Q. I won’t be in the United States when I graduate in May, as I am studying abroad in Hong Kong for my last semester and then traveling in Southeast Asia for one month. I believe I need one more internship
before I can land a job as a print journalist. Because I will not be back in the United States until mid-June, should I apply for a fall internship instead?
I will graduate with journalism and history degrees in May from a small liberal arts school in Washington. I will be trying to get an internship in Hong Kong, but the immigration department there makes it difficult for foreigners to work.
Am I hurting my career by easing myself back into the United States? Should I work harder to line up a summer internship?
Thank you,
Jessica
A. Work to land a summer internship. A June start will not be much of a disadvantage in most cases, and it certainly won’t put you in so grave a situation that you should just give up on applying. See what you can get and then talk with the newspaper about start dates.
If you don’t land an internship before you go, have a good time in Asia, come back and then look for a permanent job.
Grimm on internships: “Breaking In: The JobsPage.com Guide to Newspaper Internships.”
Coming Tuesday: This 38-year-old mother of three will have to land a job in a place with decent schools soon after she graduates. The complications are considerable.
