Looking for an Internship in Kenya? Here are some tips for you!

Getting a job interview let alone an internship opportunity in Kenya can be a daunting task in such tough economic times. With the increasing number of graduates annually and many businesses struggling, knowing where and how to search for internship opportunities can be key in you making the first step in your career development. This article is meant to give you some tips on how to find an internship opportunities in Kenya.

Before we get to the tips, it might be important to highlight what internship jobs are and why you should have one or two while still in college or soon after graduating.

Internships are very important as they give interns a chance to explore hands-on what they’ll be expected to do on a daily in the professional world and also understand the expectations from team leaders/managers once they are offered a permanent role in a department.

Now that you have a rough idea why you should go for that internship, here are tips on how to go about it.

1. Begin Your Searching Early

One of the biggest mistakes students/graduates make is assuming they have the time. Consider this, you get only four months for the long holidays, an internship/attachment are usually three months, if you wait until your holiday to apply, you’ll be betting on getting instant reply for the very first application you make.

As soon as you can, start making a shortlist of companies that you can apply for and those that you stand the higher chance of landing the role. By ensuring that you have a systematic way of searching for internship opportunities as well as targeting the right companies, your searching will be a lot easier.

Whether you are in your first or second year, start looking for a ground to gain experience early enough. Search as widely as you can by availing yourself to employers even if it means volunteering for free.

2. Start Networking as early as you can

The saying your network is your net-worth can never be further from the truth. Look at it this way, say you have an emergency and need some quick cash, how many people will have to call before you’re sorted out?

Same applies to career, if you want leads on a role, how many people can you think of who can guide you the right way?

Through connections, it becomes easier to know where you can begin when searching for an internship, if they can’t directly help, they might suggest companies you can apply for.

I know you’re confused how you can start networking as an 18-20 year old, here are tips: attend career fairs and exhibition where you will meet different employers, join student clubs that interest you, engage your lecturers outside the lecture halls, embrace small talks with people outside your age group, etc…

3. Leverage your online presence

The fact that you’re reading this means you have access to the internet. I’d bet you have accounts on more than one social media platforms. With that, you have access to all you might need to get yourself an internship.

Find sites or social media accounts that usually post internship opportunities, follow companies that you’d like to intern at, create alerts for roles that you are eyeing. If these sound too much, just google internships near me

With that, you’ll be always in the know of what companies are hiring and what they’ll be looking for in an intern.

4. Map your career interests

For any given course, you always have a number of different roles that you can be employed for. If you’re not sure, just google, “careers opportunities for *your course* graduate“.

Once you have the options, pick the top 5 that most excite you. Now find companies/organizations that are most likely to employ such individuals.

With that done, see what else can give you an edge. Can be a skill or experience. Start to find opportunities that can give you that.

With these four tips, you’ll be set to start and advance your career from as early as you like. Always remember, in life, never settle, never lack a plan.