No matter what job or career a person decides on employers will always look for potential hires who have had previous experience.

While many of us attend either a community college or a four-year university, the information we learn in the classroom will help us succeed in our career. But at the same time, being able to go out and put those classroom lessons to practice in the real world can help us decide if we actually see ourselves doing such job as a fulltime career.

The best way for a college student to learn beyond the classroom is by completing an internship.

Internships are a great way for a person to get their feet wet, gain more knowledge and learn new skills.

For example, a college student who is studying to become a respiratory therapist is required to complete a certain amount of hours of clinicals per semester. During clinicals, a student has the opportunity to put their knowledge to the test with real world patients in a hospital or medical center.

Another reason why internships are important is because they allow us to interact and meet individuals who are already working in our field of interest. Sometimes, the places where where we intern might not be able to hire us after graduation, but those individuals, whom we interacted with during the length of our internship, can help us land a job somewhere else. From completing one internship to three or four, there is no set limit on how many a student can complete during their college years. But it is important to remember that the more internships a person is involved with, the more skills they will possess.

Also, some internships are paid and others are not. But some do count as course credit, so it’s important to not write off an internship just because they will not give you a paycheck.

For many college students, finding a job after graduation can be a tough task. But if they are able to add at least one internship experience to their resume, the job search will be a lot easier.