Real-world projects have real-world impact in your story

And your real story begins as soon as you start working in a corporate environment.

Before you even start your career, being a part of real-world projects in companies, widely known as internships, can have an enormous impact.

And this is not only in finding the right jobs, but also shaping your skills and career for years to come.

1. Internships can help you avoiding the dreaded ‘underemployment trap’ 

What’s worse than being unemployed, you ask? It is being ‘underemployed.’

The top reason students and parents value university education is to get a good job.

Yet, according to a Gallup survey, among bachelor degree graduates from 2002-2016, only 27% had a good job waiting for them upon graduation.

This issue is called the underemployment trap.

That means it is not just important to get any job, but the right job.

A key strategy to minimise the risk of underemployment, also recommended by researchers, is to “accrue meaningful and relevant work experiences before graduation”.

Internships and other work experience programs before you graduate can provide an opportunity to build skills. Get in the game before you start playing.

You can acquire endless amounts of education in your life, however, that knowledge may not always translate into real world experience.

An internship exposes you to new people in a more controlled and stable environment.

College graduates who intern can reduce their risk of underemployment if they have experience in Strategy, Operations or Marketing, for example.

Plus, a successful internships can prepare you to learn the skills that employers value before you start working

According to a Gallup survey, 42% of graduates with relevant internship as an undergraduate had a good job waiting for them upon graduation, compared with just 20% of those who did not have any internship experience on their CV.

That one internship you do over summer could be the difference between winning a job opportunity and losing it.

2. Internships provide you an opportunity to learn more about yourself

The experiences we go through is what shapes us.

Your internship will not only encourage personal development, but also give you a greater understanding of your personality

Finding this level of clarity is difficult, but sometimes this is all it takes to try something new, out of your comfort zone.

Besides, “getting into the workplace helps students figure out what they do and don’t like, and how it relates to what they are studying,” says C. Bryan Kempton, the director of career services at Maryland’s School of Public Policy.

3. Internships prevent your CV from going to the trash

If you are asking yourself how to get the first interview call, the answer lies in the experience section of your resume.

Most hiring managers look at that section closely when sifting through dozens of profiles.

Internships are the perfect way to enhance your resume through relevant experience before you get out there.

When an employer sees that you’ve completed an internship over the summer, or even abroad, it will go a long way in convincing them that you are an asset to their company.

And yes, don’t just mention the experience, make it count!

It is not enough to simply show you’ve spent some time as an intern. List the tasks you’ve done and projects you’ve participated in to demonstrate your value. During your internship, you can acquire new skills and abilities which can improve yourself as a young professional, and furthermore enhance your resume.

The High Bridge Answer

A lot of companies might offer you an internship, but few let you do the real work while you are there.

The problem is that most students get discouraged when they don’t get proper attention, mentoring and exciting tasks when they go to their first internship program.

And that’s where we come in.

We too, have been in the frustrated intern shoes, so we decided to do what is needed to fix this.

Our internship program is highly focused on your development. With us by your side, you ca be assured of finding a place where your work will be always meaningful, and contribute to the end results of the company.

Why Consulting is a Great Start for Any Business Career

Many people work their whole lives to climb the corporate ladder to finally startworking on company-wide strategic problems.

But there are very few professions or opportunities where you can skip the years and jump straight to working on and solving these problems.

And yes, it is possible to achieve that milestone early in your career.

Find your chance to think and act like the executive.

While you may not be CEO (yet!), consulting presents a unique opportunity to exercise your strategy muscle and get exposure to thinking like a leader.

Step into the shoes of those who run the ship: Whether or not you stay in consulting, knowing what keeps senior leaders up at night, and knowing that you can help them address those issues, is a huge reason to get into the field.

Get a diverse experience: Due to its nature of varied and often frequently changing projects, consulting allows you rapidly try out different industries, work in diverse functional areas, and even explore various locations to see what you like most.

