At almost any college or university you go to, you will be asked to complete at least one internship before you graduate.

As a sophomore at Regis, I knew this all too well and so did the seniors every year that continually struggle to find that all-too-elusive internship come spring semester.

In theory, it sounds easy, but it takes a lot of work—actively searching job boards, drafting a resume, going to interviews, and much more. It’s the one thing between most students and walking across that stage on graduation day, ready to move onto the real world or, in my case, law school.

In turn, to be better prepared for your future, here are four tips to consider when making the decision to do an internship:

Start early—consider summer opportunities.

The first mistake anyone can make in college is waiting until senior year to find and complete an internship. Like most things, it will not be handed to you, without, at the very least, someone seeing your resume or interviewing you for the spot.

In my case, I completed an internship during the summer, instead of the school year.

This is probably one of the best things you can do in order to get the most out of your internship. At Regis, you can complete an internship over the summer (instead of during the school year) for credit as long as you register for the internship class in the fall.

For me, this was the best-case scenario, specifically since this class only met once-a-month to discuss the internship experience and hand-in journal entries related to what you were doing at your internship each week. With that, I recommend keeping a record of what you did over the summer, so you’ll be prepared for the class and stay ahead.

If you decide to go this route and do an internship during the summer (which I highly recommend), start your search as early as January. Most internship opportunities have deadlines in February or March and you want to give yourself plenty of time to complete application components like official transcript requests or recommendation requirements.

Overall, the key is to enjoy the internship and learn something from it. It’s harder to do when you're balancing school commitments like club-sponsored events, sports, and more. .

So, start early and stay ahead of your peers.

Do more than one—be better prepared for your future.

The point of internships is to help students gain firsthand experience in their field of study. This is how students understand what a job in their field is actually like as they get to see what happens on a day-to-day basis.

I’ve seen many of my fellow classmates switch majors because of these experiences—nursing majors turned political science majors to education majors turned communications majors. This is what internships are meant to do—they let you test the waters and get a glimpse into what you could potentially be doing for the majority of your life.

In turn, if you can complete two or three internships within the span of your college career, you’ll be better off than most students. You’ll be able to say with confidence, “This is what I want to do.”

So, invest in your future and do as many as possible so you can better understand what you’re in for. Most importantly, don’t let yourself be unprepared for what to expect.

For me, I started early and was able to complete three internships in one summer of valuable experience at a law firm, financial services firm, and the Massachusetts State House.

If I hadn’t done this, I wouldn’t have been secure in my decision to go to law school.

I mean, just imagine only doing one internship your senior year and hating it? Imagine going through four years of study in your major and finding out it wasn't for you?

The fear begins to set in—the worry, the doubt.

Don’t let that be you and take advantage of as many internship opportunities you can.

Some places to start your internship search include, but are not limited to: LinkedIn, internships.com, looksharp.com, and reaching out to a variety of companies or organizations to see if there are any opportunities available.

Be persistent—apply to as many as possible.

The most essential thing to do throughout the internship process is to apply to more than one internship.

This should make sense. It’s like throwing mud at the wall—eventually something will stick. The more applications you fill out, the more likely you’ll receive a response.

In my case, I reached out to dozens of local law firms in my neighborhood and heard back from one that wanted to meet me. Normally, law firms are hesitant to hire undergraduate students that are not in law school, but I was persistence and took that chance. It paid off because I was hired, despite the fact that I was only able to work once-a-week because of the other internship offers I had already accepted.

All it took was an e-mail asking if they were looking for an intern and it turned out they did need one. So, the lesson here is to apply to as many places as possible—don’t limit yourself and don’t be afraid to reach out to places or companies that may be of interest to you because you never know what might happen.

The biggest takeaway from this is that you never want to put all your eggs in one basket.

Build a network—sign up for LinkedIn.

Connections. Connections. Connections. Sometimes it just boils down to who you know when it comes to getting that internship opportunity. I've spoken to many people that said they wouldn't have gotten an internship or job if it wasn't for a recommendation or the pull someone had within a company to get them through the door.

At a recent networking event on campus, I met an alum that spoke to this experience. She had applied to a particular company multiple times and hadn’t heard back from them until she made a connection with someone that worked there. She currently works there because of this connection that had given her resume to HR—hiring her within the week.

This isn’t news to many people I’m sure. I myself have gotten internship opportunities because of a mutual connection. In turn, to optimize your chances of acquiring an internship or job opportunity in the future, build a network of connections.

LinkedIn is a great resource for this and I recommend getting as familiar with it as possible. Sign-up before your first internship and start building that network; you would be surprised at the amazing things that can happen that will only benefit you in the long run. In turn, I definitely recommend reading “Branding Yourself” by Erik Deckers and Kyle Lacy as there is a great chapter on how to use LinkedIn to the fullest extent.

Personally, I remember with my internship at the Massachusetts State House, I had only found out about the internship opportunity through a friend. From that recommendation, I was able to get my foot in the door to intern for Senate President Therese Murray.

You can just imagine the network I've built and that’s what you should strive for. You never know who could be the stepping stone to your dream job.

So, get a LinkedIn and have those connections in your back pocket for when you need them.