You’ve done the hard part: applied, interviewed, and landed a data science internship–Congratulations! This is a great accomplishment and opportunity. Now you are ready for some data science internship tips!

Whether you have no professional work experience or you are pivoting into the field from somewhere else, THIS is your chance to get some solid data experience on your resume. After you graduate, a few well-crafted lines of text about your upcoming internship might differentiate your resume from a pile of others.

So the pressure is on to show up, put your best foot forward, and DO something worth that precious limited space on your resume.

Do something that will get you noticed and help you stand out.

OR maybe even do something that secures you a job offer, an invitation for a year-round internship, or high-quality connections in the industry.

With all that pressure, it might feel a bit overwhelming. If you are feeling some imposter syndrome or some self-doubt, This is the guide for you!

Even if you are completely confident and ready to conquer your internship, these tips could be good to keep in mind, too.

Data Science is a broad field and you can quickly realize just how much you don’t know. This is overwhelming, but if we have a good foundation of skills, we can quickly upskill and acquire new skills easily.

You will know if you are expected to have experience in a specific domain based on the application process. If you are unfamiliar with the niche or industry, check out step 4, “Start Tuning In” for some tips on how to get up to speed quickly.

Learning how you learn best, and how to learn quickly is a skill that will serve you in your internship and beyond. There is absolutely no way to know everything you need to know before starting an internship because the tools, technologies and techniques within the data world are so numerous and diverse.

And no one will expect you to know everything! Internships are meant to be a learning experience. Trust that it is completely ok to ask for help, to seek out resources and to learn on the job. Also believe that the people on the team may have some things to learn from you, too! So be open-minded about what you don’t know and be willing to share what you do know!

Building on the foundation of step 1, Mastering the Basics, you can quickly go deeper.

Stay in touch with the people you interviewed with! If you only worked with recruiters, ask them for your manager’s contact info so that you can reach out and touch base ahead of your first day.

Search LinkedIn for people in the industry, company, and team you will be working on. You can begin to get a sense of how they communicate, the problems they work on, the tools they work with, and who they are. You never know, by the time you begin your internship, you may have already had some authentic interactions with people on your new team!

Building on tip 3, as you network with people in the company and industry, keep your ear to the ground for what types of problems they are tackling.

You will get a great sense of industry trends by searching Google News to read recent press releases. Do a regular web search specifically for trends over the past 5 years and projected trends for the next 5 years.

While Google News will give you a good sense of a company’s major accomplishments, these may not reflect what the company and what your team are focused on right now. The press releases might just now be talking about something they finished up months ago, while they are already in the weeds on the next big thing. It’s worth asking people you are networking with what are some key problems they are working to solve right now. They might be hesitant to divulge too much, but you might get a few keywords that you can look up and become familiar with.

Go into your internship with an open mind, but think about having some goals established beforehand. If you are still in school, you can work with an advisor on this–or reach out to someone you trust.

The main idea here is to think about what you want to get out of this internship and how it can help you keep moving toward bigger goals in the future.

Some examples of goals:

• Connect with people and determine if this industry is a good fit for me
• Connect with people and determine if this company is a good fit for me
• Produce a deliverable that I can put on my resume and in my portfolio
• Do academic research that I can use to get into grad school
• Do work that I can publish in an academic journal
• Master a tool that I can put on my resume
• Find mentorship to help me decide what I want to do next

If you struggle with this like I do, then it can help to prepare some conversation starters in advance. And if you’re like me, then you will literally practice these ahead of time and there is absolutely no shame in doing so.

If you are an extrovert, congratulations, you can probably skip this one, but after many years of working in tech, I have met many more introverts than extroverts.

Luckily, being introverted doesn’t mean that you’re shy. But, you might need to remind yourself to break out of your shell to really network and get to know people during this experience. Or, you might need to think through what you are going to say in advance so you are ready to go when the moment presents itself!

Being an intern inherently means going somewhere new and interacting with a new group of people. To make the most out of your internship, it’s important to socialize and try to get to know some new people.

It would behoove interns to learn and use a Data Science Life Cycle (DSLC) framework because it will provide an organized approach to managing their internship projects. A framework helps to break down complex data science problems into smaller, manageable tasks, which can be tackled one at a time.

I wrote a whole post about how a DSLC can be a secret weapon in the data scientist’s toolbox! The one I recommend starting with is CRISP-DM. Many others have built off of CRISP-DM, so it’s definitely worth understanding this one!

By adopting and using a DSLC, you can produce high-quality work and leave the internship with tangible, portfolio-worthy results! The framework can also help you to develop a more structured and disciplined approach to data science, which will serve you well in the future.

As an intern, you may not have a lot of control over this aspect of the project, especially if you join a well-established data team in a big tech company. They probably have a great system in place. However, if you are working independently on your project, then consider taking a look. I do believe that you will achieve a more complete, well-documented, and usable project if you follow something like CRISP-DM.

Okay, I’ve been dishing out a ton of advice in hopes of helping you feel more prepared. But I acknowledge that it might be overwhelming. You might be putting a lot of pressure on yourself and you might have some imposter syndrome going into a data science internship.

Here are a few things to keep in mind:

• You have an amazing opportunity ahead of you. Take it one day at a time, stay open-minded and curious and you will succeed.
• The internship programs are designed to meet students where they are and help them build skills. be honest about your skills and you will learn and grow.
• Everyone has imposter syndrome. no one will expect you to know everything. the Data Science field is growing every day–it’s impossible to know everything. It’s completely ok to feel overwhelmed. Remind yourself to take a deep breath and focus on learning.

How long until you start your internship? Unless you start your internship in 1 hour, or yesterday, please do yourself a favor and take a break. I have suggested a few things to prepare for the internship:

• Building your foundation of data science
• Networking
• Tuning into the industry

You can start doing these things months in advance, or a few weeks ahead of the internship. But please take time to have a break before your internship. Go into the experience with a fresh, open mind. Don’t go into the experience burnt out from months or weeks of cramming and trying to prepare.

Again, congratulations on your internship! Hopefully, you are reading this with enough time to prepare and take a break before you start. Either way, as long as you show up with a great attitude, willing to learn and apply your knowledge, you will have an experience worthy of a spot on your resume.