Finding Sports Internships

There are a lot of internships out there for sports students. Some of them are pretty obvious--university athletic departments, professional sports teams and leagues, sporting goods companies. If you know that's the type of work you want, those are easy enough to find posted on the organizations' job boards.

I had a friend the other day tell me that he advises students to try to get their internship with an organization that is well-known and has name recognition in sports. I hadn't thought about it before, but the more we talked, the more I agreed with him. When you search for your first job, it's sometimes a different story (subject of a future blog), but it makes a lot of sense in looking for internships. When future employers see Disney or NFL or Nike or University of Florida or Octagon or USOC on a resume, they know what they are. They also have some pre-conceived ideas that go with those names that can work to your advantage. When I see names like that on a resume, I immediately start thinking some of the following:

- They understand customer service. I won't have to re-train them on going the extra mile. They may even rub off on some of my employees.
- That's a hard internship to get. This person must be pretty solid.
- They have to have seen, and now understand, the business side of sports.
- They've seen the details and intricacies of running a sports business. They understand it's about more than just being a fan.

Right, wrong, or indifferent, landing those types of internships gives people a leg up. Look for them and see what you can find. Every website has a jobs section somewhere on it. It may be down at the bottom or off to one side. If it's not blatantly listed as Jobs or Careers or Employment, try the About Us section. If you still can't find it, search within their website or Google "jobs at _______."