A Day in the Life of an Intern.

First Day.

(Image from camp4collective.com) 

As I’ve mentioned in a previous blog post, my University (MMU), offers a unit in our degree which gives us the option to go out and get an internship at a marketing/advertising/PR agency. We either go out and work for one day a week, unpaid, at an agency/company and get marked in a number of different ways and it ends up going towards our 2nd year grade. If we don’t go out and get an internship you then have to attend lectures and seminars, and get marked in a different way. All in all – the ‘Agency Life’ route sounded so much more interesting so here I am…

I ended up getting an internship at a small, yet growing, digital marketing agency in Manchester city center called 3 Door Digital (which I was very happy about). I wasn’t really sure to expect, especially since I haven’t done work in this sector before – my previous job was a waitress/bar worker and now I work in a shop so you can’t really compare them. I started a week later than my friends at Uni did so as soon as I got the opportunity I asked them what their days were like, what they did and did they like it, so I could prepare myself for mine. Since one of them said “I got given a huge stack of paperwork to read through as soon as I got there”, it made me slightly less excited to start mine.

After an early start to get there for 8.30am I found myself in the office, full of chatty friendly people and realising it probably will be a pretty good year with this company. I went to a meeting with my boss at 10am, and spent 9-10 going through a strategy plan that was made for the client and added anything to it I thought was necessary. Once the meeting was over, back to the office to type out plans that had been spoken about in the meeting. Then that afternoon the person who deals with content strategy showed me how to do content writing (I think that’s what it’s called). And sooner than later the day was over! 4.30 it was the mad dash to the bus stop and the hour ride home.

Pretty good start if you ask me, can’t wait to go back. For the first time in ages I actually think I’ve gone down the right career path…

The Intern…(Or At Least Trying To Be!)

(Image from Channel4.com)

Many of you may have seen Hilary Devey’s new Channel 4 show ‘The Intern’, a show giving young people a chance to get their dream job. I love the idea of it and also loved watching it too.

As I’m a University Student, I’ve just completed my first year and I’m currently in the same boat as many other youngsters trying to get a job or a summer internship. I understand how frustrating it is applying for jobs and people don’t reply back or even seeing jobs requiring ‘experience’ (yet no one will hire you or take you on in the first place to give you that experience). So when I heard about the concept of the programme I was happy, and I hope as a result of this employers in the future will be more willing to give youngsters a chance to see what we are actually capable of.

I’ve seen an article on The Telegraph of someone offended by the series – http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tvandradio/9969852/Hilary-Deveys-new-Channel-4-show-is-an-insult-to-interns.html but I completely disagree! I don’t think it “humiliates youngsters who are desperate for a job” – I’m assuming neither do the people who got a job out of it do either! It’s true, we ARE desperate for a job, it’s not embarrassing it’s a fact. Hilary has given youngsters an uplifted spirit and I’m going to carry on searching for a job till I get one!

What are your views of the programme? Or are you in the same situation as me and the people from the show?