How Virtual Internships Helped Me Build A Career Across Different Cities

Honestly, I had never thought that I would be actively looking out for internships at the age of 30! I’m an outgoing, independent, and cheerful person with a perpetual love for travelling and food. I completed my post-graduation in biotechnology from Bangalore. After many interviews, I finally landed a job in Deluxe Digicaptions. Although the profile I was selected for (client lead) had nothing to do with biotechnology, I was really excited about getting a job! The projects revolved around manual testing and I learned a great deal, not just about work but life in general. I also became more responsible and was happy I could pitch in with the expenses at home. I took pride in the fact that I was proving the whole ideology of girls being a burden wrong.

So, when it was time for me to get married, I was filled with apprehension, having heard many stories from other married women. Would I be able to work? Would I even have the choice to decide whether I wanted to work or not? Would I be able to manage both work and my new responsibilities? I knew I wasn’t ready and told my parents to give me some time and that I would tell them when I was ready. Alas, this ‘some time’ turned out to be many years! The more I worked, the more I fell in love with the independence and the satisfaction that came with the job. When I finally did say yes (much to my parents’ relief), it was to a man who works for the government of India and whose job requires constant travel. Luckily for me, he happened to be a very understanding person who was fine if I did not want to leave everything and trail him around the country. My in-laws were also supportive and encouraged me to work!

Thus began our long-distance marriage. I stayed back in Bangalore and continued with my job, while my husband continued his in northeast India. After a year’s separation, when my husband’s job brought him to Hyderabad, I decided to go there with him. This, of course, meant I had to leave my very stable job. However, there were a lot of job opportunities in Hyderabad. I started my job hunt as soon as we were in Hyderabad. After two months, however, I still had no job. Having worked continuously for five and half years, that two-month break was somehow not as relaxing as I had imagined it would be. I started losing my confidence and feared that I was probably not good enough for any job.

While looking at various job portals, I happened to stumble upon Internshala. As I had never heard about this website before, I decided to explore it. I realized that it was an internship portal, but I found assorted internship options which intrigued me. For the most part of my life, I had been surrounded by creative people whereas I stuck out like a sore thumb with no special talent to put on the table. So, I decided to take the plunge and try my hand at diverse jobs that I had always wanted to do. Through Internshala, I now had opportunities to work from home or choose an internship which required me to work in the office for only a brief period as per my availability. It truly became a “my life, my choice” experience! I could try new things and hopefully make a career out of it, without living far away from my family.

I started applying in various fields and was first hired by Empower Labs, but due to the commute distance, I was unable to pursue it. Then, I started applying to internships in the field of writing and digital marketing. A lot of these companies were started by extremely talented youngsters, fresh out of college with bright ideas. I remember in one of the interviews, I was asked why I was looking for an internship after five years of work experience. I simply replied that learning never comes with an expiration date! Soon, I got hired for a content writing internship at a company called the Weekend Thrill. My job was to write short articles related to travel and tourism. The fact that I kept travelling with my husband as his job locations changed, helped me in this! Soon, I was also hired as a video curator intern at Venera Technologies Private Limited. The Venera team was very patient with my questions, gave me constant feedback, and I enjoyed the work immensely! A few weeks later, when I saw my name on their website as one of the notable curators, I was ecstatic!

In the end, I would just say that in this ever-growing world, there is no dearth of knowledge. You are never too young or too old to learn something new! Irrespective of whether you are a school student, college student, or a housewife, don’t let your age or the circumstances stop you from uncovering the best in you. Don’t waste precious time to second-guessing and self-doubt; just go ahead and take a leap of faith!

About the Author: Pallavi Bhaskar is a homemaker who left her job to live with her husband in the same city. She shares how virtual internships helped her manage her career and family efficiently! This story was first published on Internshala.