IMC Hawks Blog

Tag: Internship

  • 5 Helpful Internship Tips

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    Do you want to be the best intern possible? Check out the list below for some helpful tips!

    Be the best dressed intern: As stressful as interviews may be, the first impression is crucial to how the rest of the interview may go. If you present yourself in an appropriate, clean, and classy way, the interviewer will view you as a respectable advocate for the position you are applying for. After researching the atmosphere of the company, choose whether business professional or business casual is the right choice when dressing for your interview. 

    If the answer is business professional consider this:

    Ladies: Black or navy suit (either skirt or pant suit), closed-toed black or navy heels/flats (depending on color of suit), solid color dress shirt underneath, hair styled, and clean nails.

    Men- black or navy suit, tie, dark dress shoes, white dress shirt, and clean shaven.

    If the answer is business casual consider this:

    Ladies- black/navy dress pants or skirt, dress (appropriate length), flowy top (avoid too much skin showing), and heels or flats.

    Men- Black or khaki pants, dress shirt, sports coat, and dark shoes.

    Have a good attitude: Even if the work you’re doing is not exactly what you want to do, you want your employers to think that you’re loving every second of this opportunity. Also, displaying a happy attitude makes people more likely to want to work with you! Always have a smile and be willing to take on any task given to you.

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    Network whenever possible: The goal when you intern with a company is to start networking. Internships open the door to countless events, employees, or companies that are in the area. It is a smart idea to network in order to get your name out there. The more people see you and recognize your name, the more you will be considered for a position you might want. I know from personal experience, speaking to employees I met and making good impressions helped me network later. Of course, do not socialize with fellow professionals how you would with your friends. Make sure you think about what you are saying. Network whenever you can because you never know who it may be.  

    Be Flexible: Every organization works differently. One of the best ways to make the most out of your internship is to be flexible. The idea of flexibility is to be able to do projects differently than you normally do. This specifically applies to students that have not had an internship before. If you are use to classes and schooling, starting an internship can be a new transition. It is important to be open minded and adapt to how the organization works.

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    Don’t Be Afraid to Speak Up: As an intern it can be scary to speak up if you have ideas or questions. However, an internship is supposed to be a learning experience. It is important to ask questions regarding the project you’re working on. If you have a creative idea or input, speak up! The company liked you enough to hire you as an intern, you should feel comfortable to speak and give good insight. You never know, they may like the idea and how great would that feel? Don’t be afraid and let your voice be heard.

    Do you have an internship this semester? Are you going to complete an internship before graduating? Let us know below!

    -Erin Fouhy, Sarah Garner, Caitlin Rodermund, and Megan Suggs.

     

     

     

     

     

  • The happiest place to intern

    As Communication Studies majors, the department’s core skills have been cemented into our minds since COM 105. The department’s core skills give its majors direction as they navigate through their classes. When it comes to internships, every core skill is important but praxis allows you to apply knowledge outside the classroom. Knowing theories and knowing how to apply them is essential to being successful in an internship.

    Walt Disney World — the largest on-site employee establishment in the world — offers internship opportunities for almost any major. The eight-month internship is not like many others — Disney provides numerous benefits for their interns, including free park admissions, guest passes, discount-coupon books, and insider information which has not yet been released to the general public. Interns may also enroll in college classes while living in Orlando, and receive credit based on their major. Classes offered include engineering courses, leadership courses, marketing courses, and courses in the culinary arts. Students are also able to take a Disney Heritage course and learn about the history of Walt Disney World and the foundation the empire was built upon.

    Melanie Bower, a current senior and Communication Studies major at UNCW, completed the eight-month Disney Internship from May 2014 to January 2015. During her time in Orlando, Melanie also took classes on leadership and marketing, and is hoping to pursue a career back in Florida related to IMC or digital marketing. How is this internship suitable for COM majors?

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    “The Disney College Program teaches the vital skills we study in depth as COM majors – we even utilized the core skills learned in COM 105 in my marketing course at Disney. Every class involved group-work, and we learned how to effectively act, dress, and contribute in a business setting when working for such a big-scale company. Students in any major could gain experience and valuable knowledge from this internship, but having a Communication Studies background gave me an upper hand because I was already aware of how to effectively and efficiently tackle the tasks at hand. Communication also came in handy when working in the actual park. Hollywood Studios during the summertime is hectic, and knowing important tips to communicate effectively to large groups of stressed people gave me a leg up. Public speaking is also paramount in the job I worked.”

