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I have an Adviser and I want to ask her a polite question. I need to ask her for an internship. This is what I wrote

I would like to ask you if it is possible to secure me an internship with a software company. I will have like half a month free between the first semester and the second semester. These activities will increase my experience. I appreciate your help and support.

I feel like the sentence is not polite, I need to put a word (or any phrase) after the secure word so the sentence becomes more polite. Something like:

if it is possible to thankfully secure me but I don't know if that is correct in English.

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    You may want to rephrase it to request her help in finding a position. I think what is bothering you about your sentence is that it seems like a demand.
    – ColleenV
    Dec 8, 2014 at 21:22
  • @ColleenV yes exactly it seems like a demand, but i need help not demand. could you help me in this please? because i am in a foreign country and I need to keep my relationship with the assistance as good as possible Dec 8, 2014 at 21:23
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    I will formulate an answer, although I think it is best if you try to put it in your own words. Also, could you clarify your relationship to the person you're asking? In the US an "assistant" is someone who you supervise and helps you with your work, and I'm not sure that is what you mean.
    – ColleenV
    Dec 8, 2014 at 21:35
  • @ColleenV she is the one that responsible for all my activities and studies in my current country, she is like the contact for me in all the situations Dec 8, 2014 at 21:40
  • In the US, we would call someone in that position an Advisor, although many outside of North America spell it "Adviser".
    – ColleenV
    Dec 8, 2014 at 22:00

1 Answer 1

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In general, it is more polite to ask for help achieving "something" than to ask directly for the "something".

I would like to ask you if it is possible to secure me an internship with a software company.

could be rephrased as

Would you be able to help me secure an internship with a software company?

First, we turn our thought into a question so that it seems less like a demand, and then we ask if it is possible that she might be able to help. This way even if she can't directly find you a position, she may still be able to help by introducing you to someone who can.

I would also rephrase the second and third sentences:

I will have approximately two weeks free between first and second semester, and I would like to use that time to increase my experience.

This isn't English advice, but I can't help but add that in my experience in the US, two weeks is a very short time for an internship. Instead of asking for help getting an internship, you may want to ask for her advice on how to get practical experience during that time.

I was a part time intern for a professor in the Engineering school while I was pursuing my degree, and it worked out well because my work was close to my classes and the university had a process in place for hiring students. A position with an outside company is more difficult to secure because there is a lot more cost in hiring a new intern and they will likely want a longer commitment.

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