Internships – 1853 Communications

My Experience As A PR Intern

I worked as an intern for Vizion Group, a Berwyn-based Public Relations agency in the fall semester of my senior year at Arcadia University. Going in, I didn’t expect much of it to particularly interest me and IU wasn’t exactly super excited about it. I treated it as just something I had to do to graduate and that it wouldn’t be something I enjoyed at all. However, the internship turned out to be very enlightening for me, not only about the industry of public relations but about working life as a whole. Even though I worked a lot of hours and put a lot of time into it, I felt like I was able to learn a tremendous amount, while simultaneously contributing good and valuable work to the agency.

Vizion Group is a small company that runs the public relations work for two major NBC broadcasted events, as well as other miscellaneous events throughout the year. In the Winter and Spring, the agency works toward the Lake Tahoe Celebrity Golf tournament, and in the summer and fall they work to put on the National Dog Show, which was the majority of what I worked on. At first, I didn’t know anything about the National Dog Show, but I learned a lot about the event itself and about the other events that would lead up to it during my internship. I started slowly and my boss gave me a lot of time to get acclimated to what he was looking for me to do. One of the greatest things about the internship was that I got to do valuable things, but without any of the pressure of the quality or the deadlines because my boss was so on top of everything and thoughtful.

As I grew more comfortable within the first few weeks or first month, the workload would gradually increase, especially with the main event and other events closing in. While there was some “grunt work” or ‘document keeping’ that I had to do, I appreciated a couple of things about it. One was how every day that I would go into my internship, it would be something new to do or something different than the previous day. I really enjoyed this aspect because even though we were almost exclusively working on the National Dog Show, it never felt stale.

The second reason is that even with ‘document keeping’ I still felt massively involved and in the know of things I never expected I would be. Since my boss was the head of PR for the National Dog Show, I regularly got to listen and sit in on some of his meetings with NBC Executives, people in the Kennel Club of Philadelphia, and other people involved with the event. With some of my roles in the office too, I kept up to date with the handling of promotional advertisements and media schedules which had some big appearances on national talk shows. While I didn’t have any particular influence or decision-making, I felt like I was in the loop and am grateful that I got to see how high-level PR executives work on some of the bigger things in real-time.

However, while at my internship I also got to do a lot of valuable things that would directly contribute to the event. I wrote a blog that was published on the Kennel Club of Philadelphia’s website and also worked on a number of media alerts, fact sheets, and press releases for several things around the main event or other events that led up to the big show. I also even got to write scripts for an award ceremony at the main show but also for the pre-event press conference that was read, as well as writing promotional content after the big show that was published by a big magazine in the world of dog shows. For the event, I was the main one handling the media and VIP credentials and worked the Media and VIP table at the event. There were even more other daily projects and tasks that I had on top of that which contributed to the internship never feeling stale or redundant.

Overall, I got to not only do a lot of things that directly transfer over to the public relations industry, but also got to sit in and experience how high-end PR executives operate. I got to see the balance between the fun and creative stuff, as well as how challenging it can be to manage so many moving parts in a big event. I feel like I have a good idea of what the expectations of me would be as a public relations worker in every capacity and any situation. I am grateful for the experience, and it really opened my eyes to everything that the public relations industry can encapsulate.

My Experience as a Public Information Intern

When looking for an internship in Communications, it can be very overwhelming at first because of how broad this field is. I started looking over the summer of my junior year of college because I needed to find an internship by the start of the fall semester. I downloaded Handshake and began to search for communication and public relations internship opportunities within the Glenside area. It didn’t take me long to find a public information internship with Montgomery Township. Even though I had no idea what public information would entail, I looked at the job description and applied. I ended up getting the job and now I have started my second semester working in this position.

You may be wondering, what exactly does a public information intern do? I primarily manage the social media accounts for Montgomery Township and Montgomery Township Community and Recreation Center. This means that I am given information or pictures that I have to schedule to post or I am monitoring the Recreation Center’s website to see what classes need to be pushed in order to try and increase registration. I also frequently am responsible for creating graphics or infographics on Canva to be posted on these accounts. Occasionally I am tasked with conducting a social media audit for these accounts to see what aspects need to be improved and what we should continue to do in order to keep our audience engaged. Besides social media management, I help to send out the weekly Montgomery Township newsletter through Robly. This means I take the information provided from different departments and input it into a template. If Montgomery Township is hosting an event for the public, I will assist in preparing any digital content that needs to be communicated.

Currently, I am working on creating a Parks and Recreation Guide and a Community and Recreation Center Guide. The goal for these guides is to provide township information to new residents that just moved into the area. What I like about my job is that sometimes I go into the office and have no idea what I am going to be doing that day. I may have to set aside a task I am working on to send out a road closure update or a winter weather announcement. No matter the situation, it’s important that I am able to adapt to the changing circumstances which makes working in local government difficult at times. I have to make sure all the information being distributed is accurate while trying to get the information out there as quickly as possible.