     The idea of applying knowledge outside the classroom, or “praxis,” is key in this kind of internship. Interning with such a big company is far different than many local internships students find around Wilmington. COM studies students who decide to head to Walt Disney World must be prepared for a “small fish in a big pond” experience, and use their knowledge of group work, core skills, and conflict management to be noticed and successful within the company. Melanie suggests the longer internship (8 months rather than one semester), if one truly wants to understand the ebb and flow of a monumental enterprise and the way business is carried out throughout the seasons. If you, a COM Studies student, or any other student in a different major is considering the College Program, it is important to understand that the work is daunting and the hours are long; classes are not easy and the weather is sometimes unbearable. But the networking you do, the contacts you make, the lives you touch, and the magical moments you have every day will make this internship well worth it.

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    What kind of internship opportunities have you been apart of or look forward to?

    – Nick, Melanie, Mary & Patrick

  • Story Telling or Story Selling?

    Screen Shot 2015-10-02 at 1.04.13 PMTake a moment to think about your home. What comes to mind? Think far beyond the floors, ceilings, and furniture. Whether it is a dorm room, an apartment, the structure forcing you to have a mortgage loan over the next thirty years, or simply the place you grew up with a white picket fence, each one harnesses specific memories and has its own unique story to share. The thoughts of an apartment could evoke memories of college life, living with roommates, throwing parties instead of studying for finals, and that insanely uncomfortable futon in the living room. On the other hand, a childhood home could conjure feelings of comfort and security when thinking about playing football with dad or mom’s fresh-baked apple pie.

    As an intern for a local real estate agent, Patrick Gahagan, who is a UNCW Communication Studies alum, I am learning narrative is at the core of selling homes. Each prospective buyer has his or her own story, which encompasses the place they currently live, the place they grew up, and thus influences their ideal home. One of the biggest challenges a real estate agent faces is gaining a solid understanding of each client’s needs for a new home and finding the perfect place for them. Are they yearning for a cozy place that reminds them of their childhood home? Would an apartment that reminds them of their college days when life was far less stressful be best? Or does the buyer want to keep his or her past homes out of mind and find something new? Buyers must be able to see themselves in a home before they can begin to consider taking out a loan that could keep them in debt for 30 years. Therefore, the real estate agent must craft a story to sell homes.

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    Given real estate agents work for commission, it is critical to master the art of story selling. Professional photos with the perfect lighting, and statistics regarding value and square footage, combine with the home tour to compose a narrative for each home on the market. In real estate, photos, stats, and the home’s structure are all rhetorical tools. A real estate agent’s job is to combine these rhetorical elements using the appropriate language to create a powerful story that will attract prospective buyers. The way in which a real estate agent uses rhetoric to frame a home essentially makes or breaks the sell. Sounds like marketing, doesn’t it? If the real estate agent composed an impactful narrative for the home, the buyers will likely proceed to make an offer and the agent is on their way to getting paid.

    In the world of real estate, stories are not simply told, but sold.

    By: Meleah, Amanda, Kendall, Luke, and Dan

  • Communication Studies At Work

    College students are told time and time again just how important it is to have an internship while in college. UNCW student Aki Suzuki, a senior Communication Studies major, offered to speak with us about her Marketing internship at Live Oak Bank, a Small Business Association lender  here in Wilmington, NC.

    liveoakbankInterviewer: What are your daily tasks?

    Aki: Videography: Helping set up shoots with lighting and camera equipment, taking photos, organizing footage, editing photos and videos, and creating simple title graphics.

    Interviewer: What do you want to gain from this experience?

    Aki: I hope to gain professional videography skills and the ability to thrive and adapt to an adult work environment. Finally I hope to gain the knowledge to competently function as part of an organization/ corporations marketing team to enhance a brand and use my creative resources to continue advancing it.

    Interviewer:  What coursework is relevant to your internship?

    Aki: As I am interning in the marketing department and helping create promotional materials for Live Oak, the IMC related classes are relevant to my experience. Integrated Marketing theories, as well as course projects and discussions have prepared me to understand how the bank approaches attracting borrowers to each of its verticals. The videography department is responsible for video and photography related products. Videography centered courses like COM 380 have also been instrumental to my understanding of cameras, the elements of lighting and also editing techniques.

