Tuesday, September 14, 2010

Know What You're Looking For

The most important thing when looking for an internship is knowing what you want.

Journalism majors, do you want experience in the newsroom?
Public Relations majors, do you want to work in a PR firm?

Many of the Communication & Major concentrations are pretty broad (which is one of the reasons why it's so great!) so it's important to know what you can do with your major.

Here are some starting points to help you along your way:
1) Will I have time for an internship? Try to really think about whether or not you can balance your social, academic, and internship lives. You wouldn't want to make a commitment to a company and then find out you don't have time.
2) Which industry to I want to enter (media, health, politics, advertisement, fashion, etc.)? It's important to pick a field you're interested in so you can be passionate about what you're doing.
3) How far will I have to travel? I've declined an internship because it would have taken me 3 different trains and 1.5 hrs to get to the office.
4) Will I get the experience that I want? Internship titles and descriptions can be misleading. Dissect the internship description word for word and make sure you ask questions about the position when you meet with the employer.

Figuring out what you want will help you choose the internship to apply for. You don't want to apply for all the internships you find and just settle for the one that you get. Take a step further to find something that relates to what you want to do so you can put it on your resume, get a great experience, and find out if it may be a possible career path for you.


keep going,
SUNY New Paltz
Communication & Media
Internship Program

Friday, September 3, 2010

It's Never Too Late

Three weeks into the fall semester and still no internship? Don't give up hope! Companies and organizations are still heavily recruiting interns.

Join the SUNY New Paltz Communication & Media Department/Internships page on Facebook to seek out fall internships and find a position that is right for you. A wonderful thing about acquiring an internship through your school is that the employer knows you're a student with a busy academic schedule. After browsing through a couple of internship opportunities on the Facebook page, you'll notice that many employers are looking for part-time interns. Time commitment to your internship/job is important to consider while you are trying to balance the busy academic and social aspects of an ambitious college student.

An example of this is Sky Lake Lodge's Marketing and Promotion internship. This internship is looking for an intern to work 10-12 hours a week which is just 2-3 hours per day, 5 days a week or 4-5 hours per day, 2-3 days a week. If your schedule is a bit lighter on certain days, you can always discuss your availability with them.

So don't just read this blog and browse the Facebook page, take a step further by actually contacting the employer before it really does become too late and someone else fills the position.


keep on going,
SUNY New Paltz
Communication & Media
Internship Program