Short Summary: It is important to have experiences that might be relevant to your career field on your resume. The Digital Media Engagement (DME) internship is perfect for that. Here are five reasons why the DME internship helps with career experience.
Internships are crucial aspects of a resume. They show potential employers the organizations you have worked with and the types of tasks performed. The Digital Media Engagement (DME) team is my second internship, which has given me insight into what I like to do and can perform in the workplace. Here are five tips on what interning with DME can do for your career experience!
- Explore Different Types of Work
Some of my fellow interns have told me that they joined a department, such as accessibility, without any previous experience in the field. But they have gained valuable skills from doing so. If you are unsure about your future career, it is a great opportunity to explore many options of work and to develop considerable expertise. Even if you do know what occupation you want after graduation, the DME internship still offers important experiences. I am currently a graduate student in history with a B.A. in English, so working with the writing department has allowed me to learn about digital archives, utilizing research skills, etc.
- Get Feedback on Resumes and Make LinkedIn Connections
On Slack (DME’s main communication line), there is a channel called #federal_employment. Interns post their LinkedIn profiles to gain connections and recommendations for skills. LinkedIn is a great way to have people recommend your skills in virtual collaboration, communication or technical specialties. Interns can also post their resumes for multiple rounds of feedback and get tips on how to enhance them. Improving your resume can make a difference in job interviews, so interns can take advantage of receiving feedback from fellow interns.
- Gain Leadership Experience
Any intern can apply to an intern leadership position when the opportunity becomes available. Being part of the intern leadership allows interns to work closely with aspects of the internship, like bootcamp, onboarding and productivity tracking. This is your chance to contribute to the internship in ways that may get used for future interns. For example, many departments since the fall have been hosting office hours or social gatherings via Zoom. Interns get a chance to ask questions about work, share tips they might have learned or see people from other departments. We have had great feedback on these sessions and hope future intern leaders will continue them.
- Learn Your Strengths and Weaknesses
Division officers (DOs), department heads (DHs) and the executive leader team (ELT) give feedback to interns in their weekly reports and in their biannual evaluations. But interns also learn on the job what they excel in and what needs to improve. For example, an editing intern might demonstrate strong productivity and organization skills, but not always communicate with their fellow interns or leadership as much as needed. Understanding your skills in the workplace can help you with deciding what to highlight in your resume.
- Understand Working with the Public
In the writing department, members of the public sometimes submit nominations for Veteran of the Day posts. We require they send us photos and some basic information about the Veteran’s service. But sometimes we run into issues. Maybe the photos are not high-quality, or the writer is missing details needed for the writeup. That then requires communication with the nominators. Working with DME gives valuable insight into how to work through this process and to make connections for the department. I have worked with two Veteran organizations through communicating this way, and they continue to send us nominations or follow-up when we reach out to them.
All of these tips are important parts of career experience. By joining the DME internship, you are taking the next step to furthering your occupation!
Writer: Sarah Concepcion
Editors: Julia Pack and Elissa Tatum
Graphic Designer: Mohogany Bridges
