Today, most of the students are studying hard to secure their future but having only theoretical knowledge doesn’t help in the long run. To win the race we need to apply what we learn. So how do we do that? By making projects or doing internships.

Now you might say, “I don’t know much who will hire me?” In reality, you know more than you think you do. With technological advancements companies depend a lot on documentation, PowerPoint Presentations, and Excel Sheets. Just knowing MS-Office well can help you get started. You may argue, “Why should I do that?” I’d say to learn work ethics and understand where can you contribute. I’d started working as a Campus Ambassador but now I’m a Web Developer and Graphic Designer. In the last one year, I realized what I can do and where I want to work further.

So to bag your first internship you need to:

Know your strengths: Everyone will ask you to work on your weakness but before that understand what you are good at naturally, it can be something as simple as some math, sketching or drafting a beautiful word document to something as complicated as writing a research paper. Anything which comes naturally to you is your uniqueness.

Keep applying: You should use every opportunity you come across, you never know which one might lead you to your dream internship. Use the platforms like Internshala, Frapp, Intern Theory, and Fueler.io to get aware of the opportunities you have even by sitting back at home(work from home internships)

Keep learning: You should never stop learning. You should keep upgrading yourself with the new technologies. Keep working on these newly learnt skills on your own. You never know which skill of yours will become the show stopper in your next interview.

Keep exploring: Never stick to just one domain or subject at an early stage. First, explore all the domains that interest you, learn about each of them and then decide in which one you want to work further. Think if you can do it everyday or working on it everyday will be painful.

Stay patient and sporty: You can’t lose heart every time you get rejected instead you should keep applying and be patient after you’ve applied for them. Good things take time.

This post was originally posted on Medium. It was a guest post by Mahak Makharia. You can connect with her on LinkedIn.