Whenever you start looking for an internship, don’t be surprised if it takes you awhile to find one. This process can be very tedious but that doesn’t mean you aren’t qualified. Apply to as many places as possible and don’t be scared away by the job description. Internships are meant to be a learning experience so you shouldn’t be an expert at the job before you even start. It could also be beneficial to reach out to your advisor or professors in the department and ask them if they know of any places that are seeking communication or public relations interns. Finally, time is an important factor in this process so don’t wait until the last minute to start looking. It is better to get a head start than be out of time and have no chance of securing an internship.

Looking for a Job or Internship? Here’s a list of Philadelphia PR Agencies That Are Hiring

The following is a list of PR companies in and around Philadelphia, Pennsylvania that are currently offering job or internship opportunities that may be of interest to people in the PR field.

Neff (neffknows.com)

Neff is a Philadelphia marketing agency that works with both small business and large corporations. Their services include branding, public relations, social media, websites, advertising, media strategy, photography, and videography. Their wide range of clients includes Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant, Crumbl, Eastern Airlines, and the Golf Association of Philadelphia.

Neff is currently hiring numerous positions, such as PR & Social Media Account Manager and Social Media Content Creator. They also have applications open for internship opportunities.

ShinePR (shinepr.com)

ShinePR is a boutique PR agency in Philadelphia with over 20 years of experience working with marketing agencies and major companies. Their services include branding, marketing, and public relations. They have also earned the Certified Women’s Business Enterprise designation from NAWBO (National Association of Women Business Owners), which recognizes that ShinePR is a woman owned business.

ShinePR is currently looking for people to join their team.

Buchanan Public Relations (buchananpr.com)

Buchanan Public Relations is a PR agency located in Bryn Mawr that specializes in PR, digital communication, and crisis communication. Their work includes content creation, media relations, graphic design, video, and social and digital for a variety of industries such as food and beverage, non-profit, and healthcare. Buchanan Public Relations is also a member of PRSA (Public Relations Society of America).

Buchanan Public Relations is looking for people to join the Buchanan PR Apprenticeship Program, which is designed for recent college graduates looking for experience in PR. They also offer summer PR internships.

Gregory FCA (gregoryfca.com)

Gregory FCA is a PR company located in Ardmore. They help to grow businesses, build awareness, and create credibility to increase the value of an enterprise. The company consists of an editorial team, a creative team, and social media professionals. They also offer media training to clients. Their large list of clients includes Lyft, Mitsubishi Electric, Summit Financial, and People’s United Bank.

They have a list of available job opportunities. If there’s not any currently available, you can also connect with them over email if you have experience in public relations, communications, journalism, or social media so they can offer you opportunities in the future that may be a good fit.

Vault Communications (vaultcommunications.com)

Vault Communications is a PR agency located in Plymouth Meeting. Their work includes PR and strategic communications, creative strategy, digital strategy, and crisis support for local, national, and global brands. Clients include Aqua, Campbell’s, Bayada Home Health Care, and Pool & Hot Tub Alliance. Vault Communications is also a 100% woman owned and led company certified by the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC).

They are hiring and have a jobs inbox where you can send a resume and cover note. They also offer paid internships in the summer, fall, and spring; applications can be sent in the internships inbox.

Interning for Little Sprouts at Snipes Farm

In my senior year at Arcadia University, I have made many strides toward what careers I want to explore post-graduation. In the past, I dreamt of being a veterinarian, a sports journalist, a NASA scientist, or a drummer in a band. At this moment in time, I am none of these things, nor am I on a direct path to becoming one of these things– and that’s okay. Interests change, dreams change, and aspirations change. Right now, my interests lie in photography, public relations, and communications in general.

I undertook an internship with the Little Sprouts Education Program at Snipes Farm in Morrisville, PA this semester and I have been nothing short of obsessed with it. I work under the supervision of Nicole Kissinger who is one of the educators. Little Sprouts is an outdoor education program for ages two to five that emphasizes the importance of child-led play. The program runs year-round and is outside in all seasons! This fall, class started on October 3, 2023, and is running until December. My role in the program is to take photographs, create content, and help Nicole and the other instructors with communication purposes. These responsibilities are helping me greatly in my professional development.

On the first day of class, I brought my brand-new Canon Rebel and introduced myself to the other instructors and some of the parents. It wasn’t until the second week of classes that I could take pictures of the students and activities since the photo release forms got turned in. I have been to class at least once a week since, and I love what I do there. I have learned so much about photography, my camera, and editing since I started. Learning by doing is definitely proving to be true!

On the other end of things, I have been making graphics and posting on social media for the Little Sprouts program, positively representing them to the public. I post frequently on the page. It is quite daunting knowing that what you post on a brand or organization’s social media will be seen and perceived by current and potential customers, and it is your job to make sure the brand comes across as professional and put-together. I enjoy doing this part because it gives me practice in writing for professional communication settings.

In the future, I hope to apply the skills I have learned in my internship to my career. I eventually want to manage small bands and/or musicians, so I think that this is a pretty decent and humble start to that. It’s not quite the same industry, but the skills I am learning will hopefully translate well!

