A Media fresher’s guidebook to internships

     

                       

A fresher’s guidebook to internships:

Embarking on the journey to pursue a degree in media can be daunting and overwhelming; an array of career options; each different from the other, makes it hard for a student or any individual to choose from. I remember being a first-year student and finding the process of applying and hunting for internships very cumbersome. Inundated with questions such as, how do I apply?, Who do I approach? What should I include in my resume? I often felt dejected. The Bachelor’s degree in Multimedia and Mass Communication; is a three-year degree, that exposes a student to multiple aspects of media, and opens up a plethora of job opportunities in fields like PR, Advertising, AD- filmmaking, Journalism, Content Creation, Designing, Animation, Photography, etc. Thus, the process of understanding our interests and securing a position in our desired field and agency can seem like an impossible task.  Therefore, here are some suggestions to make this protracted process of finding internships easier and shorter.

1. Identify your interests-  The paramount step of applying to internships is identifying your interests, this can be as simple as writing down your likes, dislikes, skills, etc. Ask yourself clear-cut questions, are you someone who likes writing and creating content, or are you someone who is good at management and coordinating, would you rather prefer staying behind a camera, clicking photographs, or being in front of it. Doing this will help you discern your abilities, and will intern negate the career options that don’t match your wavelength. It reduces the sea of opportunities you have in front of yourself to a pool; that you can dive into and explore. If you are not sure about what your interests are, or have an extensive range, focus on the dominant ones. Indulging in college activities and clubs can help you advance your skills and embrace the existing ones. Thus, before jumping on the wagon of applying make sure that you have an idea about what you would like to indulge in. 

 

2. Choose an area of interest-  Based on your interests and strengths narrow down the fields you would want to explore, for example; if you enjoy writing, you can look at exploring opportunities in fields such as copywriting, content writing, journalism, content creation, scriptwriting, etc. Similarly, someone interested in photography or videography can look at various areas of photography, cinematography, film-making, etc. If you aren’t sure about the different career options available, you can always ask someone pursuing a career in the field or a teacher/ counselor about the same.

3. Create a resume - A resume talks about your work experiences to a potential employer, it’s imperative that you include your educational background and skills relevant to your field. If you don’t hold any working experience, you can list the ones you gathered working on your college committees, for eg; you can mention that you wrote for your college newspaper and include the write-ups in your portfolio too. Sites like Google Docs, Microsoft Word, Canva, etc. hold a variety of resume templates for you to edit

Make sure you don’t make the resume long keep it short and snappy. Preferably 1- 2 pages. Don’t be disheartened if you don’t have much to include on your resume.

4. Scroll the right way!   Use social media to your advantage, create your profile on apps like LinkedIn and connect with potential employers to enquire about possible internships! 

Don’t shy away from sliding into DMs on LinkedIn (only if you are reaching out to people professionally  and making connections.) You can also look at websites like Intern Shala, Glassdoor, and company recruitment portals, for relevant positions. Send your resume to your employers along with a small paragraph describing your passions and goals. Networking platforms like LinkedIn were highly beneficial for me. It helped me to personally connect with HRs and company employees, along with providing intel on various job and internship opportunities in any field! 

5. Size doesn't matter!   Now that I have your attention, I want you to know that the size of the organization doesn’t matter when you are starting off, it is important that you look at the profile of the work being offered to you and the experience you would gather there. Don’t discard opportunities because they weren’t big, it’s okay to start small.  Apply everywhere and keep your options open but, don’t reject any opportunity or agency because it wasn’t famous or big enough as there is plenty of time for you to work big!  

 Lastly, be consistent with follow-ups and have patience, it might take a while to hear back from that dream internship but apply to multiple places and get the ball rolling. Keep checking LinkedIn for openings and job offers. Thus, these were some of my recommendations to help you sail through your journey of landing the right internship. It is imperative that you learn from your mistakes and keep at it. Lastly, all I want to say is, “ You got this!” All the best.