After crushing your interview, you receive a phone call or email from the internship coordinator at the organization you spoke with, and they’ve offered you an opportunity within their program! Incredibly excited, you accept, and thus begins the process of getting prepared to begin your advancement up the career ladder. Before you can get there and get on the gym floor, you’re going to want to make sure you spend time laying the groundwork for your time with that organization. Having an established foundation that will allow you to thrive and remain focused on your internship is essential to ensuring a successful experience with minimal stress beyond what will be inherent to your role.
This installment of the article series will focus on pieces of and around the internship and provide considerations as your start date draws nearer. If this is one of your first coaching experiences, the logistics of planning a move to a new area can always be stressful, so it is my hope this article helps to give you all angles to consider when taking on an internship.
There is a reason a lot of internships mention that you should not apply for the internship if it isn’t financially feasible for you. The reality is that you are probably not being paid and are being asked to undertake full-time (and beyond) amounts of work hours for no income. If you have not done your due diligence on your budget and living expenses, and find yourself running out of money midway through your expected obligation to the program, this will reflect poorly on you professionally, regarding your ability to think and plan long-term. With that said, let’s dive in.
Living Expenses
At the end of the day, money is potentially the biggest deterrent to a successful internship experience. Here are a few of the key subset areas to consider and possible solutions to explore
Housing. Most typically, you are going to be responsible for finding your own accommodation. Depending on the length of your internship, you will probably have to find accommodation that will offer a 5-6 month leasing/renting option. This can typically occur at a higher cost compared to a longer lease. Another option is subleasing, this can often be done through sites such as Craig’s List or Facebook. People who are subleasing will typically cut the price down, in hopes of attracting a subtenant. Consider connecting with the other interns in the group and seeing if you can find accommodation together. This will not only cut down on the price substantially but also give you a roommate that will have the same schedule as you. Therefore, you avoid a potential roommate who may be on an opposite schedule to you and be able to bail you out of potential ruin should you forget to set an alarm one morning. It would be advisable to find something fairly close to the facility, which can cut the cost of travel to and from your internship. This will also reduce your commute time that can stack on top of already long days. If you are working at a university, it may be worth asking if there are any student housing options available on campus. The odds are probably pretty low, but it’s worth the ask as you will presumably get a semi-furnished set-up. If you are living near campus, I would recommend calling any prospective places you are exploring for living accommodations and getting a feel for what the student population is like there. You will not want to be running into your student-athletes on the weekends while they are out for a night of debauchery- a mess you will not want to find yourself anywhere close to. It may also behoove you to look into the availability of furnished units to eliminate the need to move your own stuff. Along with washer/dryer units, you will find yourself having to get to laundry facilities, which will add another time and financial cost to your budget if they are not included.
Groceries. Everybody has to eat. If you are lucky enough to be at a bigger entity, there may be meals included for you at the training table, in addition to a wide variety of snacks. Make sure you know what limits are on interns taking snacks/shakes before just assuming. If you are not at an internship that can afford to provide food/snacks of some sort, you are going to have to know what a typical grocery budget looks like for yourself and where the nearest grocery store is relative to your living accommodation. Again, if you can get something central to campus and essential stores like a grocery store are nearby, that will help you manage your time and costs better than if those places are further away. The last thing you are going to want to skimp on is food; you’re going to be working hard and required to think a lot, you don’t want to be malnourished attempting to function at a high level for long periods of time. It may be worth asking your internship coordinator if it’s possible to pay for a meal plan on campus, which will kill a couple of birds with one stone and eliminate the daily task of having to cook.
Commute. Tied into the previous point, finding a place close to the organization’s facility is something you will come to greatly appreciate when the days get longer. The last thing you want to have to potentially do after closing down shop late at night then having a long commute home, immediately climbing into bed and then wake up early and do it again. Living close also gives you a chance to walk or ride a bike, which will cut down on transportation costs like gas and car maintenance. In turn, avoiding potential traffic problems that could make you late to arrive in the morning.
Parking. If you end up having to drive for your commute to the facility, you will have to consider parking as another potential cost. Hopefully, the place you are working provides you with a parking pass, but if not and you are on a college campus, you are going to be inherently sucked into the racket that is campus parking. Figure out what you can afford and how close it is to the facility, and plan your commute accordingly if walking is going to be required.
The Internship
Once you have sorted your personal situation for the internship semester and ensured it will be a financially feasible undertaking, you are going to have to begin gearing yourself up for the internship itself. Here are a couple of considerations:
Arrival Date. A lot of internships will typically have an earlier start date for doing an onboarding/education segment to get the intern class up to speed on operations and expectations. Make sure you have clarified a date and time for when this is set to begin, and then I would recommend planning to be moved in and settled a few days before that date. You are going to want some time to get used to your new surroundings and where things are relative to each other. Figure out your commuting route and all of the other details that will help you settle into your new life, without being completely frazzled by a bunch of novelty all at once. Being late on day one because of unanticipated traffic or getting lost will not fly well with your new supervisors.