    Internships are an excellent way for students to engage in applied learning but also a way to get their brand out into the real world. Aki has learned the importance of a consistent brand identity, especially when looking for jobs and internships. Aki demonstrated this during our interview.

    akisuzuki_000Interviewer: What can you offer to Live Oak Bank?

    Aki: I can offer Live Oak Bank a willing and open mind. Although I do not possess any outstanding skills, as a young and determined student I am engaged in learning and committed to contributing in any way that I can. My youth allows me to maintain a fresh perspective and enthusiastic attitude for any opportunities they allow me.

    Interviewer: How does your brand as a Communication Studies major compare with other interns at Live Oak?

    Aki: I find that I fit well into my niche in the marketing department because Communication Studies deals overwhelmingly with how to effectively incorporate messages being sent  through various channels which is precisely what any company’s marketing department hopes to cover.  I do find myself at a slight disadvantage when it comes to understanding the financial ins and outs of the bank; but like any communication studies major I am well versed in being an assertive researcher and curious verbal investigator to understand anything I do not immediately understand.

    Aside from some unnecessary modesty, Aki has aligned the stories she communicates about herself, the way she sees herself and reality so closely that there are minimal discrepancies. If you have the opportunity to work with Aki, you would find this statement proves true. Branding is not just for businesses anymore. Every communication you put out into the world will contribute to your personal brand and when your band is as consistent as Aki’s it becomes a holophrasm, expressing your brand in a single nucleus. Aki has achieved such a level of brand coherence that her name now acts as a holophrasm.

    What strategies do you use when defining your personal brand?

    What are some examples you can share about personal brand coherence?

    – Alexis Trimnal, Carey Shetterley, June Wilkinson, and Carey Poniewaz

    -Interviewee: Aki Suzuki

  • UNCW Was Juuust What I Needed

    Sometimes things just don’t work out the way you planned them to. Five years ago, in 2008, I started my college career as a freshman at UNC Greensboro. At the time, I was a major of Vocal Performance and just knew that I was going to be a singer. Unfortunately for me, things didn’t happen quite the way I had hoped. After a while I changed majors to Communication Studies on a whim, and started to care less and less about school. I was honestly lost and didn’t have any focus or direction in life. My grades were spiraling downward and my parents were paying out the nose for an education that I cared nothing about. Flash forward three years when I’m forced to pack up my Greensboro life and move back home, to Wilmington. After a year at Cape Fear Community College, I managed to boost my GPA enough to be accepted at UNC Wilmington (phew!).

    Even though Greensboro didn’t exactly work out, I had a great time. I lived in the dorms as a freshman, was involved in a cappella on-campus, and had a ton of friends. Shifting from knowing everyone in Greensboro to knowing nobody at UNCW was difficult. I quickly decided that, in order to make something out of my life, I needed to buckle down and focus on graduating. Because of this, I credit UNCG as my “college experience” and UNCW as my “school”.

    For me, the fall semester of 2012 proved to be a lot of work. I decided to take COM 105 and 200 at the same, and was told that I only had one chance to make the required B or better. Thank goodness I had Dr. Olsen and Dr. Weber on my side to make my transfer as easy as possible. Even though he’s our Department Chair and has so much on his plate, Dr. Olsen was always willing to help me out and occasionally talk me off a cliff. I found myself going to Dr. Weber’s office at least once a week, just to chat about and listen to show tunes. The man sure knows his Broadway musicals. These two professors were my “welcome wagon” into the major, for which I’m eternally grateful.

    Probably my most educational experience at the Dub was landing an internship with UNCW Presents. I had asked Shane Fernando with Arts and Programs if there were any opportunities to help out, and he informed me about an internship opportunity that was available with his department. Even though I knew nothing about arts management I knew that I loved the arts and couldn’t imagine a life without it, so I started as an intern in the spring. Since then, I have been lucky enough to work with a Grammy nominated organist, one of the original Supremes, and a New York based Broadway choreographer and dance troupe (posing with me, below).

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    Working with UNCW Presents for two semesters has taught me more than I could have planned for. I now have published several press releases, can organize a talent’s schedule, and have professional email writing down to a science. I’ve networked with many people of power and have been given so many opportunities that I now have goosebumps just thinking about it.

