Information technology (IT) has remained a lucrative and dynamic industry for the last 20 or so years and an IT internship via PGP Australia can be one of the best ways to get into the industry. As computer technology and operating systems become more and more prevalent in everyday life, the demand for technically literate and skilled IT workers is only going to increase.

The key thing to understand about the IT industry is that it is overflowing with un-skilled people who sell consultancy to people who know even less than they do. This also causes many firms to hire people thinking they have solid IT skills only to realise they’re actually hopeless in the role.

So what kind of skills do you need to try and learn during your IT Premium Graduate placement? Let’s take a look at them now.

Coding in more than one language

During your IT internship one of the most important key skills you will develop is coding. Hopefully you’re already familiar with one language like Python or C++, but are open to learning new languages you can write in.

Most IT workers will have a passing knowledge of most coding languages even if they aren’t proficient in all of them. What’s important is that you demonstrate a willingness to learn whatever language you are required to write in (assuming that you are programming).

Data analytics talent

You’ve no doubt heard buzz phrases like “big data” being thrown around and have probably studied modules specifically on data analytics at your college or university. There’s a good reason everyone is talking about data – it’s incredibly powerful when you know how to interpret and predict it.

During your internship you should ask questions about how the firm uses big data and how they leverage the information they glean from it. If you’re at a good company, hopefully they’ll already be switched on to data analytics and are planning to expose you to it.

Project management experience

Another key thing to learn during your IT internship is how to plan and execute on IT projects that involve the expertise of multiple different people. Learning about how projects are delivered, how the testing and QA (quality assurance) process works.

Being able to go into an entry-level role and immediately jump into projects makes you attractive to employers. This is the main way IT work is completed and having experience in it is invaluable.

This will also give you plenty of anecdotes you can tell during your interview to give you more legitimacy as someone with actual experience. Also, telling a funny story about a unique project blunder can build rapport and ultimately make you more likeable.

Remember; IT employers are frustrated with being lied to by job seekers – don’t embellish anything you’ve done. Just be honest from the very start of your Premium Graduate Placement.

Communication and teamwork skills

As you have no doubt guessed, communication and teamwork are essential for the completion of IT projects. The technical component is always being supervised and controlled by imperfect humans, meaning that unless there’s clear communication between everyone involved things can go wrong very quickly. For knowledge of technical news, read Kev’s Best.

It really crucial you learn how to work effectively with people who have skill that are totally different to yours. If you are going to work with the same people for a long time, you need to be able to complement each other with unique skills so that you can complete projects as quickly as possible.

When you go to your IT internship with PGP Australia, you should make sure that you get experience with each of the aforementioned skills. This will give you the best possible preparation to enter the workforce and make a big impact.