Paperwork. There will most likely be a good amount of paperwork- potentially on your end if this internship is being completed for college credit and from the organization with things like volunteer agreements and liability, confidentiality agreements, among other potential pieces. I would recommend that as much as you can with paperwork that comes from your end, have it already filled out as much as is allowable for your supervisor and make it clear what items are required to be filled out and signed by them. As your supervisor, I don’t want to have to spend time filling in information that you could’ve filled out yourself, such as internship addresses, contact information etc…, so make the work minimal for your supervisor and handle all of that ahead of time. If they send you any paperwork to complete, make that your priority to complete, read thoroughly and turn around in a very timely manner, ideally within a day. Paperwork like that can sometimes need to be processed by HR, which can take some time depending on the efficiency or lack thereof from that department, so don’t let the hold up be on your end. Also, take care to write neatly, so your supervisor isn’t having to call you to confirm how you may have spelt a word; if need be, type the information into the documents to send back.
Education. If your internship coordinator gave you any materials that would help you prep for their particular methodologies, begin pouring through those. Don’t just read to finish; read for comprehension, especially of the fundamental principles and concepts of the materials. Having an understanding of the underpinnings of that staff’s particular methods will help you to better understand the logistics and content of the sessions. It could even provide opportunities for improvement in these areas that you may find being a new set of eyes on a problem, at a different level of the operation, than what full-time coaches typically experience. Remember though, “if you’re going to run against the grain, you better understand why the grain runs the way it does first” (I can’t readily recall who to attribute this quote to, but it is not mine), so bear this in mind before making suggestions. I would look to ask questions to understand if there is an area you feel could be modified for the betterment of the session to have a fuller picture of the thought process that went into it before doing so.
Gear. While it is safe to presume your internship will provide you with gear, just make sure you don’t plan to wear any other program’s gear when you are at your internship- just not a good look and you will probably get ridiculed out of the building, so pack accordingly. You will spend a lot of time on your feet and moving, so make sure you pack a few good pairs of shoes, which are not something typically provided to interns. It’s also worth mentioning that you should not have to purchase any gear to wear if not done so of your own volition. Any organization telling you to do so is one you should heavily reconsider working for.
Closing Remarks
Taking your first steps as a strength & conditioning coach is stressful enough; don’t compound that stress by not ticking all of the boxes before your arrival. This will enable you to have a smooth transition into the internship, and a solid foundation for the duration of it. If you find yourself running into troubles on any of these fronts, or have another consideration that you want to run by others, jump over to the Career Development forum on Strength Coach Network and start a thread to get feedback from others who have undertaken internships much like the one you are about to embark on. Next month’s installment will look at considerations during the first few weeks of your internship as you look to make a favorable first impression and start yourself off on the right foot. Till next time!
This installment of the article series will focus on pieces of and around the internship and provide considerations as your start date draws nearer. If this is one of your first coaching experiences, the logistics of planning a move to a new area can always be stressful, so it is my hope this article helps to give you all angles to consider when taking on an internship.
There is a reason a lot of internships mention that you should not apply for the internship if it isn’t financially feasible for you. The reality is that you are probably not being paid and are being asked to undertake full-time (and beyond) amounts of work hours for no income. If you have not done your due diligence on your budget and living expenses, and find yourself running out of money midway through your expected obligation to the program, this will reflect poorly on you professionally, regarding your ability to think and plan long-term. With that said, let’s dive in.
Living Expenses
At the end of the day, money is potentially the biggest deterrent to a successful internship experience. Here are a few of the key subset areas to consider and possible solutions to explore
Housing. Most typically, you are going to be responsible for finding your own accommodation. Depending on the length of your internship, you will probably have to find accommodation that will offer a 5-6 month leasing/renting option. This can typically occur at a higher cost compared to a longer lease. Another option is subleasing, this can often be done through sites such as Craig’s List or Facebook. People who are subleasing will typically cut the price down, in hopes of attracting a subtenant. Consider connecting with the other interns in the group and seeing if you can find accommodation together. This will not only cut down on the price substantially but also give you a roommate that will have the same schedule as you. Therefore, you avoid a potential roommate who may be on an opposite schedule to you and be able to bail you out of potential ruin should you forget to set an alarm one morning. It would be advisable to find something fairly close to the facility, which can cut the cost of travel to and from your internship. This will also reduce your commute time that can stack on top of already long days. If you are working at a university, it may be worth asking if there are any student housing options available on campus. The odds are probably pretty low, but it’s worth the ask as you will presumably get a semi-furnished set-up. If you are living near campus, I would recommend calling any prospective places you are exploring for living accommodations and getting a feel for what the student population is like there. You will not want to be running into your student-athletes on the weekends while they are out for a night of debauchery- a mess you will not want to find yourself anywhere close to. It may also behoove you to look into the availability of furnished units to eliminate the need to move your own stuff. Along with washer/dryer units, you will find yourself having to get to laundry facilities, which will add another time and financial cost to your budget if they are not included.
