Congratulations on the internship offer!

You are not fulfilling your course requirements.

You are about to experience hands-on the work you have learned or yet to learn, make professional connections and might even secure a full-time job offer with the company.

Consider these tips to help in making the most out of your internship experience.

1. Set Your Learning Goal

You’re hired. You know what’s expected of you. How? Ask your supervisor. What to accomplish every other day, every week. Request feedback to make sure you’re on the right track.

But, how about what you want?

Discuss your interests with the supervisor. ASK if there are opportunities to dive into those areas. Win pointers for self-improvement. Have a direction other than just focusing on what’s assigned to you.

Yes, it’s important to know what the employer wants but it’s more important to know what YOU want to gain from this internship. After all, it’s all about the experience, learning and asking questions.

2. Ask Questions

When assigned a task, it is highly likely that you didn’t grasp the whole instructions the first time. It’s okay, ask away! Don’t be afraid.

Understand the issue at hand and what are you trying to achieve. Do some research on your own and work with the information you have. When stuck, seek help and advice on what you could have overlooked.

Asking questions shows that you want to learn and perform your job well.

3. Manage Your Time

Prioritize your tasks. Know which one’s need a little bit more attention than the other. You’ll be able to complete your assignments on time and ace it.

Make use of your time wisely. If you have completed an assignment and have some free time, make the effort to ask for more or see if your colleagues need any assistance. If there aren’t any, pick up some books to read!

Hey!

Keep in mind that you are there to learn as much as possible.

Relax, enjoy the experience and focus on doing your best.

You may be outside of your comfort zone but embrace it, learn lots and do yourself proud.

We tend to judge a book by its cover. Don’t we? Well that's what a first impression is and it’s valuable to anyone especially when you’re at a new job.

Making a good first impression doesn’t mean you are faking or pretending. It simply means you are showing your best, authentic self whenever meeting people for the first time.

You don’t want to risk starting a relationship badly. Neither do you want to be misunderstood. Let’s look at some tips on putting your best foot forward.

1. Be Punctual

Come in on time, or perhaps, even a few minutes early. Punctuality shows respect and courtesy for the other party. It sends a message that you are responsible and capable.

Anticipate extra time to accommodate the possibility of traffic delays, weather conditions and parking spots. When you have a few extra minutes, you get to touch up your make up and check your appearance. Gain your composure before reporting for duty.

Improving your timekeeping will bring multifold benefits to your personal and professional life.

2. Dress Appropriately

Dress code varies by workplace. Be sure to ask about the office dress code and observe the employees for you to plan what to wear.

You might not need to wear a suit but you should still have a neat and professional appearance - especially when you’re only starting out. Nothing ripped or showing too much skin. The same goes for remote working. If you’re comfortable in your sweatpants, just make sure they’re not visible while you’re on camera.

3. Listen Actively

You may be nervous and keep thinking what to say next to someone you just met.

Stop.

Focus.

Listening with intent shows that you are willing and eager to learn. Don’t get distracted.

Your ability to listen will get you a long way and get noticed. Give your undivided attention and acknowledge the message. Nod occasionally and ask specific questions about what they have just said to clarify. It shows respect and understanding.

It’s a best practice to actively listen and take notes while you’re at it. Start early and set up good habits for the future.

Let’s summarize

Initial judgments may be right or wrong. It’s just the way our brain makes sense of information in a matter of seconds. Therefore, it’s our job to make those seconds count.

After all, you don't get a second chance to make a good first impression!

As designers, your job is to make sense of the abstract data and somehow magically transform them into visuals. Sounds like a tough job? It is.

There are plenty of books on Design, however, there aren't many books that specifically talk about website design and UIUX design.

Here are 3 beginner UIUX Design Books that you should consider.

Don't Make Me Think

Though this book was published in 2013, it is still relevant to this day.

Key Takeaway: If you want to really improve your design, focus on your users.

Think First

Joe Natoli invites you to think ahead before starting any design app. This ensures that you capture all the context before proceeding to design.

Refactoring UI

A quick read book to get you into UI. It's more of a rule book. As they say "before you can bend the rules, learn the rules first".

Summary

As designers, we can't only steal inspiration from others. That strategy won't last long. In order for you to step up your game, you need to read these beginner UIUX design books.

If you ever need to argue with your boss, co-worker, you have solid logical reasons by pointing toward these 3 books.

A design portfolio is a showcase of your skill.

It may be the one thing that separates you from a 'Maybe' than a 'No' list. It's the door to getting called for that job interview. Failure to attract the hiring managers' attention means you are letting go of job opportunities.

A design portfolio must speak for itself because you won't be there to explain it when you submit that job application. Now, what can you do that?

1. Presentation Matters.

Present your work in a layout, and create a mockup. The presentation of your work matters. Think of the portfolio as a design task of its own.

Your options: Portfolio sites such as Carbonmade, or Issuu (upload PDF). Behance and Dribbble are good too. If you're in UI/UX, it's GREAT if you can showcase it on your own portfolio site.

Don'ts:

Simply send artworks in a folder, and expect the interviewer to explore the files. It shows a lack of effort and seriousness.
Upload attachments in an email to reduce failed email

Do's:

Send a portfolio link
The portfolio must be easy to navigate

Remember, hiring managers have a lot of portfolios to go through. So your portfolio has to stand out.

2. Curate Your Work

You don't have to show everything. Only show the ones worth talking about.

Organize your work according to categories. If you can eliminate irrelevant work, that's better.

For example, if you are applying for a User Interface design role, don't lump your fine art works in there. Put them in a separate category, just to show your range. But make UI work as the highlights and core. You don't want to dilute your skills.

3. Add Context and Insights to your process

Design is all about context, so why wouldn't you include them in your design portfolio? Basic info like the following are good context to have:

date or month/year,
semester/ subject (if university work),
project name,
client name,
1-2 paragraphs of what the project is about

Describe your progress, and show your work-in-progress pictures. This gives an indication of how you are working as a designer than just a pixel pusher. The hiring manager wants to see your thinking process and your growth throughout your projects.

The quality of your process insights will differentiate you between a lowly paid vs highly paid designer. Or whether you get hired or not.

Key takeaway:

Consider designing your portfolio to show that you have the right skills specific to the role you are applying for.
Your portfolio must speak for itself. The hiring manager must be able to understand what's the project about and the processes behind it.
Your portfolio must be easy to navigate.

All the best, job seekers!