As a second-year IBCoM student, the fourth term is meant to be your internship period, a chance to get out into the world and get some experience in the field of Communication and Media. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, many internships have continued from a Work-From-Home (WFH) policy. I’m one of the lucky BA-2 students who didn’t have their internship canceled after lockdown, meaning I get my practical credits at the end of the term.
As a passionate writer and aspiring journalist, it was important to me that my internship was related to writing and editing. I work as a copywriter for DPDK, a digital creative agency based in Rotterdam where I write and edit content, and do company research for the marketing team. My internship began in February and ends in June. In today’s article, I’ll be sharing a little bit about my experience as an intern during the COVID-19 pandemic and how the internship processes work during the 2019/2020 academic year.
DPDK works on the branding, design, and development of digital products (websites, apps, client portals) and copywriters work in the DPDK marketing team. The team consists of the head of marketing, five copywriters, and two designers and we produce content that can be used for marketing distribution and for our own website, including case studies, articles, whitepapers, and infographics. DPDK put their work-from-home policy in place the same week lockdown was announced in the Netherlands, so I’ve spent most of my time doing this internship from home.
Some of my friends and peers might know me to be a bit of an organizational aficionado, so adapting to a Work-From-Home policy was a real test of my own restraint and organization. The work routines, both daily and weekly, remained pretty much the same as when I was working in the Rotterdam office but it took a lot more focus to stay on my self-imposed schedule.
Unlike many people, I didn’t mind working from home but I’ve also definitely missed out on getting to know other people in the office. We have weekly games to play on Friday afternoon and we have a messenger channel to talk to each other. It works in quarantine but it doesn’t replace doing team activities in person. Towards the end of the internship, there are a few pieces of advice I can offer first-years and prospective students.
- Before starting your internship search, make sure you have a professional CV: While internships are inevitably decided by your motivation, your CV can help make a lasting impression on recruiters and it only takes a bit of effort to show past experiences and what you can bring to the team.
- Make a list of all the jobs you’d be interested in doing for your internship: copywriting, marketing & PR, journalism, anything. This way, you can focus on particular companies you want to apply to instead of randomly applying to places and not knowing what each position you’re applying for entails.
- Keep track of what you do during your internship: You need to write a report at the end of the internship to demonstrate that you actually did some work and learned something, so keeping a mini-diary helps when writing that report.
- Connect with your colleagues: Whether through LinkedIn or getting to know them in person, these people are valuable to your network. Who knows what opportunities these connections could bring you in the future.
IBCoM is quite unique by allowing both an internship and an exchange/minor; take advantage of the opportunities that are given to you and expand your knowledge!
Author & Editor: Kat Nivera