Groceries. Everybody has to eat. If you are lucky enough to be at a bigger entity, there may be meals included for you at the training table, in addition to a wide variety of snacks. Make sure you know what limits are on interns taking snacks/shakes before just assuming. If you are not at an internship that can afford to provide food/snacks of some sort, you are going to have to know what a typical grocery budget looks like for yourself and where the nearest grocery store is relative to your living accommodation. Again, if you can get something central to campus and essential stores like a grocery store are nearby, that will help you manage your time and costs better than if those places are further away. The last thing you are going to want to skimp on is food; you’re going to be working hard and required to think a lot, you don’t want to be malnourished attempting to function at a high level for long periods of time. It may be worth asking your internship coordinator if it’s possible to pay for a meal plan on campus, which will kill a couple of birds with one stone and eliminate the daily task of having to cook.
Commute. Tied into the previous point, finding a place close to the organization’s facility is something you will come to greatly appreciate when the days get longer. The last thing you want to have to potentially do after closing down shop late at night then having a long commute home, immediately climbing into bed and then wake up early and do it again. Living close also gives you a chance to walk or ride a bike, which will cut down on transportation costs like gas and car maintenance. In turn, avoiding potential traffic problems that could make you late to arrive in the morning.
Parking. If you end up having to drive for your commute to the facility, you will have to consider parking as another potential cost. Hopefully, the place you are working provides you with a parking pass, but if not and you are on a college campus, you are going to be inherently sucked into the racket that is campus parking. Figure out what you can afford and how close it is to the facility, and plan your commute accordingly if walking is going to be required.
The Internship
Once you have sorted your personal situation for the internship semester and ensured it will be a financially feasible undertaking, you are going to have to begin gearing yourself up for the internship itself. Here are a couple of considerations:
Arrival Date. A lot of internships will typically have an earlier start date for doing an onboarding/education segment to get the intern class up to speed on operations and expectations. Make sure you have clarified a date and time for when this is set to begin, and then I would recommend planning to be moved in and settled a few days before that date. You are going to want some time to get used to your new surroundings and where things are relative to each other. Figure out your commuting route and all of the other details that will help you settle into your new life, without being completely frazzled by a bunch of novelty all at once. Being late on day one because of unanticipated traffic or getting lost will not fly well with your new supervisors.
Paperwork. There will most likely be a good amount of paperwork- potentially on your end if this internship is being completed for college credit and from the organization with things like volunteer agreements and liability, confidentiality agreements, among other potential pieces. I would recommend that as much as you can with paperwork that comes from your end, have it already filled out as much as is allowable for your supervisor and make it clear what items are required to be filled out and signed by them. As your supervisor, I don’t want to have to spend time filling in information that you could’ve filled out yourself, such as internship addresses, contact information etc…, so make the work minimal for your supervisor and handle all of that ahead of time. If they send you any paperwork to complete, make that your priority to complete, read thoroughly and turn around in a very timely manner, ideally within a day. Paperwork like that can sometimes need to be processed by HR, which can take some time depending on the efficiency or lack thereof from that department, so don’t let the hold up be on your end. Also, take care to write neatly, so your supervisor isn’t having to call you to confirm how you may have spelt a word; if need be, type the information into the documents to send back.
Education. If your internship coordinator gave you any materials that would help you prep for their particular methodologies, begin pouring through those. Don’t just read to finish; read for comprehension, especially of the fundamental principles and concepts of the materials. Having an understanding of the underpinnings of that staff’s particular methods will help you to better understand the logistics and content of the sessions. It could even provide opportunities for improvement in these areas that you may find being a new set of eyes on a problem, at a different level of the operation, than what full-time coaches typically experience. Remember though, “if you’re going to run against the grain, you better understand why the grain runs the way it does first” (I can’t readily recall who to attribute this quote to, but it is not mine), so bear this in mind before making suggestions. I would look to ask questions to understand if there is an area you feel could be modified for the betterment of the session to have a fuller picture of the thought process that went into it before doing so.
Gear. While it is safe to presume your internship will provide you with gear, just make sure you don’t plan to wear any other program’s gear when you are at your internship- just not a good look and you will probably get ridiculed out of the building, so pack accordingly. You will spend a lot of time on your feet and moving, so make sure you pack a few good pairs of shoes, which are not something typically provided to interns. It’s also worth mentioning that you should not have to purchase any gear to wear if not done so of your own volition. Any organization telling you to do so is one you should heavily reconsider working for.
Closing Remarks
Taking your first steps as a strength & conditioning coach is stressful enough; don’t compound that stress by not ticking all of the boxes before your arrival. This will enable you to have a smooth transition into the internship, and a solid foundation for the duration of it. If you find yourself running into troubles on any of these fronts, or have another consideration that you want to run by others, jump over to the Career Development forum on Strength Coach Network and start a thread to get feedback from others who have undertaken internships much like the one you are about to embark on. Next month’s installment will look at considerations during the first few weeks of your internship as you look to make a favorable first impression and start yourself off on the right foot. Till next time!
