December 10, 2019
We were thrilled to welcome Abigail Cox as an assistant account executive to our team this fall, after she completed a very successful internship. Here are Abigail’s tips for turning that internship opportunity into a full-time job.Nothing can replace real world experience, especially in the world of public relations. In the workplace, projects and campaigns created for your clients will not be returned with an “A+” written in red on the front – it’s more of a pass or fail scenario. Creating a campaign for a pretend client in class is great practice, but doing it in a real job brings on a whole new set of expectations. An internship can help bridge those gaps between the work done in the class room and the work waiting for you in the real world.
Beyond the value of real world experience an internship offers, it also has the potential to turn into your first real job. If you’re looking to turn your internship into a job, here are three tips to help you score your first job offer:
Take notes.
When I started my sixth internship, it was hard not to feel like I had the whole internship thing down pat. But I knew the reality was that I had so much to learn every single day. And that will still be true every day of my career. We all have room to grow and learn, and an internship is the optimal time to soak in the knowledge and experience of the people around you who have been in the game a lot longer and are eager to help you develop as a young professional.
Ask questions.
Asking questions shows that you are both engaged and invested in learning and developing your skills. It also gives you a chance to start conversations with your new coworkers or bosses. Through my own internship experience, I found that staying curious, being teachable and never being afraid to ask questions can go a long way.
Treat every day like a job interview.
This was some of the best advice I received from my father before starting my post-grad internship. If you are interning with the goal of one day being offered a job (which you should be), treat every day like a job interview because when you think about it – it is. Employers know that even if you can teach someone how to do a job – you can’t teach someone to be a hard worker and you can’t teach someone to care. See an internship as an opportunity not to prove that you know everything, but to prove that you are teachable, hardworking and passionate about the industry you’re in.
Turning your internship into a job might feel daunting, but keep in mind that everyone started their career from the same spot you’re in right now. Many of our team members at LCWA started as interns, including myself. Take these tips into consideration and we’re confident it’ll help you land that first full-time job in no time.