position to which you are applying. Keep in mind that just one typo can put you out of the running (in the next paragraphs you can find some instruments to help you with that). Have a methodical process to log your interviews, and set dates to follow-up with employers via email or phone. Don’t forget the importance of thank notes in the interviewing process. Oftentimes students feel that they are being a pest but many companies see this behavior as gauging a motivated student as well as someone who really wants to come and work for their particular company.

Check the next paragraphs to see the particular links that can be used to search for internships locally and internationally.