Anticipating your internship with excitement and perhaps some nerves? Prepare to maximise your experience and set clear goals for an easier journey.
Research starts before you even leave for the office
Maybe you can’t wait for your internship. Maybe you’re ridiculously excited. You might even be a little bit nervous. One thing that will make your life easier is to prepare – it’ll help you make the most of the experience and set clear goals.
Read, watch, listen
Try to consume as much news as you can before you start. This shouldn’t just be material produced by the organisation that you’re interning with, but wider content from similar and competitor outlets. This is helpful both to get you thinking about potential story ideas that you could pitch during your internship, but also to keenly understand the editorial style, tone, and key areas of coverage of your employer.
Pitches
Really knowing the type of news reports, radio packages, and features which the outlet produces will help you understand its audience and make your pitches spot on. Have some preliminary ideas or rough pitches at the ready before you start (see other articles in this pack for more specific tips on pitching) as this will show editors that you’re keen and give you a springboard to work from.
Better still, identify gaps in the outlet’s coverage which you can point out during your time there – thinking outside the box and coming up with ways to improve their coverage will stand out to editors.
Questions
If there’s a particular beat you’re interested in exploring, try to pinpoint which reporters at the outlet usually cover this area. Read and bookmark their stories, and note down any questions you’d like to ask them during your internship – from where they usually find sources to interview techniques.
Also, make the most of your mentor-host! They’ll be happy to share experiences and tips from their own careers. Having someone who understands what you’re going through but can offer an objective perspective will be vital for those moments when you feel imposter-syndrome creeping in. Don’t be afraid to reach out to your menor-host ahead of your stay with them. They’ll appreciate the effort and help you feel at ease.
Tasks
Did your internship employer ask for anything specific from you ahead of the internship? Is there anything they want you to prepare, bring, or think about in advance? Make sure to have these ready and get in touch with them if you’re confused.
Basics
Once you’re settling into your room with your host-mentor, you can start to think about sorting the basics. Do you have appropriate clothes to wear? Will you bring in a laptop? Have you planned your commute? Getting these things in order will help you feel more calm and ready to enjoy the experience.
Credit: Dan Dimmock on Unsplash
