How valuable are internships/working while studying in terms of employability?

[fiby41]

If I work on a non-menial job in X industry along with studying Y subject, will it help my get a job in related field Z?

I don't need the money currently, and want to work while studying in the coming years to boost my resume.

So should I take any job I get or wait until I get a part-time /vacation full-time/ internship job in:

1 Any field
2 Field I'm studying in
3Field I want to have a carrier in?

Assume you are an employer/hiring manager.

Does my work experience in

1 the same field the job is in
2 same subject I've graduated in
3 Unrelated industry

Make me more or less likely for a job considering

1 I managed a part time job while studying
2 But had a job in unrelated field than the one I am applying for now?

Background history: I didn't join a call center job I interviewed for and got selected for, in the vacations. Please see journal for more details:

viewtopic.php?f=9&t=6084&p=104320#p104320

[almostthere]

If you want a high paying professional job, then I'd say yes. I grew up middle class to upper middle class in middle America. I did not do internships in undergrad. I did in grad school. Since then, I have worked in a field that has lots of upper middle class to upper class professionals and I have attended other private graduate schools. The children of the privileged will have had multiple prestigious internships in the field they are interested in. If you are entering a field where you are competing against such people, they will be ahead of you. Maybe it was connections, but maybe not. Either way anyone can replicate the experience with some perseverance.

[simplex]

I think internships are very valuable from two standpoints:
1) you get an insider view of (part of) an industry and you learn if the people working there are a good fit for you

2) as a potential employee you can show that you are interested.

I'd think most employers prefer someone who has done a specific internship.

[BeyondtheWrap]

I saw in your journal that you are from India. I cannot speak to how the job market works there.

In the U.S., I'd say an internship in your field is absolutely necessary. If you graduate without an internship, you pretty much won't get hired for anything in your field.*

*Source: I graduated in 2011 without an internship but with a high GPA in a major traditionally considered to have good job prospects and could not secure a job related to my field of study. I am still way behind my peers because of this. I ended up going to grad school just so I could be considered a student again and qualify for an internship.

[The Old Man]

Internships are fundamental. You should begin looking for an internship the very first day of school if not before.

(1) It is a good way of learning about the industry and the company.
(2) If you do well in an internship then there is a significant probability the company will offer you a full-time job.
(3) A company gets to see how you perform in a low risk fashion.
(4) Demonstrates interest in the field, so another company (even one that did not offer you the internship) will be interested in you.

Do not underestimate the importance of an internship.