Internships form a really important part of our pre-world of work days. No one can dispute this fact. It is true that internships give one a taste of what it would feel like to work full-time in the chosen sphere, and help you make your mind up about whether or not you would want to pursue the particular stream. Despite all its advantages and benefits (even the most irrelevant things come in handy, in retrospect!) an internship can be a comical affair. and here are five ways how –

1. The most important task of your internship may be to copy paste

   You may be an intern in the Ministry of External and Foreign Affairs, and yet feel like a silly goose there. Looking back to the day of your interview, which may have felt like the most important day of your life, you might wonder how flawed your expectations were. As interns we all make the mistake of assuming or hoping that we will be entrusted with really important work. A month (or several of them) may pass by and you realize all you’ve done is copy paste / re-type documents.
   But hey! Perk up, because only an intern would have access to these documents, and hence a cart load of learning material!

2. You could be the minion – and you can’t do anything about it

   Coffee and running other errands for your superiors may form a significant portion of your day. And you can’t do anything about it. No, we won’t say that there is anything inspirational about this. Neither are there any pearls of wisdom to share about this. Its just funny. Because its true.

3. The unavoidable existential angst

   In the journey of your internship, at least once (if not more!) you will be gripped by a terrible existential angst. You will ask yourself  questions like “what am I even doing here?”, “will I ever get a real job?”, “will I ever be as good as these people?”. It’s funny because you are going to look back at those moments and realize you were being silly. Well, maybe we are wrong in calling those moments silly, because these are the moments when perhaps you come to terms with certain unsettling facts, and questions. These moments build up towards other important life decisions and choices. So, while we can’t say enjoy it while it lasts, what we can say is, this too shall pass.

4. Money? What money? It is the experience that counts

   Ha ha. This is by far the funniest thing that happens to an intern. You realize most (if not all) of your pocket money gets depleted in trying to ‘afford’ the internship – because you don’t get paid. And hence, you have to take care of the travel and your lunches, and the get-togethers (your ‘colleagues’ will probably invite you so you don’t feel left out) you most definitely cannot afford. And when you pop the question about whether the internship will pay you, at the interview, you are most likely to receive a poised and sophisticated answer like “no, but we will offer you unparalleled experience.”
   Okay, then.

5. When you “pretend” to be busy and get caught

   Few things can be as embarrassing as the CEO (or a superior) walking in on your screen while you are shopping on Amazon (lets hope that’s the most embarrassing it gets!). As an intern, there is only so much work you will have. Then again, as an intern, you most definitely cannot leave before time. So to be fair, you might have been just killing time; but for ages to come you will love with the guilt of coming across as a slacker. But hopefully you will look back and laugh at it, because it is funny!

Find these things relate-able? Tell us how! Have funny things happened to you as an intern? Tell us about all the goof ups, we might as well have a good laugh, if nothing else!