What are the Benefits of Interning with a Startup?

By UTS Innovation & Entrepreneurship Unit

Studying at university isn’t just about the knowledge you learn in the classroom and making sure you graduate with that valuable piece of paper, it’s also about making sure you’re learning the essential skills for the future of work.

Our latest initiative supporting this is Startup Internships, a program helping you to become the real MVP by facilitating mutually beneficial internship experiences between students and startups.

In a world of constant change, we now have career options we’ve never dreamed of. One opportunity that is becoming increasingly possible is the chance to create your own jobs and be your own boss. So if you’re wondering why you should be kick-starting your entrepreneurial career path, we’ve put together a few reasons:

Be the founder of your own career

Interning with a startup is one of the best ways you can foster a proactive mindset and stay up-to-date with the changing world. Whether you want to launch a startup, innovate from within a company, or maybe you have no idea where you want to end up, interning with a startup is a guaranteed way to learn more about how businesses work, what you’re interested in, and develop crucial 21st century skills.

Intern in an industry you actually care about

By opening up opportunities to work with early-stage ventures, UTS Startups Internships is giving you the opportunity to gain a comprehensive understanding of how a business can find its feet in the modern economy. Given the broad spectrum of startups you can intern with as part of the program, there’s bound to be a startup in a sector you’re passionate about, that enables you to make an impact on something you care about.

License to experiment

Work experience with a startup not only gives you room to experiment with different industries and career pathways, but is also your license to experiment in a sector that has potential for high impact. In the program, you’re thrown into an environment that thrives on collaboration, where new ideas and perspectives are encouraged, and the opportunity to work on projects that, within small-structured ventures, can contribute significantly to a business’ direction.

A front row seat to the realities of the business world

 Nothing helps you understand a process and its various inputs and outputs, like seeing it grow from nothing into something.

Startup Internships is a way for you to learn from founders who have built a venture from the ground up, and get tips on the pitfalls to avoid when running a business.

When working in an established company, decision-making is often hidden behind opaque hierarchy. But by getting in at the ground floor of a business that is still finding its feet, you get to see the behind the curtain and have a front row seat to the successes and failures of a business.

Exposure to these practices through working with a startup can help you adapt to the demands of the modern economy and world of work, and encourages an approach to learning and innovation that is needed more than ever.

So if you want to understand the inner workings of business, take control of your career and apply for the Startup Internships program now.

 Head to startupinternships.uts.edu.au to find out more or email entrepreneurship@uts.edu.au for any inquiries.

Featured image courtesy of Unsplash