Remember that first impressions are the ones that last, and supervisors and coworkers will establish their opinions of you and your work very quickly. It is important to be aware of the actions that can wreck your professional image right from the start.

However, most supervisors and coworkers do realize that you are still in the learning stages of your career. Mistakes are bound to occur, but attempts to minimize their likelihood will help you to construct a professional image right from the start.

The dreaded dress code.

This can be an area of much frustration for new interns, and making mistakes involving professional dress can be especially hazardous to your professional reputation. Being an intern is like being somewhere between a student and a professional, and it can be difficult to dress for both roles.

• Play it safe at first. Wear plain, conservative clothing the first couple days until you get a good sense of the office culture. Your first day as an intern is not the time to show off a trendy new outfit that could strike a negative chord with coworkers.
• Ask your supervisor what he or she prefers you to wear while in the office or on site.
• Once you have a good sense of what is acceptable in the office and what is not, do not try to test the boundaries. If you notice no one is wearing sandals, try not to be the first one to test the waters by coming in wearing a pair.
• If you have to attend class before or after work, wear clothing that is professional but comfortable. Don’t think that having class before or after work means you can show up in jeans and a t-shirt. When you are at an internship site, you are in a professional role and not a student one.

You are the intern, not the CEO.

Obviously, you want to exude a level of confidence when beginning an internship. After all, you must have presented yourself as a self-assured, capable student to get hired in the first place! But showing too much confidence can quickly be misinterpreted by others.

Although your skills and contributions are valued by your employer, you are still in the role of student or apprentice. It is important to showcase your knowledge and skills, but also to view the internship as a learning experience. Striking that balance can be difficult.

• Contribute in staff meetings, but try to not run the show unless asked. From time to time, you may be asked to present or speak on behalf of a project. But in most meetings, your job is mostly to listen, observe and to learn.
• Know how to absorb defeat. You present a brilliant idea, but it gets turned down due to cost, time, personnel, etc. Take the defeat gracefully, and avoid pressing the issue too hard. The fact that you made an attempt shows determination and creativity, so don’t get down about the fact that your idea wasn’t pursued.
• Ask questions, but be willing to find answers on your own too. Because this is a learning experience, questions are indefinitely going to arise. After all, asking questions will provide you with additional knowledge. But don’t be afraid to find the answers for yourself either; even the most patient supervisors can feel overwhelmed by frequent questions.
• Do not show up expecting to change things completely. You may observe faults in the company policy, disapprove of a major strategy or hate the new advertising campaign. However, try to internalize these criticisms rather than making them public. Instead of trying to make drastic changes, learn from what you observe.

Office politics will be present. Your job is to avoid them.

One of the worst things an intern can do is to get into office politics and gossip. Think of an internship as a networking opportunity or possible future job, and do not burn any bridges. You will probably need the people you work with to write reference letters or help you with your job search later on, so make sure to keep office relationships positive.

• Avoid gossip at all costs, especially in the beginning. Do not engage in conversations about other workers, your supervisor or clients, even when approached.
• If asked your opinion about a touchy subject, keep your response as neutral as possible. Try to always be able to view an issue from both sides.
• Avoid complaining excessively, even about little matters. Do not complain about how long your day was, or how boring your latest project is to the secretary on the way out the door. Keep it positive.

You have to gain trust.

You know you are capable and have the skills needed to hit the ground running. But supervisors and coworkers have not seen you in action yet, so it’s important to realize that they are still trying to figure out what you are all about. This means it may take a little time before you are granted the responsibilities you hoped for.

• Start out fast, but not too fast. Take on some projects and push yourself to do well at them. However, avoid taking on too many in the beginning. You want to turn out quality work, not be overly stressed or leave tasks unfinished.
• Talk about past experiences. When given a challenge, verbalize to your supervisor that you handled a situation or project similar in a past job or position. This will ease his or her fears a bit.
• Don’t get discouraged if you are left out in the beginning. Remember, you are probably entering territory where teams have already been established. It may take some time before you feel entirely comfortable in this new environment.

A mentor is a must.

With any learning experience, a guide can make challenges seem a little less daunting. Mentors are important to have because they can assist you in mapping out your career and professional goals, as well as assist you in navigating a new environment. The best mentors are the people that you are able to look at and think “I want to be just like them one day”.

• If you find there is someone you really admire in the workplace, try to form a professional relationship with them by asking questions about their daily tasks, career path or educational experiences.
• Observe your mentor in action, and try to model their behavior. When faced with a decision or situation, try to look at the situation as you would imagine your mentor would.

An internship is a learning experience.

Being an intern means making mistakes from time to time. If you had already mastered all the skills needed to work in your career field, you probably wouldn’t need an internship! For this reason, it is important to keep a positive attitude and a resilient approach to mistakes. If you make a mistake, be willing to improve upon it in the future.

• Be receptive to both positive and negative feedback from supervisors and coworkers, and use their input to increase your knowledge. Don’t let constructive criticism get you down; turn it into action instead.
  
• Approach your internship as though it were an academic course. Take the time to read up on trends in your field, stay on top of developments within your company and be prepared when you arrive each day.

Responsibility and punctuality make an excellent impression.

Many employers offer internship programs in order to search for new employees. It is not unlikely that an employer will extend a full-time offer to a former intern…that is, if he or she has made an excellent impression.

It can be easy to fall into a pattern of irresponsibility when working as an intern because you may assume that interns are not held to the same professional standards as full-time employees. However, adhering to those standards is one of the most basic things you can do to impress your supervisor and coworkers.

• Don’t follow the flock. If you notice that most of the employees show up late, don’t assume that being late is acceptable. If you begin work at 9:00, then show up not a minute later- even if you are alone in the office. Your supervisor will take notice!

• Taking on an internship may mean compromising on some college behaviors. Although you are juggling the roles of student and employee, you must assume the role of a professional when you walk in the office door. That means cutting back on partying the night before a work day. Nothing screams unprofessional more than an intern who drags himself to an internship tired and hung over.