Taking a leap into adulthood

Welcome to Semester 2, the final semester of my 4-year double degree in Commerce and Humanities; Public Relations and Internet Communications major. After one month completing my Public Relations internship at Zadro Agency in Sydney I’m finding it difficult to settle back into routine. Just 6 months left I keep telling myself but it doesn't appear to be helping! One thing that does help however is finally having the clear understanding that this is the degree for me. For years I've wondered whether I would get to the end of my degree, enter the workforce and realise that I’ve spent 4 years working on a degree in an employment field for which I wasn't suited or that I hate. Luckily for me it seems that I needn't have worried.

My public relations internship experience was unforgettable. Surrounded by lovely people at a great agency, my month was filled with a great array of tasks and learning opportunities from creating media lists, to writing social media content to media releases and creating website content from scratch - my internship provided me with a diverse range of key public relations responsibilities. Among the known and unknown tasks for working in Public Relations, I learned a few more things on the job which I'd like to share. So, here’s what you don’t learn about at university:

1. Working Outside office hours: Everyone knows that overtime is one of those things that can’t be avoided; no matter what career you’ve chosen. What they don’t tell you is that the overtime might be as annoying as having to make a single post on Instagram at 8pm on a Saturday because that’s when it suits the target market. Looking into a future of potentially ruined Saturday nights (or at the very least delayed!).

1. EXCEL IS YOUR LIFE: Never did I expect to go into my internship and use Excel, especially not everyday.

1. Office cookies are the enemy: Don’t start eating them, you’ll never stop

1. Applications: There are a number of different applications and databases that are utilised in the workforce on a day-to-day basis, to name just a few; Streamtime – used to record minutes and stakeholder information, MediaNet – an Australian publication database, Nuvi – a social media application to manage posts (currently in trial stage). These applications will require training and I can see that being ahead of the crowd in finding and using good social media applications will be part of the job, however they will make your working life much easier.

I undertook my internship in a month long period in order to give myself a real world experience where I could fully comprehend the working life. I personally recommend this method of completing an internship because not only does it allow you to experience how exhausting it is to work 9-5 Monday – Friday (despite the fact you spend most of the day in a chair), but also because you experience the flow of the office and its daily rhythm. It is easier to understand the real progression of a client through the internship period, rather than having to be updated and filled in on each client’s status week to week.

I’m excited to have undertaken this experience and to think that I almost passed on the opportunity to move over to Sydney for a month and work at such an amazing agency because of the late notice doesn't even bear thinking about. This internship has made me realise that at the end of the day, it's better to experience something firsthand and decide whether it's for you than be kept wondering what it might have like if only you'd been brave enough to take a leap of faith.

Signing off for the last time with my Zadro signature tag,
Bella