Advice Before Starting Summer Internship?

My little bro is starting his IB internship in a couple months and has been asking me what he should be doing right now to prep so that he can land that return.

This is what I did before mine a couple years back that helped me ease the nerved a bit & know what to expect. Curious to see what you all would add.


  1. Make Calls to 3 Groups of People: 1) Interns From Last Summer; 2) Members of Your Incoming Class; and 3) Full-Timers @ the Firm
    • Found that the fastest way to know what you’re getting yourself into (internship structure, cultural norms, general expectations & best practices) is to talk to those that live and breathe it every day
    • Told him to either re-connect with those that he has already spoken with or use LinkedIn + RocketReach & email a few folks
  2. Figure Out Logistics
    • Especially since he is moving halfway across the country, told him to square away housing, transportation to office, wardrobe, etc. Convos with the people above can give context on this
    • Getting all of this taken care of means he will be able to focus mental energy on what really matters instead of worrying about nonsense during the internship.
  3. Set Goals
    • Most people are 100% focused on the return, but also encouraging him to think about setting goals around things like understanding whether or not this is the right people/cultural fit (mindset, interests), deciding if IB is for him vs. another path, etc.
  4. Adapt Schedule & Habits
    • College habits of sleeping in until noon and going to bed after a night of boozing are about to be flipped upside down
    • Gradually start getting body used to schedule that has you waking up at a reasonable time, finding ways to get a brief stint of exercise in (won’t be able to do your 2hr long workouts in the REC anymore), etc.
 

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