Not getting any hands-on experience at my internship
Internships and apprenticeships often restrict beginners to overly simple tasks or delay actual installations until the second year. Without the chance to troubleshoot or deploy real systems, trainees feel they aren't learning much and realize they could gain more skills by studying or practicing on their own outside of work.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
Found another way around this?
Share your steps and trade-offs so fellow engineers don't have to reinvent the wheel. No account required.
- 1studying for certifications independentlyDid this help you?
- 2asking engineers for side tasksDid this help you?
- 3Taking scrap materials home from the job site to practice making cuts and fitting them around obstacles.Did this help you?
- 4Observing experienced installers closely and asking them why they use specific techniques.Did this help you?
- 5Finding a different company that allows apprentices to start installing and learning hands-on sooner.Did this help you?
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
“I’m new to flooring, is there anyway I can get experience in installing different types of flooring when not at work? I’m passionate about flooring but I won’t learn how to actually start installing till my 2nd year and after as an apprentice.”source ↗
“i am not getting any networking or hands on work troubleshooting or actually deploying stuff.”source ↗
“The deployment in the uem is also very simple so i don't feel like i am learning much.”source ↗
“not really but i feel i could be learning more by myself for example preparing for my ccna”source ↗
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
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- 13Is it normal to have no training or supervision on a new job?
- 14Why am I getting rejected from accounting internships with a high GPA?