After seeing Karen Russell’s blog post offering students the opportunity to write a guest post, I immediately emailed her asking if there was still a space free; luckily there was!
Since Karen is a a professor at the University of Georgia, I thought it would be particularly appropriate to write a post aimed at students. I thought about what students worry about, what they want to know and how I might be able to help- internships came to mind. Personally this is an area I worried about in the past so I thought it’d be the perfect subject to talk about. I’ve copied the post, as seen on Teaching PR below:
Finding internships in the PR industry
As PR becomes such a popular career path to choose, students must make more effort to improve their skills and gain experience, putting them ahead of others when facing an interview situation.
Internships can help to develop a CV whilst giving the practical experience necessary for a career in PR.
When I began the Public Relations course at Leeds Metropolitan University I was a little apprehensive when I heard we were expected to find work placements, but once I’d completed my first week long placement I realised how important it was, and what you can gain.
But how exactly do you go about getting an internship? And where should you look?
I’ve devised a list of ten tips for students to help find a great placement where you can gain the experience and knowledge needed to excel when looking for a full time job after university.
- Search for any PR agencies in your local area- Check out who they work with and what they do
- Use your contacts- friends, family and lecturers could all be possible links to a good internship
- Don’t rely on the PR agencies, they might be inundated with applications from students and unable to offer you work experience
- Remember to try and look at different sectors, it’ll help you make the decision of which path to take after university
- Ask other students where they have completed internships- if it was good, try there!
- Make sure your CV really shows you off before thinking about sending it to any possible employers. Always remember to spell-check and proof read!
- Write a cover letter/email requesting a placement and attach your CV. Remember they probably get a lot of similar emails so really sell yourself. Always tailor the email to the company; never send the exact same email to two companies.
- If an application doesn’t result in work experience, don’t be disheartened. Check over your CV again and keep looking!
- If you get a placement and find yourself making coffees all day, try discussing it with your tutor, they’ll help you decide what to do!
- Enjoy yourself! Internships shouldn’t be something you dread, enjoy your time at the company and get as much out of it as you can!
4 Comments
November 6, 2008 at 11:12 pm
Hi Natalie
This post has some fantastic advice for first years such as myself!
I’ll take all this into account for my next try at work experience.
And well done for getting the guest post!
Clare Siobhan x~
November 20, 2008 at 3:44 pm
Hi natalie,
It is a very interesting post. I have some questions regarding some points (n.1, 6, 7):
1. Do you have any reference? Is there a ‘place’ (website, book, etc.) where we could have info on PR agencies (address, managers, etc)?
6/7. Any particular tips regarding CV and covering letters? Is it better to attach a portfolio of work or not?
9. Do we have to ‘fix’ some requirement of the internship before we start doing it? For instance, should we ask to our future tutor: “which are the activities for a trainee?”
Thanks.
November 26, 2008 at 1:04 pm
Hi Miriam,
Sorry I’ve taken a while to respond! In answer to your questions:
1. When searching for PR agencies I personally research on google (typing in things like “PR consultancy/agency Leeds”) which can be prove quite successful! I also check out PR Week to see who’s been mentioned. There are directories such as Hollis but you have to buy these and they’re pretty expensive!
6/7. Personally when I have sent emails/letters in the past I have always just written a covering letter and attached my CV (updated and altered to suit the role) but there is no reason you couldn’t add on a quick sentence at the end of the covering letter letting them know samples of your work are available upon request. This could show that you are confident your work is up to scratch!
9. There are no fixed requirements of what a work placement has to offer (mostly because they are normally unpaid..) as far as I know, and the chances are you will be asked to make the coffees from time to time, but don’t worry. If you start a role and you feel you’re being treated unfairly and not being challenged at all then talk to your tutor; they can help you decide what to do. If you are worried about what is required of you and don’t know what to expect, your tutor is also the person to talk to, or even other students who have already completed internships.
I hope this helps, if you’ve got anymore questions, feel free to throw them my way!
Nat
November 26, 2008 at 1:11 pm
Forgot to mention too, check out http://www.flawlessbuzz.blogspot.com. It’s Adam Lewis’s blog, a student from York University. He frequently writes about placements, students and jobs and offers advice too. His post entitled “Websites for an introduction to PR in the UK” is incredibly helpful!
Also my colleague Sam Oakley has just changed his blog so the topic is primarily going to be “how to get a good job in PR”. So keep your eye on http://www.northernpr.co.uk too!