Social internships and why are they necessary?

Over the years the youth of our nation have grown to realize the importance of giving back to society. Be it through cleanliness drives, teaching disadvantaged children, meal programs, coaching and grooming to perform better on the work front, animal welfare, or human rights. Gen Z is awake and is listening. They are acting. It is the acting part that is more important than listening to the creaking structure of our society.

It is this ownership of our collective faith that has led to the rise in popularity of social internships. Students prefer to volunteer and be at the forefront to understand the root cause and remedy it. This is seen as a welcome trait by most recruiters and colleges. For those of you who are caught in the dilemma of which internship should you do next that best helps you grow, learn, progress, and cause and impact, keep reading! 

Social internships: Feeling the joy and satisfaction of the needy

Internships not only add value to your CV but also helps gain insights into what it is like to be out there on the front line. Though most graduates settle for corporate summer internships, a few of them are now preferring social internships, all thanks to the increased awareness and knowledge!

The budding new trend of going for a social internship – a fast-growing field offers flexibility and portability, a chance to solve problems and make the world a better place to live. Students are now willing to challenge antiquated policies and fight for social justice either by working with NGOs or with companies in the corporate social responsibility sector. These young warriors who are ready to face uphill battles and help with crisis situations should never give second thoughts to their decision of doing a social internship. Here is a list of whys?

'Social internship' is all about action and can help by:

Understanding the complexities of grassroots 

Social internship will expose you to society and its problems and push you to build value structures for those who are less fortunate. It will give you an opportunity to take a close and personal look at social issues in which privilege, inequality, marginalization, and powerlessness lead to structural disparities. All in all, It brings in values of a giving nature, empathy, and appreciation.

Bringing the best out of you

It will challenge you in ways few other careers will. It is a high-growth profession that demands building relationships and making an actual difference in people’s lives, thus pushing you to hone the combination of intelligence and emotional strength.

Making an impact on your resume

Social internships can add value to your resume and make it look brighter. Getting social work experience on your resume will help your application stand out during your recruitment processes for higher education as well as when you apply for your next internship or ideal job in the future. In addition, social internships often speak volumes about your ability to work in a real-time setting and values like teamwork and leadership.

Break new ground with these social internships

If you have the ability to shape a better future for the underprivileged and the power to dig deeply into issues and search for solutions, then expose yourself to the social sector right at the beginning of your education with the help of social internships. Some of the platforms that offer great internship opportunities in the field of social work are:

Sankalp Volunteer

Working with underprivileged children and women for nearly 12 decades now, Sankalp volunteer offers affordable social programs. Whether it is teaching and inspiring street children, volunteering for an orphanage, women empowerment program, teaching English, or any other program from its 15 categories they take care of the safety of their volunteers. The interested candidates can send in their well-curated CVs anytime throughout the year. On successful completion of the internship, the interns are also provided an internship certificate by the organization.

Smile Foundation

Benefitting over 15,00,000 children and their families every year, Smile Foundation is successfully running its social program in over 2000 remote villages and slums across 25 states of India. If you are motivated to build a career in the development sector through professional value creation, check out their career options ranging from programs, resources, communication to finance, and HR. Let’s keep up with their philosophy of Real Work Real Change!

SELCO Foundation 

Headquartered in Bangalore, Karnataka, the SELCO Foundation was founded in 2010 as an open-source. Since then, it is diligently serving poor communities using sustainable energy solutions and implementing social, financial, and technical innovations. Anyone can contribute to this noble cause as an intern, volunteer, researcher, or entrepreneur through a multitude of job openings.

Waste Warriors in Corbett

Helping rural communities in the forested areas around Corbett National Park, with waste awareness, collection, segregation, Waste Warriors in Corbett seek to introduce a system of Solid Waste Management in an area covering over 150 villages. Established in 2013, the team now works in 20 villages and has diverted 450+ tonnes of waste from forests and rivers! Apply now, if you want to be a warrior too!

Not only this, colleges like XLRI and SPJIMR Mumbai also have a Village Exposure Programme and an Outbound Programme (for the first-year students), and a mandatory social internship program respectively.

All said this is your call to create positive change in the world. After all, what can be a more satisfactory job in the world than being able to devote your work to justice and the well-being of the people around you? Now roll-up your sleeves and work towards the social work department by becoming a future change-maker, a social entrepreneur, a caring leader, and a problem solver that our world needs!

For more articles on career options, refer:

• Social Worker - As a career option
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• Not a nerd, want to step out of the herd? We back your unconventional career choices!
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