In today’s competitive job market, now more than ever, recent graduates are searching for ways to enhance their employability upon graduation. Gone are the days when a solid GPA was enough to guarantee quality employment. Students are now looking to bolster their job prospects in a variety of ways, including internships, volunteer work, and involvement with student organizations on campus.

Given this uptick in extracurricular activities, it is becoming increasingly difficult to find innovative ways to stand out from the crowd. The answer to this dilemma, students are increasingly discovering, can be found by setting one’s sights internationally rather than locally.

The world is changing in profound ways. Countries, citizens, and businesses are now more interconnected than ever, as the process of globalization continues to shape our world. Rarely do major companies solely operate in a single culture or country anymore.

Over the past several decades, the business world has taken advantage of the technological developments that foster globalization, and in doing so, has expanded its reach into the global marketplace like never before. American companies are now concerned with the opinions of Chinese consumers. Brazilian companies take pains to market themselves to the Argentine market. Australian companies work hard to capture Indonesian market share. In this interconnected world where business is conducted globally, the hiring and recruitment process is also morphing to match the new realities.

Forward-thinking students and recent graduates understand these trends. They grasp that the key to gaining employability is to mold themselves to this new international model. And the way they’ve found to best do this?

International internships.

International internships have emerged as the perfect solution for young people who endeavor to build their resumes in a globally-minded way. By working abroad interns gain not only hard skills, but also the softer skills that allow them to thrive in any country. Interns learn how to communicate and collaborate with colleagues from different backgrounds and cultures. They also gain knowledge of foreign business practices, which can vary quite widely from American customs. It is these softer communicative skills – the foreign cultural and linguistic knowledge – that recruiters crave in their employees.

By working abroad, interns gain not only hard skills, but also the softer skills that allow a person to thrive internationally.

By devoting themselves to working in an international environment, students and recent graduates are preparing themselves for the future. Young professionals with international internships on their resume are sure to stand head and shoulders above the competition.

In today’s world, where multi-million dollar business deals are conducted in Mandarin, Hindi, and Portuguese, employees who can move fluidly amongst a variety of languages and cultures will be more valuable than ever. To this end, an international internship is a step in the right direction towards building cultural and linguistic fluency. Once attained, this international competency is a surefire way to solidify your resume and assure a lifetime of stellar job prospects.

About the author

Jill Richardson is the USA Marketing Manager for CRCC Asia, a leading provider of internship placement in china. She Graduated from UCLA with a degree in History and Global Studies.