<p>Well I was wondering if internships check for any prior work experience when hiring you.</p>
<p>I know it may vary, but as a general overview. I would like to know if I should find a job before looking for internships to get some experience under my belt, but it might be difficult to work 20+ hours a week while going to school full time as well.</p>
<p>I am going into the accounting/finance field, if that helps at all. Thanks.</p>
<p>What do you mean “check”?</p>
<p>Like will they look at your resume? Absolutely. Will they call to confirm you actually worked some place? Maybe…</p>
<p>Prior work experience helps as it’s something to talk about in interviews, but it’s not strictly speaking necessary for getting an internship. I’ve known people with no experience that got internships.</p>
<p>Well, I mean will any place actually turn me down because I do not have any work experience, but I am involved in clubs, groups, intramurals, etc. </p>
<p>That will give me something to talk about, but as for having any prior work experience whether it be in retail, fast food, etc. etc. I don’t.</p>
<p>It’s a plus if you do have relevant work experience, but not required. That’s the whole point of internships is to gain work experience somewhat related to your major.</p>
<p>It sounds like you are just starting to think about working for the first time, and that’s a good thing - everyone has to start somewhere! The biggest thing to remember is that each job you get should build upon the last job you had.</p>
<p>Here is my path:
Age 14: camp counselor → Age 15: camp counselor who got paid 40 cents an hour more → Age 16: lifeguard at aforementioned camp → Age 17: assistant manager at a swim club
Age 16: Food runner at country club → Age 17: Busser at restaurant → Age 18: Server at low-end restaurant → Ages 19-22: Server at high-end restaurant</p>
<p>I had some additional experience in retail, research, and student-group leadership before applying to full time, career-like jobs, but I never would have been able to get the good stuff on my resume without working my way up, and that would have made applying to jobs several orders of magnitude more difficult!</p>
<p>To answer your question, you will not be ruled out if you don’t have any experience in anything, but in a competitive market, your peers will likely (depending on the industry and the type of internship you apply to) fare better than you if they have work experience and you do not.</p>