Top tips for converting internships

Your attitude

• Keep an open mind and approach everything with enthusiasm. On that note, smile and always try to be as helpful as possible.
• Strive to be professional and reliable throughout the entire internship, regardless of the context. This includes being punctual!
• Don’t be too informal or act too casually, as this could suggest you don’t care, or worse, be mistaken for arrogance. Always remember that you're making an impression on the entire firm. 
• Stay positive! Avoid talking negatively about colleagues or other firms. 

Your motivation

• Try to meet as many firm employees as possible. This could help you to learn more about the firm, the work on offer, and the industry more broadly.
• Ask lots of carefully considered questions - to supervisors, graduate recruiters, people you meet during socials, and people that give you presentations - as this can really help to demonstrate your interest in the firm.
• If the vac scheme includes a final interview, make sure you articulate your motivation for wanting to join in a way that’s more personal, more substantive and less derivative of the firm’s marketing materials.    

Your performance

• Remember the importance of strong attention to detail. Proofread your work multiple times and avoid spelling, grammatical or formatting errors at all costs. 
• Whenever you meet with someone, always bring along a pad and pen so that you are ready to write down instructions or note down feedback.
• If working in a team or completing a group exercise, be polite and supportive, not obnoxious, competitive, overbearing or argumentative. 

And most importantly, enjoy yourself!