The minute IBA accepted me, I opened its program announcement booklet to take a peek at what I had just gotten myself into. Being already aware of the mandatory courses (courtesy of the IBA CS website), I desired to delve deeper into the extracurricular aspect available to me moving forward. These included IBA’s societies, clubs, social & competitive events, and sports facilities (the gymnasium). Whilst reading through the aforementioned sections of the PDF, I stumbled upon a bit of an unusual requirement for IBA students after they had completed their freshman year at the institution. Basically, between their 3rd & 7th semester, they had to do at least one social internship to graduate. I call this “unusual” because I hadn’t seen this prerequisite listed in the pamphlets of any of the other universities (at least the ones that I had applied to at the time).
My confusion around social internships:
There began my research about how I would conduct myself in regards to this specification. Every senior I asked was, for the most part, of the opinion that it was best to complete this internship in the summer break following my first year as making time for it might be difficult later on with more hectic classes, schedules & whatnot. Hence, I commenced looking up NGOs & social work organizations which could fit the part after my first semester.
I pawned off actually applying to them until my final exams concluded (around the first week of June). However, one of my friends asked me why this was even a compulsion amidst this brief venture. According to him, the whole point of volunteer work is to offer to help on your own accord. So if you’re forced (even implicitly) to volunteer, could it really be called “volunteer work”? He also questioned how cs students would benefit from this experience.
Social internships are mandatory at IBA?
This was something to think about (at least a little) & there are probably some of you out there who wonder the same. In my opinion, a social internship definitely has its upsides. Primarily, IBA’s social internship policy calls this requirement “The Responsible Citizen Initiative (RCI) Social Internship…” which is pretty self-explanatory, I think. It endorses an opportunity for each IBA student to gain practical hands‐on experience in community service. This exposure aids students in developing a sense of deep responsibility & commitment.
Why do social internships in the first place?
It serves to create awareness about the conditions and/or needs of the various segments of our society/community. The idea is to provide students a platform to serve the community. Moreover, it is for students to utilize their knowledge & skills to better-marginalized strata of society. Furthermore, social internships also advocate for teamwork as group efforts are encouraged. This is also very useful in propagating social interaction with fellow IBA students. My batch (2024) especially needs such interactions due to the plethora of online schooling this past year. Moreover, potential employers also prefer individuals who have some social work in their arsenal. It contributes to the multitasking & co-curricular aspect.
Conclusion
As such, in a nutshell, I’d like to reiterate that social work or social internships or volunteer work (whatever you prefer calling it) serves its purpose. You provide your hand to the less fortunate & help make that dim bulb in their life just a tad bit brighter. And let me tell you: it counts! It counts for both them & you! Not only does it add to your emotional & mental development, but it also contributes to your resume regardless of whether you are a programming student or a social science student. After all, being a better person can all work towards no matter which field we hail from.
