Chapter 3 - The Onset of Converge - The Annual Internship Fair

- Hear from Mr. Pranav Dar
Ex-President, The Placement Cell (Batch 2018)
MBA Marketing MICA, Ahmedabad

Ques- The first Converge event took place in 2018. How did you, along with your team, realize the importance of introducing an Internship Fair for college students?


Being a part of the Placement Cell for 2 years at that point, I ensured that my team and I knew the importance of internships from a learning as well as a final placements standpoint. The companies’ expectations these days are beyond what is taught in books and they need people who have had hands-on experiences.
There was a dichotomy between the expectations of the recruiters and the skillset that the students possessed. Thus, we came up with the plan of organizing an Internship Fair wherein we pushed our students to pick up internships over their summer break simply to hone their skills and be better prepared for the corporate world

Ques- Having organized Converge for two years, Do you feel Converge has created an impact for the students participating in the fair?


Definitely! Any student who picked up internships through the fair or otherwise had an added advantage during any job interview later on in terms of skills, experience as well as avenues for conversations.

Ques- What values do you think attending an Internship fair adds to one's profile?


It adds skills and in return, one is able to add more value to the work that they’re doing.

Ques- Why do you think a student should do internships during his/her college?


Simply to explore. An internship gives you a peek into the real world and helps you understand where you really fit in. It’s great exposure and learning. Plus, it gives you so many talking points!

Ques- How do you think one should prepare before attending an Internship fair to bag some good opportunities?


Definitely have an introduction ready that brings forth multiple aspects of your personality and it should weave a story that can sell you as an asset to that particular company. Once you have a good introduction, I’d suggest going through the JD and reading about and revising things that are relevant to that role. Having knowledge about the company and how they function is imperative just so you can align your goals with the company’s aspirations.

Ques- Would you say Internship fairs are better than third party companies like Internshala? If yes, how?


I feel all internship opportunities are good opportunities. However, the chances of bagging a good internship for a student are higher at a college internship fair whereas there would be 100x more people applying to a good internship through a platform like Internshala. Plus an internship fair gives one the opportunity to interact with a recruiter one-on-one and gauge what the work and company culture might be like. Having said that, one should look at all possible ways of converting internships that would add value to their work in future.

Ques- What was the experience of finally converting companies for the first ever Converge?


Everything initially just seems like a plan until the day comes when things start shaping up and that's when you realize that your efforts are getting proportionate results. I vividly remember the thrill of onboarding the first twenty companies for Converge and the excitement and faith it brought to the team.

Ques- Did your team face any issues during the event? If so, how did you tackle those without any prior experience?


Of Course, when you plan something for the first time, there’s a fair chance that you will hit a roadblock that you cannot foresee. Those situations did occur, but luckily we had a strong team that was willing to put in extra effort to turn things around as well as some really supporting professors who backed us up.

Ques- Would you say a student should focus on a single field so as to keep a focussed mindset or pursue internships in different fields so as to keep all options open?


I feel that students should explore while they're still in college. Picking up internships in multiple domains brings in more clarity and helps in deciding what one wants to eventually pursue. People who are sure about a particular field, should go ahead and gain expertise in that field. But honestly, having too many feathers in a cap never really hurts anybody!

Ques- Do you feel work from home has hampered the internship experience and its value?


No, it definitely did not hamper its value. When it comes to experience, I honestly think we are getting the best bit of the bargain and making the most of a world that is only going to function out of screens one day. To look at the bright side, we are all early adopters. I’m sure people miss the ‘real’ aspects of things, I do too, and we’re hopefully getting back there, and what’s better, we are even more digitally advanced now. Better experiences are in line for everyone!