How many times have you come across the word - INTERNSHIP?

In the recent past, I have seen a rise of internship requests via various mediums including social media platforms. I believe most of you have had similar experiences.

Let’s first see what the meaning of INTERNSHIP is.

“the position of a student or trainee who works in an organisation, sometimes without pay, in order to gain work experience or satisfy requirements for a qualification.”

As the definition implies, internship is carried out by many as a mere formality to complete their education and get a degree/diploma. In the textile/apparel industry, internship become a great platform for anyone to start their career journey’s. I would say its an ideal gateway to make an entry and erase the fresher tag. Unfortunately not many realise this. 

I have taken up this as the topic for this article on many requests & decided to share a real story of 3 students who understood the potential of internship and how it shaped their careers.

THE STORY OF L.P.G

We all know that LPG stands for Liquified Petroleum Gas.

Like LPG flows out from a cylinder and catches fire when ignited, this story is of 3 students with a similar fire in their bellies & were looking to be ignited through INTERNSHIPS.

This is the story of Mr.L, Mr.P and Mr.G - students of a government institute based in Chennai. They were doing a Diploma in Textile Technology from the institute under the mentorship of Prof.D who ignited them at the right time.

As they entered the 4th semester, under the guidance of Prof.D, they decided to take up internship as the fuel for their learning as well as starting a career. As the 4th semester vacation started, they interned in various segments of the textile industry such as spinning, weaving, wet processesing, textile designing & apparel factory which transformed their bookish theory into practical knowledge. Due to this they were able to get better understanding of textile/apparel industry which became an asset at that stage.

86E/2

(I am sure many of you are confused by this heading…

86E/2 has a significance in these interns life. It is the landmark of the H.O of a big apparel company and a dream for many to get a job with them for multiple reasons.)

By now LPG were done with their final year studies & decided to embark on the journey of an internship to kick start their careers. With the help of Prof. D they got a bonafide certificate which became their entry tool.

One day, the three of them entered the campus of 86E/2 and approached the reception seeking a meeting with the HR to get themselves an INTERNSHIP. Since they were diploma students and not even from a reputed college, the receptionist sent them away saying that “without a prior appointment the HR team can’t meet you”.

With disappointment looming large they decide to hand over the bonafide certificates & a copy of their resume to the receptionist. After plenty of direct visits and repeated follow ups, they finally got to meet the HR. His first question to the 3 of them was “ are you guys from Anna University, NIFT…? When they shared that they were diploma holders from ITT (Institute of textile technology),  the HR immediately told them that he has never heard of the institute and as a policy they do not hire anyone who are not from a college.

SO WHAT NEXT?

After this, LPG were clueless on what to do. Their desire to work for 86E/2 was growing higher by the day & they were desperate to get an internship there. Undeterred by the first rejection, they kept following up and requesting for internship. They, in fact suggested that they would submit a project report at the end of the internship with suggestions enabling implementation. 

Finally, looking at their eagerness, the HR head convinced the Head of Sampling to take LPG as interns in his department. 

And thus began the journey…

The day LPG entered 86/E.

Finally they ventured beyond the reception of this prestigious company. On the first day they took a download from the Sampling head and an access to various departments such as the cad section, cutting, sewing, finishing & packing. From second day onwards, they started sharing the learnings of the previous day every morning with the Sampling Head. HR head often checked with sampling head about LPG’s internship progress.

In their entire tenure, LPG showcased exemplary passion & great application of knowledge. They acquired new knowledge on a daily basis and showcased execution prowess all along. As promised LPG submitted a project report filled with suggestions at the end of their internship period. 

By the end of the internship LPG started looking for job opportunities through various sources. Prof. D was also trying his best to support them.

DREAMS COMES TRUE

The sampling head gave positive feedback about LPG to the HR head. He praised them for their willingness to learn, application of learnings, passionate approach & energy levels. With such feedback, the HR head decided to give skills more importance than qualification & shared LPG’s profiles with various HOD’s for vacancies.

One fine day, LPG got an interview call from the HR. Though working for 86E/2 was a dream for them, they could not believe that they were being called for the interviews.

They were all able to clear the interviews & got entry level jobs at the branch office of their dream company. This acted as a catalyst to enhance their knowledge and skills. While working they scaled up their qualifications too, to ensure career growth and today LPG are occupying good positions working for prestigious organisations.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• Learn as much as you can and choose one thing as your career path
• Thrive over Try ensures better result. 
• Love & chew- (love what you do & deep dive on what you love).
• Choosing your mentor at the right time will set the tone for your progress 
• Commitment, creativity, courage, ambitious thoughts & independency has cutting edge over others.

LPG’s story is a true inspiration. It demonstrates how internship helps to build your career when you have take it up seriously and are eager to learn.

DCA - FOR EFFECTIVE INTERNSHIP

DURATION

Internship duration should be a minimum of 2 ½- 3 months which is ideal to get better understanding of work and visibility of 1 cycle of operation.

COMPANY & COMFORT

I always advise that students should choose small owner driven organisations for internships over big brands & their HO's. The smaller organisations are keen to mentor & educate the students with a lot more interest. They also give visibility across departments whereas in larger organisations internship is limited one department or function only.

One should also avoid looking to internship options near their colleges/areas or cities. Going out of your town/city helps breaking the comfort zone & gives exposure to different environment, people & languages. 

APPROACH

I see a lot of students send a formal email to get permission for internship and hope they get confirmation based on that. But , in reality one needs to put in good amount of ground work into this. They need to research and understand when the companies look for interns & align themselves to these timelines. Ahead of time, they should reach out, establish network & relationships  for timely permission before cut off date.

Hope many of you have come across or have your own experiences like this. Do share your stories which gives better learnings for all of us. Looking forward to your thoughts & feedback.

RELATED TOPICS:#Apparel,Ramesh Gunasekaran