Laura is just 18 years old and has a vocational baccalaureate in Human and Territorial Services (SAPAT) in her pocket. His goal ? Become an educator. Internships ? She has already done a bunch of them “in town hall, in a nursery or even in the secretariat”. “I love it, because I prefer internships to classes,” says the one who preferred the course of two-year educator instructor to those of educator of young children and specialized educator, over three years. “I wasn’t ready to spend another three years in school. »
“We are looking for a good internship, and the company a good intern”
Like Laura, there are several hundred thousand per year to push the door of a company and in training at school: with a place at IFEN in Le Havre, “super famous in Normandy”, the young student must find three internships during the year. “My mother has contacts in the city where I live, she told her friends. So I made my cover letter and my CV and I waited three months before they answered me! It is necessary to raise all the time, at least once a week and to force: they will be happy because they see that the person is motivated. Even if it is necessary to avoid every day and not to insist if they refuse you. »
Marine, she used other levers to find her internships. In her first year of master’s degree at EFAP, she specialized in media relations communication. The internships, she knows since her school imposes one per year to validate each year: two months in the first year, three in the 2nd year, five in the 3rd year, and finally six months in the 4th and 5th years. To find, she went everywhere: an internal platform at the school, Indeed, Linkedin. But not only: “At school, we are encouraged to go to the nerve and apply without there being announcements. Do not hesitate to ask the other students in the class if they have had good experiences or not. »
Once the offer has been unearthed, before rushing to her CV and her cover letter, Marine advises, again, to ask her relatives if they have already had experience with the company. “I had an interview with an agency, I had hooked up well, but I asked advice from another student who told me that it was not necessarily good and not for me. »
Then, to apply, “we try to send a somewhat special email, showing that we are motivated and a detailed cover letter. You have to personalize all the time, even the emails, to show that you are not applying en masse without looking at who you are applying to. We have to show that we are interested in the company, not just by validating our year. It’s an exchange between the company and the student: we’re looking for a good internship and the company a good intern, we have as much to offer to each other. »
The cover letter was a first challenge for Laura. “I made a lot of spelling mistakes, it didn’t look professional… The risk is not being caught if there are too many of them. It was my mother who reread it, but the teachers are also there for that. They won’t throw us away! In professional baccalaureate, what is good is that we have teachers to teach us how to do it, but I recommend always improving it and changing it. »
In schools too, teachers support their students: preparation for interviews, coaching, everything is possible to allow their students to be able to get an interview and then an internship. Jérôme Da Rugna is Director of Pedagogy and Research at ESIEA, a computer and digital engineering school. For the school, “the best support possible is to do nothing for their internship, but to prepare them for the job market and the company: teach them what an interview is, what are the good reflexes to have, posture in a professional environment. »
To achieve this, the school sets up a colloquium which brings together 4th year students, alumni and business, HR and operational managers for a week. The best way to get an internship is through “knowledge of yourself, to convince and have confidence. Even to make your CV, you have to know yourself and be able to talk about yourself and what you are capable of doing”.
On your CV, when you are just starting out in working life, you are sometimes tempted not to sort or not to prioritize experiences. A mistake for Laura, who took care of hers. “On a CV, you have to put what you have done and what you like to do! I had indicated my baccalaureate, my internships, what I liked to do, my command of English, what I do outside, babysitting and marriage service. It is important to say that we do not do anything! Unless it’s three days in daycare, there’s no point in putting it on. »
“I saw an evolution between the interviews and over the years”
Laura finally landed an interview a week before the theoretical start of her internship, after three months of waiting for a response. Second big step for her. “Before, I had prepared all the questions that could be asked: why are you here, what interests you, and why do you want to do this internship? I prepared my answers in writing. Also, I had noted the acronyms, because it is important to know them when you arrive in a company or a sector. »
To the executives in front of her, she repeats having her Bafa, just to emphasize her skills in the field. Well prepared, she barely stuttered at first, enough for her interlocutors to reassure and relax her. A preparation that Thibaud did not see fit to do. “I knew it was consistent with my professional project, and I knew what to say,” explains the young student from ESSCA, who at 19 is passionate about sport and found an internship at Decathlon in his 2nd year.
Marine was able to gain self-confidence thanks to a series of interviews and internships. “I saw an evolution between the interviews and over the years, I went there more easily. At the very beginning, when we are young, we stress a lot, but with time we are more comfortable. I was training for questions, and I advise you to find out about the company and the people who are going to interview you, to see their Linkedin account. In the same way, maintaining your CV and Linkedin account, “anything that can be used for our showcase” is a real plus.
“You have to force yourself to reach out to people”
Once you arrive on the course, all you have to do is integrate. “At the beginning, it’s difficult to join a team, with people who have worked together for a long time,” Laura observed: “I took a month to integrate, then I went back to class. Professionals were talking to me, but at first I was just the intern. I entered the conversations and showed them that what they were saying interested me. In the end, they were disgusted that my internship was over! In business, she “was lucky to have a referent who was there to [elle] so that[elle] can learn. »
In business, Marine is categorical: having good behavior is the Ba.ba. “Arriving on time, asking other people questions, taking an interest in the company and the sector, we are there to find out, that’s where everything ultimately depends on our orientation”, explains she. “You have to force yourself to approach people, get to know them and show that you’re not just there to do your internship”. Especially since at the end of the internship, leaving a good impression, it is possible that the company will remember you when it is looking for someone. With “an end-of-year internship, we are aiming for employment! »
“I have already done four and on half, I have kept good contacts and had good experiences”, positive Marine, who has done her internships in large or small companies: “I advise small structures , up to twenty people. On paper, it doesn’t necessarily sell dreams as a student because you want to hit big right away. But a small agency on a human scale, it allowed me to touch a lot of things. One of the agencies contacted me again to tell me that they wanted to create a position and hire me after graduation! rejoices Marine.
The agency in question had Marine on an internship two years ago, “still very young”. A decisive experience for the rest of his career: “I had a real crush on press relations and that guided me afterwards. Her experiences have “helped her a lot to [son] orientation”: “It was during the internship that I was able to refine my choices and determine what I like and what I don’t like. On the human side, we see something other than students and people in the working world who can bring us and teach us lots of things. »