Bring a book

News flash! You’re an intern. This means that most of your time will be spent sitting behind a computer. Every internship is different, but one thing remains consistent—lots of free time. I chose to fill this free time with reading. I read Becoming by Michelle Obama and I can’t tell you how awesome of a read it was. When I wasn’t reading, I was staying up to date with national and local news. This may seem boring, but once you figure out which publications you enjoy, you can read anything from weather to style. (During my past internship, I learned that I really enjoyed the op-eds in The Atlantic.) Also, nothing wrong with being an informed citizen! I noticed that my dinner conversation improved greatly.

Ask questions

Bug the heck out of your supervisors with questions! Just kidding, but seriously do ask questions. I found that it is better to ask a hundred questions to get a correct finished project than to ask zero and finish with an incorrect one. Your supervisor knows you don’t know what you’re doing—it’s why you have a supervisor, so ask questions! Another tip within a tip: write down all your questions on one notepad, so when your supervisor calls you over, you can ask all of them at the same time.

Network. Network. Network.

Schedule coffee with everyone. You never know when you’ll need that first job offer after college. Don’t take any interaction for granted. Maybe you’re thinking: I don’t want to work where I intern. Ok totally valid, but your supervisor might know someone working at your dream job. Always leave a good impression. More importantly, continue to network even after you’ve left. Keep in touch with the people on the business cards and form authentic relationships. Lastly, don’t take other interns for granted. At my last internship, I was surrounded by amazing, fascinating people my age. Whether they become lifelong friends or great professional connections, those relationships are worth maintaining as well.

Go to intern events

Not only do they have free food, they might actually have valuable information. It’s also an opportunity to network and make new friends. Going to intern events also helped me to become more acclimated with the city in which I was working. My only question—what do you have to lose? Maybe there will be some awkwardness, but you might gain a whole lot more.

Enjoy college

If I learned anything from my internship, it was that college is a gift. Interning had its fun moments, but I definitely missed being able to sleep in and formulate my own schedule. The transition to the workforce was rough and definitely something I want to put off for as long as possible. The 9 to 6 life was not my cup of tea and my appreciation for school grew immensely.