"Summer Job: Guarding the Galaxy"

Friday, April 28, 2023

by Andrew H. Potter

Congratulations! You are one of the ~4.2 million college students that secured an internship in the United States this summer.

The original Captain Kirk once noted, “No, I’m from Iowa. I only work in outer space.” So here is the key question: If your internship is on Earth, how do you get ready for a career in space when Starfleet Academy is not an option? Marvel Corporate does offer internships, but I don’t think any of them operate in space.

Unfortunately, I am not certain that “Guardian of the Galaxy” will be an in-demand career in ten years, but the transition to the future will include all kinds of exciting new professions. “Synthetic Organ Farmer,” “Cyborg Technician,” “Solar Muon Engineer,” “New Species Developer,” or “Drone Herder” are just some of the potential interesting career trajectories. Now is the time to use that summer internship to prepare.

Here are three ways you might be able to leverage your summer internship to prepare for a future career of “Guarding the Galaxy” (even if you are not a racoon):

Interview the Company: Many students like to remind me that their internship operates as a three-month interview conducted by the employer. Reverse this thinking and use your internship as a three-month interview conducted by you. Simply, build relationships and talk to as many employees at as many multiple levels of the organization as you can. Tactically, set a goal to have at least three 20-minute conversations every week of your internship. Schedule lunch with someone from Finance, Operations, Human Resources, Product Development—why are these people there? What work do they do? What challenges and opportunities do they think about? What culture exists at this company? By the end of the summer, you want to be able to defend if this company merits your application for a full-time position. Additionally, you should have found functional areas that interest you and that don’t interest you.
Identify the Skills: Skills are the currency of the future. As employers accelerate their transition away from degree/discipline-based hiring and towards skill-based hiring, you have 2-3 months of inside access to identify what matters most—maximize this access. Tactically, create a simple grid where you can track both technical and soft skills required to become a top performer in this company. Based on your analysis, reshape your fall semester so that you can continue to incubate and practice the skills you need to drive value and make an impact.
Visit “the Zoo”: Every city, town or neighborhood has a unique culture and pulse. Make sure you maximize your weekends, evenings and lunch breaks to sample all of the vignettes. Tactically, target one unique experience every week. Not only will you figure out the type of environment you might want in the future, but it will jump start your creativity as well. So take a picture with world’s largest ball of twine; eat at the restaurant that features over 50 types of grilled cheese sandwiches; explore the mass transit system; and visit the zoo.

Get “Future Ready”: The Power of Internship Experiences

As Gandalf the White once noted, “There is always hope.” While I generally find it to be bad practice to disagree with wizards, especially those of the Istari Order, I think that Thomas Jefferson was right to emphasize the connection between effort and good luck. Simply, you can hope for a bright future; but I recommend that you actively create that future. Maximizing your summer internship is a great place to start.

Andrew H. Potter is the Director of the University Office of Experiential Learning at the University of Georgia, one of the nation’s leading experiential education think tanks. In this role, he directs the strategy and casts the vision for experiential education enabling every UGA undergraduate student to connect their academic foundations to the world beyond the classroom. Learn more at UGA Experiential Learning. Andrew can be contacted at andrew.potter@uga.edu.Stay up to date on all of UGA’s Experiential Learning programs at el.uga.edu and follow us on Instagram.