#248 How to Get Internship Ready and Make It Count with Julia Lapan, UVA

Flourish Coaching

Oct 13, 2026

An internship can offer much more than a line on a resume.

Lisa Marker-Robbins and Dr. Julia Lapan from the University of Virginia explore how internships help young people build career direction, practical skills, professional connections, and a clearer sense of what they can contribute. They also offer practical advice on the internship search and application process for students from high school through college.

In this episode, Lisa and Julia discuss:

What makes an internship valuable as part of a young person’s broader career development
Why career readiness develops differently for each student
The role of self-awareness and professional identity in preparing for opportunities
How work experiences can build the human skills that carry into college and future careers

Key Takeaways:

A strong internship gives students industry insight, practical skills beyond the classroom, and professional connections they can build.
Students can pursue internships at different points in college, while part-time jobs and undergraduate research can build skills and help them feel more prepared.
When evaluating an internship, students can ask what they will learn, what projects they will work on, who they will work with, and how they will be supervised.
Students can reflect on what they learned, the skills they developed, and the connections they made, then use those insights to update their resume, stay connected with mentors, and choose their next opportunity.

“We think of internships as prototyping experiences, and some people prefer to call those trying things out, or experimenting, or exploring. But really, what internships are is they provide students a taste of the future.” – Julia Lapan

About Julia Lapan:

Julia Lapan is the inaugural Executive Director of Career Design & Discovery at the University of Virginia’s College and Graduate School of Arts & Sciences. With more than 20 years of experience in higher education, she previously served as Assistant Dean at UVA’s School of Engineering and Applied Science, where she integrated career design into the first-year engineering curriculum. She holds a doctorate and master’s degree from UVA and a bachelor’s degree in psychology from the College of the Holy Cross.

Episode References:

Free LinkedIn Profile Builder: https://flourishcoachingco.com/linkedin
Learn more about Launch Career Clarity at https://flourishcoachingco.com/course
#247 4 Steps to Help Your Kid Take Smarter Risks with Matthew Confer: https://flourishcoachingco.com/247

Get Lisa’s Free on-demand video: THE CAREER IDENTIFICATION COMPASS: How To Be Certain Your 15 To 25 Year Old is On The Right Path to Launch With Confidence–Not Confusion: flourishcoachingco.com/video