    Because of UNCW, I have morphed from having no goals whatsoever to getting my life back on track. I’ve learned how to develop a full IMC plan (thanks Dr. Persuit!), can use InDesign like a champ (Desktop Publishing is a worthwhile struggle), and have a better understanding of what direction I want to take. Post-graduation, this guy is moving to the Big Apple to pursue a career in Arts Administration! Thinking back, I don’t think that I would be as together as I am if I had stayed in Greensboro. Transferring to UNCW gave me just the kick in the pants that I needed. I am now confident that I can be a successful and functioning human being and look forward to the next, extremely exciting, phase of my life.

    –Dylan Fowler

  • When you know, you know

    Media portrayals of some of the more recognizable jobs in the field of communications are glamorous and invigorating. Unfortunately, if in college you decide to concentrate in Public Relations in hopes of becoming the next Samantha Jones from Sex & the City, or focus on Advertising to be the next employee at Mad Men’s infamous Madison Avenue firm Sterling Cooper, you may be disappointed to find that in reality, these jobs are not so much fun. On top of being aesthetically pleasing and having an interesting and eventful life, you actually have to do a lot of work and you might not have so much free time. As cool and hip as these jobs appear on TV, they are still jobs, and they require you to work hard; bottom line: things aren’t always what they seem.  If this is the case, how are we really supposed to know what we want to do for the rest of our lives?  How are you to decide on what career you want to work towards while you’re in college without having the risk of hating it after graduation when it is too late to change?

    This is where internships come into play and why they are so valuable for college students.  Internships give students real-life experiences in an actual work environment, allowing them that first step when transitioning from the college world to the career world.  They allow students to feel as though they are an actual employee.  Internships can help you sift out what you do and don’t like in a career, and evaluating your experiences as an intern will be useful when trying to find a career that is right for you.

    If the career you are interning for just isn’t doing it for you, chances are you should rethink your plans for the future As valuable as learning from textbooks and lectures about a career is, you won’t really know what that career is like until you try it.  Most internships are able to work with a university and reward students with course credit for their time spent, and this means that companies are not obligated to actually pay students. While some are unpaid, there are also paid internships, but just like with volunteering, they can be rewarding.

    With an internship, you can meet some powerful people and easily get your foot in the door with many potential employers. What company would say “No” to a fresh-minded student who is willing to work for free and actually desires to succeed? And aside from their educational perks, internships are also a great choice because there never seems to be a lack of opportunities in finding an internship.  So what are you waiting for? Get ahead of the game, test the waters with an internship, and find the career that’s perfect for you!

    -LaPuasa, Dillard, Reindhardt

  • Some Unpaid Experience

    As already stated in this week’s blog, internships are becoming more and more common among students in the Communication Studies field at UNCW. Let’s be honest, the job market today is brutal. Everyone needs a little edge that will put him or her above his or her competition. An internship provides students with experience in a field of interest related to Communication Studies. With a number of sub-disciplines such as media production, public relations, and marketing, UNCW’s Communication Studies program offers a wide variety of unpaid, course-credit internships.

    For many students, working for large corporations like MTV and Warner Music would be ideal. But the reality is that any experience is better than none at all. There are several firms and businesses in Wilmington offering internships in almost any sub-discipline of Communication Studies. In an ideal situation, that internship could even turn into a full-time job right out of college. In today’s society, that extra work experience is vital.

    In my experience with internships, I have found that they are very beneficial. After seeing my friends take on internships, I decided I should give it a shot. Although it may seem unusual for an internship, I assisted and shadowed the event coordinator at the Bluewater Grill in Wrightsville Beach for five months. I learned a great deal about event planning and was actually offered the job as the Assistant Event Coordinator after my internship was completed. A job is not always guaranteed after an internship, but the intern is certainly put above other applicants, assuming the intern went above and beyond in tasks and activities. No matter what, the experience is once in a lifetime.

    The Communication Studies department at UNCW strives to find the perfect internship for every interested student. By offering course credit for internships, the department works with students to meet their required hours in the field while serving as a liaison between student and company. The Communication Studies website offers student requirements for an internship, along with how to begin the process.

    The importance of an internship cannot be put into words. The experience gained is unlike any other. From a personal standpoint, I would encourage all students in the Communication Studies field to take on an internship. An internship combines the formal training with actual work experience, opening students’ eyes to the possibilities of a future career.

    – Lacey Inman