Learn new skills: Because projects are fast-paced and you are typically working with a number of teams, you get to learn quickly from those who are more experienced and will find yourself becoming a “quick expert” in all kinds of fields.

Joining a consulting firm is one of the quickest and most effective ways to build a vast and valuable network.  However, it is also really competitive. It is hard to get a job at the world’s best consultancies, where the acceptance rate is  often only 1%.

Yes, you need to beat the 99 other candidates who want the job as bad as you want, but it’s doable.

You can be the very best in the crowd.

One crucial distinction we have to make here is being “the best” vs. being “the best of the best”.

You may have always outsmarted everyone so far, but bear in mind that this is also true of each and every other candidate you are in competition with.

All of you are the best from your own respective backgrounds.  

Suddenly, being “the best” is not a guarantee of success; but just the bare minimum requirement to play the game at all. To land a job at top tier firm, you need to excel and distinguish yourself from the crowd of the very best.

You will need to do everything you can to make it through, especially if we are talking about the best firms.

But why should you care about getting a job with a top tier, MBB firm, as opposed to a lower tier one? They’re all good, right?

In short, no consulting firm is “bad”, but they are also not equal.

For sure, you’ll work the same 15 hour days wherever you go, but both the job itself and the rewards you receive for it will be very different even just between the first and fourth ranked firms.

The firms you start your career with will have a significant effect on your life, 10, 20 and even 30 years down the line.

And not just in terms of the money, but also the learning you acquire and the access to opportunities you get to enjoy.

Even if you decide to strategically exit management consulting and get into another industry, the skills and sheer prestige acquired from time at a top-level firm will open rare doors for you, which you will thank yourself for in the future.

The High Bridge Answer

Our Management Consulting Track is designed to be all you need to have a great start at a consulting careers.

Get a full management consulting course by ex-MBB consultants and practice cases interview with professional feedback, so you can stand out and get top offers.

Most importantly, work on a real-world consulting project in growing companies with an ex-MBB mentor, get world-class mentorship and shine as a junior consultant.

On top of all of that, emerse yourself in a new culture in a global city and add international work experience to massively upgrade your skills and resume.

Here’s why you need international experience

When it comes to recruiting, hiring managers are looking for professionals who have a diverse experience and portfolio; individuals who have been exposed to more advanced processes, skills and structures in international jobs.

That’s why having a varied experience is so important.

Working with people from different, multi-cultural backgrounds exposes you to different working styles. It also lets you develop stronger communication skills and gain confidence as you progress further in your career.

Look from the employer’s perspective.

In most multinational companies, teams usually comprise of professionals from different parts of the world. Candidates with an international experience usually have an edge when getting hired.

But it doesn’t just stop at hiring.

Your network grows bigger. Accepting a role in another country helps you establish a network of valuable contacts that you might not find in your own city.

You gain more experience. Working at a different location also enables you to stay updated about the latest developments in your field as you progress your career, especially if your overseas role is in a more developed market.

You learn newer skills. Plus, working abroad gives you the chance to develop cross-cultural communication skills.

Overseas experience on your CV will give you a valuable competitive advantage when you return home. A global perspective is highly regarded by employers, and can lead to excellent opportunities into the future.

On the other hand, one can’t ignore the lifestyle factors of working overseas.. You will get the chance to see new places and make new friends. You will discover independence and freedom like never before. And after all that international networking, you might find yourself taking up new hobbies and sports.

In short, international experience offers a unique immersion and transformation opportunity. You end up discovering a whole new you.

The High Bridge Answer

By definition, the High Bridge program is truly international.

You will leave your home country and land in a new, exciting destination. We will be transparent: it will not always be easy. But to grow and learn, one needs to face adversity and challenges. Putting yourself out there is the first step to discovering your real strengths.

By the end of the program you will emerge as a new, better self. You will have a trove of new stories to tell family and friends, and of course your interviewers too in the leading companies you decide to apply to. You will be more experienced, independent, and confident.

It’s a life-changing experience, and is well-worth taking the plunge.