Internship, the word itself terrified me. My seniors wouldn’t even want remember the days of their internship. The days of horror, as they would recount. Somewhere along the way I had made the decision that I would never intern. I promised myself that I would never buy coffee, clean tables and do others work. Why intern when we can start working? So when I was informed that I would be interning at a PR firm for 2 months I could help but think 57 days of torture. I didn’t have any other option , I had to intern but I made my mind that I would not serve coffee. However, this perception did change when I joined my internship.
It was only weeks for my internship and I had already started receiving advices. I was told, internship is the best thing that can happen to a student. Contrary to what I always believed. The main purpose of the internship was to get a job. Impress the firms with your capabilities and compel them to bring you back as an employee. It was an opportunity where you get exposed to the corporate world while one studied. I was told, I would be working in one of the top 10 PR firms in India. This chance was not given to everyone and I should not miss out on it. Do not waste your time and always ask for more work was engraved in my mind. Yet, I could not stop the jitters. Internship continued to haunt me. With all my courage I joined my firm.
I have often heard, expectations are never matched by reality but I had never experienced it. That was about change. I was happy when my expectations were not matched. I did not have bring coffee or clean tables, rather I was shown the practical side of the PR world. I learnt a lot more on ground than in class. I was exposed to what clients expect from us and what should we expect from them. The 57 days turned into 2 short months. Asking for work had become an habit. Once the barriers fell, I couldn’t help but enjoy my every moment spent in my internship. Today when I am asked about internship, all I can say is, It is the best thing that can happen to a student.
This blog post originally appeared on the author’s blog site.
-Reenal Lobo
Reenal Lobo is a student of the PG Programme in Public Relations at SCoRe. She has completed her Bachelors in Commerce from St. Agnes College, Mangaluru
