ASK REPROJOBS: What to do when my manager steals my shine?
Dear ReproJobs,
I am an entry-level aspiring policy researcher and advocate and have had several temporary internships and fellowships so far. During one in particular, I made a noteworthy accomplishment that I was only given credit for within the organization, but my supervisors/coworkers absorbed the success to everyone outside of the org. I was given no public-facing acknowledgment of my contribution in the announcement/discussions of the success, so my contribution isn't verifiable. Not receiving credit for accomplishments when you're interning seems to be a pretty common occurrence in most organizations, and is understandable, so I'm not complaining about that. However, I'm wondering if it's acceptable to mention the full extent of my accomplishment in resumes/cover letters/interviews for other jobs, and/or how to word it to avoid seeming like I'm embellishing.
Sincerely,
Influential Intern
Dear Influential Intern,
Your situation is not uncommon, but that doesn’t make it any less painful and wrong. Everyone who worked on a project deserves credit—whether they are a full time employee or intern. It’s a precarious situation to be in with very little power and to want to ask for credit for your work, but also being afraid of being bad-mouthed from potential workplaces. It is absolutely acceptable to mention the full extent of your accomplishments and contributions on the project to potential employers. Just because the other organization doesn’t give you credit, doesn’t mean you can’t own your work. Be clear about what you did. Be proud of what you did. Talk about how you worked on the project with the team and the essential role you played—that’s what you’re supposed to talk about in interviews and cover letters! Mentioning your work and the role you played is not embellishing—unless it is literally making up things that you didn’t do. And if you ever feel uncomfortable about it, remember that consultants are often invisible workers on a project, yet they are able to talk about the role they played in a project that they don’t get public recognition on. So, when you need the confidence to talk about your contributions as an intern, think about yourself as a consultant and talk about your work as such.
Sincerely,
The ReproJobs Team