Internships are quite the buzz words in this day and age. There are umpteen organisations out there providing internship for teens. This is great news since teens have an opportunity to get acquainted with the industry and its functioning while building skills with practical hands-on work. But, the caveat to this trend – ‘most of us assume this is the only means for industry exposure’
At CoVersity, we look at industry exposure much beyond only internships. The idea is also to get on ground, visit different spaces, connect and network with people in the industry. Observation is a big deal! Through all these diverse exposures, the teens also get a reality check about the industry and how excited they are just living a life in the domain everyday.
Different avenues for industry exposure
- Roadshows
- Fairs, exhibitions, fests
- Volunteering
- Assisting industry experts or apprenticeship
- Shadow a domain mentor (just being with them and observing their everyday)
- Travel to different spaces
The CoVersity youth are now in their industry exposure phase. Everyone is quite busy filling their kitty with different kind of exposures. Someone is attending bakers’ fest. Some are travelling. For most, it is also the first time venturing out of their homes to a working set up. Some parents accompanied the youth with double the excitement and also butterflies in the tummy.
Aparna (13) is interested in natural building. She wrote to and connected with different sustainable centers and institutes for an internship. Some of the organisations invited her over to observe the space and discuss the logistics of an internship. Along with her entire family, she visited auroville earth institute to discuss about internship opportunities and also get an understanding of on ground operations.
Hari(19) is into automotive mechanics. He is super excited that he finally got to visit a car workshop near his house. He spent the whole day talking to the mechanics and observing how they were working on the cars –
• Paint & Dent Works
• A/C Gas Refilling
• Working on Santro Car Engine
• Got a chance to see Swift car engine remove from the car & fixing it back.
wondering how these teens connect with the industry?
Portfolio! They showcase all the work they have done in their respective domains and otherwise. And we have seen the industry has been very welcoming of these youth and their portfolio. While not all connections result in an opportunity, industry folks are more than happy to look at portfolios and share feedback or redirect youth to another contact. This networking exercise in itself is greatly enriching to their overall journey.
next time, you think industry exposure,
- Don’t limit yourself with any one approach.
- Expand your horizons and look at various facets of your domain. eg – understanding food supply chain is equally important if you are interested in baking
- Don’t be rigid about domain-specific exposure. Working with your local departmental store can be a great learning exercise to understand business, operations etc.
- Get as much exposure and experience as possible
https://aarohilife.org/coversity/being-parents-to-becoming-guides-on-teens-professional-journey/