Sophomore Business student, should I even bother with internships right now?

<p>I am currently a sophomore and I never had a job before. My resume therefore consists of no accomplishments, achievements, or experience (I literally have no bullet points or anything under these subheadings--my resume is embarassing and I am afraid to even print it out...). Over the past few summer, winter, and spring breaks, I felt depressed because I hadn't done anything to add to my resume--I lacked a car to drive to where I may have gotten a job.</p>

<p>What should I do now? All my friends have done internships or something to add to their resume even on their freshmen year. I can get my resume "approved" in college on Wednesday and there's a career fair that day too. I have never been to a career fair and I have no idea what I can expect with my awful resume as well as my low GPA (3.2ish). Can I land a summer internship still? If not, would working at Shoprite help me land an internship in the future? What should be my course of action? </p>

<p>Thank you.</p>

<p>Don’t be afraid and always aim high. Instead of having job experience do you have any experience on campus? Student organizations? Volunteering experiences? Don’t be afraid to add any of those. </p>

<p>As for the career fair, ALWAYS ALWAYS research ahead of time. Research which companies you would be interested in and learn about their company. If they realize that you’re interested in them, they may become more interested in you. Try to impress them almost with how much you know about their company. It would not hurt to get a job, but if you really try your best at this career fair you can succeed. </p>

<p>And even if you don’t land an internship what you can land are very important contacts. Try to network with these companies. Get to know those people even if you can’t land an internship. Your 3.2 GPA is better than a 2.5. Something I’ve learned is if your GPA is under a 3.0 don’t mention it in your resume. Only bring it up if the employer asks.</p>

<p>If you need anything, ask away! Good luck, and be strong. Aim high!</p>

<p>Always try. Everyone has to start somewhere, and if you never apply for anything, then you’re definitely not going to get anything on your resume.</p>

<p>Many, many college students don’t have anything to put on their resume in the beginning, and sometimes, you have to be creative. Did you have any positions in the clubs or anything that could be relevant to what you’re applying for (maybe you organized events, maybe you held a leadership position, maybe you worked to coordinate volunteer events or something, maybe you handled your club funds)? Did you volunteer at any places that could show that you have certain skills (even office work, like copying and filing or answering the phone could be helpful, if you phrase it right)? Do you have any skills that you could list, like knowing a foreign language or any computer skills (even just having good typing skills and familiarity with Microsoft office programs is something)? Sometime, you have to dig deep to fill up that page on your first resume, but as you get more experience, it’ll get easier and easier and you’ll find yourself having to cut stuff out.</p>

<p>Also, you may have to start low in the beginning. Still apply for things you want even if you don’t know if you can get them, but you may have to start as a volunteer or in an unpaid internship or in something that’s less competitive to get yourself some experience. As time goes on, it’ll be easier to get the big stuff, but you have to start somewhere. Apply for everything, be creative with how you sell yourself, and be flexible with what you’re willing to take. You’ll find something.</p>

<p>And don’t be afraid to take a job that’s unrelated to your field or what you want to do, if you have the time for it or if you need (or want) the money. Something on your resume is better than nothing. Even random jobs on campus or working at a local store can demonstrate skills like being dependable and punctual, being able to communicate with customers or handle disputes/tense situations, being able to work with money, being able to work in a fast-paced environment. You may even have room for advancement at a job like this, and then you can put things like training employees, supervising/assigning tasks, managing a team, etc. There are lots of ways that you can make “worked at shoprite” look good, especially if you’ve not nothing else.</p>

<p>But if you do get a random job, it’s not a bad idea to try to look for something that could help you out in the future. Maybe you could find an office job with HR or maybe something at a local startup, since you want to go into business. Or working at the library can be helpful, if nothing else that it forces you to learn how to use the library =D Or you could try tutoring or something in your spare time. That always looks nice and often pays well. Anything that shows you are good with people can be helpful, and most jobs do. There are lots of ways to get something on your resume (and even more ways to spin it to make it look good), and something is always better than nothing.</p>

<p>Thank you so much for the information, guys. Really helped lower my stress. I currently have only 13 credits this semester because I wasn’t able to find another class that could fulfill my general requirements. I have 3 days of school: Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday. I was originally planning on taking summer classes and hoping to get a job (even if it’s unrelated to my field as you’ve said) this summer just to build my empty resume. </p>

<p>I’m a commuter and I haven’t been involved with my school at all, other than taking the classes. I much prefer finding a job, but it might be hard to find something that can work around my schedule.</p>