How to fill down time at your Internship

You’re a few weeks into your internship and you find yourself with nothing to do some days.  You’ve finished everything assigned to you and you’re just waiting…and waiting… And you’re wondering:

What to do when there’s nothing to do

Here are some options:

Clock vector designed by Freepik

Ask your supervisor for additional work, preferably a self-directed task that you can do during the slow periods. Approaching your supervisor for additional work shows you care about the organization. Do this if you routinely have nothing to do; for example, if you finish all your assignments a couple hours early almost every day.

Ask your fellow colleagues or interns if they need help with anything. This shows that you are a team player. Do this if it's rare that you have nothing to do; this way you aren’t over-committing your time.

Create your own work! Think of something that you can do that would be helpful to your supervisor, other interns, clients etc. Maybe it’s an organizational chart, or an onboarding document for new interns, or a resource guide etc. Filling up down time with a project you created shows tremendous initiative. Be sure to include that on your resume. Do this if your down time is sporadic as it will allow you to complete it when you have time.

Ask if you can job shadow someone else - you can learn a lot that way and it shows that you are curious and hungry for knowledge. Do this if you find yourself with blocks of down time.

If all else fails, read! Read training materials, program materials or coursework. Use your time to learn and contribute.

You should also use the time to network!  Ask for ½ hour meetings with other leaders or colleagues in another department to learn what they do.   Treat these sessions as business meetings, not as casual chats; come prepared with a notebook and questions and be prepared to talk about your internship, schooling and future plans!

Remember, you are fortunate to have this opportunity so be sure to make the most out of your internship!