Internships for Professionals 專業人士的實習機會
許多剛剛從高中或大學畢業的學生都面臨相同的問題。通常，工作職位要求有經驗。那麼，如何在沒有工作的情況下獲得經驗呢？
One way to handle this “paradox” (situation that is contradictory or without a solution) is for students to work in internships. “Internships” are jobs that don’t pay any money, but that people can do to get experience. It is quite common, for example, for a college student to work in an internship while going to school or in the summertime between school years.
解決這個“悖論”（自相矛盾或無解的情況）的一種方法是學生參加實習。“實習”是指不付工資的工作，但人們可以藉此獲得經驗。例如，對於大學生來說，在上學期間或學年之間的暑假參加實習是很常見的。
Internships provide benefits for both students and employers. Students get experience, “make contacts” (become known to people who may help them in the future), and “get their foot in the door” (gain an entry; get an advantage) if the company or organization is looking for future employees. “By the same token” (in the same way; similarly), a company or organization gets unpaid “labor” (work) and can see how well a person works before hiring that person for a full-time job.
實習對學生和雇主雙方都有好處。學生可以獲得經驗、“建立人脈”（認識可能在未來幫助他們的人），並且在公司或組織尋找未來員工時“獲得機會”（取得進入的機會；獲得優勢）。同樣地，公司或組織可以獲得無償的“勞動力”（工作），並且在僱用某人為全職員工之前，可以觀察該人的工作表現。
Until recently, most interns have been students. With the “weak” (poor) economy, however, more and more “mid-career” (people who have worked in their jobs for 10, 15, 20 years) professionals who have been “laid-off” (fired from their jobs because there isn’t enough business) are taking internships for some good reasons.
直到最近，大多數實習生都是學生。然而，由於經濟“疲軟”（狀況不佳），越來越多“職業中期”（在其職業中已經工作了10、15、20年）且“被解僱”（因業務不足而被解僱）的專業人士參加實習，有幾個好的理由。
First, internships allow professionals to gain experience in “adjacent” (nearby; close) fields, giving them a wider range of “expertise” (knowledge and skills). Second, internships allow professionals to avoid “gaps” (empty spaces) in their resumes. Traditionally, employers don’t like gaps in resumes because the gaps may mean that a person has had difficulty finding a job, had personal problems, or, with a lot of gaps, had difficulty keeping a job.
首先，實習讓專業人士能在“相近的”（接近的；相關的）領域中獲取經驗，讓他們的“專業知識”（知識和技能）更加廣泛。其次，實習讓專業人士避免在履歷中出現“空檔”（空白期）。傳統上，雇主不喜歡履歷中有空檔，因為這可能意味著這個人在找工作時遇到困難、有個人問題，或者由於空檔過多，在工作中難以持續。
Employers may also see long gaps between jobs as an “indication” (sign) of “deteriorating” (becoming worse over time) skills. Employers may be more “forgiving” (willing to overlook or pardon) of gaps during poor economic times, but as is true for college students, working in an internship also allows these professionals to show a company their skills, which may put them at the front of the line when any new jobs become available.
雇主還可能將工作之間的長期空檔視為技能“退化”（隨時間變差）的“跡象”（標誌）。雖然在經濟不景氣的時期，雇主可能會對空檔更“寬容”（願意忽略或原諒），但對於大學生來說，參加實習也能讓這些專業人士向公司展示他們的技能，這樣當有新職位時，他們可能會優先考慮。
重要單字
- 1. face /feɪs/ 面臨，遇到
- 2. paradox /ˈpærəˌdɒks/ 悖論，自相矛盾
- 3. internship /ˈɪntərnˌʃɪp/ 實習
- 4. make contacts /meɪk ˈkɒntækt/ 建立人脈
- 5. get their foot in the door /gɛt ðɛər fʊt ɪn ðə dɔr/ 獲得機會
- 6. by the same token /baɪ ðə seɪm ˈtoʊkən/ 同樣地
- 7. weak /wiːk/ 疲軟，不佳
- 8. mid-career /mɪd kəˈrɪər/ 職業中期
- 9. laid-off /leɪd ɒf/ 被解僱
- 10. adjacent /əˈʤeɪsənt/ 相近的，相關的
- 11. expertise /ˌɛkspɜrˈtiz/ 專業知識
- 12. gaps /ɡæps/ 空檔，空白期
- 13. indication /ˌɪndɪˈkeɪʃən/ 標誌，跡象
- 14. deteriorating /dɪˈtɪərɪəreɪtɪŋ/ 退化，變差
- 15. forgiving /fərˈgɪvɪŋ/ 寬容