What’s With All the Nerves? PR + Graphic Design Internship First Day – Before, During, and After

What It’s All About:
Learning that Public Relations and Graphic Design go hand in hand was something I had to sit with for a while. As someone who had no clue what they wanted to do until the last month of their junior year, it was a lot more daunting than my other impulse interest. Graphic Design was something I could sit with overnight. If I was obsessed with an idea enough I could make it a reality quickly. I once made three different posters for a Drag bingo event at Arcadia University in 30 minutes after getting tipsy at a Harry Potter-themed bar in Philly. And the people who I was designing for LOVED it. My point is that public relations was this whole other beast that I had no idea how to tackle. I still have no idea about it. But I knew I needed to, which is why I applied for the internship I did.

The Internship:
The internship I applied for was one with Salus University’s Department of Communications. I have no clue what it is I am doing for them but I know it has something to do with digital marketing. I have a little experience with that, as I’ve taken classes that have breached that topic one way or another, however, I feel like there are so many terms that could mean virtually the same thing. And that may seem offensive to those who know they aren’t the same thing, But to me, It feels like I get a word bank and these terms are described as the questions and I get them confused on the test and fail. It’s dramatic, I know but I believe this anxiety will plague me until I take my first steps into the building of this internship. Until someone can tell me that I am right where I need to be, I won’t believe it’s the right path for me. And I feel like that’s the issue with a lot of folks in my position. The first mountain to hike is even getting an internship and the second mountain is finding one that feels right.

The Night Before:
As the hands on the clock approach my bedtime for my first day, I sit and wonder what I need to prepare for this internship. I can’t say I am completely lost. I emailed the person who hired me and she told me I don’t need anything. Which is equally as comforting as it is blinding. I am going in semi-blind. I know what the job entails but does it entail business casual attire? Does it entail a lunch break? Does it entail getting my car towed because I don’t have the parking pass yet? It’s these little things that would seem silly to ask an employer but questions new employees have nonetheless. I think that’s how I know I’m in the right place. I’m not nervous about the work at all. Because I know I can get it done. I know I can complete work I am proud of.

The Morning of:
Because I planned out my semester so I wouldn’t have to wake up for anything, I also had the luxury of choosing when I wanted to have my internship. So of course, I chose to go in at 12:00 and leave at 3:00. I felt like this was a happy medium and also I do my best work when I have time to warm up as a human.
I Still Wasn’t Nervous About The Job. It was starting to set in that I had one and I had to be professional. But it wasn’t something that would scare me away from it all. My supervisor emailed me her number so that I had someone to walk me through the building which was so nice. I remember driving to Starbucks at 4:40 in the morning for my first shift and not even knowing where the back door was so, this was a nice upgrade.

Sitting in The Chair:
Similarly to syllabus week, it was a whole bunch of information thrown at me. Between new program names and new tricks on old programs, it was a lot to carry. But soon it was a piece of cake. I understood most of what I was doing and the things I didn’t I was able to figure out. It was a very awesome experience going into a job that I knew generally what I was meant to complete.

Overall:
I’m super excited about this internship and what it could teach me in my field. As someone who didn’t know they wanted to do PR and still doesn’t know if they want to do PR, this first day was kind of perfect. I know this won’t be the case for all internships and interests. I was talking to my supervisor about this particular task field and she was saying how it’s easier to find things you don’t want to do as opposed to things you want to do. And I couldn’t agree more. I feel like my whole college career was just going through the motions of things I didn’t want to do. And now that I am here it feels weird to be nervous about the things I was nervous about. But yet it all makes sense.

My Experience as a Public Relations Intern and the Advice I’d Give

As a Communication major at Arcadia, we are required to complete at least one semester with an internship. I was lucky enough to secure a position with VMS Communications, a small public relations firm based in Houston. I was hired as an assistant and my general tasks were to work closely with the CEO and complete assignments that ranged from drafting press releases to creating excel contact sheets.

I had no previous experience in the field so having this job provided some much needed hands on learning. My goal of this post is to highlight the advice I wish someone had given to me before starting.

#3 Honing Organization Skills

(Example of where my Internship folder is located on my computer and how specific the subfolders are)

I’m not a particularly unorganized person, but as far as files and images go on my computer it can be a no man’s land. However, at any moment your boss can ask to reference a previous draft of an assignment you’ve worked on. It would be expected for you to have some record of it.

Learning how to save multiple copies of files and having a detailed organization system that is labeled and up to date on your devices is important. It is three years later, and I am still referencing the work I did when I was at my internship. This would not be as easily accessible if not for the system I created.

#2 Become Familiar with Excel (and other programs)

I rarely, if ever, have had to use Excel or Google Spreadsheet during my time as a student. So, when my first assignment was to create a celebrity contact list that had to be created in Excel, I was flustered. I spent days on a task that shouldn’t have taken longer than a few hours.

My advice: Ask your superior before starting what programs are commonly used with the job and use the time before starting or in between projects to familiarize yourself with it. It will save you a lot of time.

#1 Don’t Be Afraid to Be Honest

With your first internship or job there is usually an immense pressure to be perfect. But the company you work for knows they hired an intern and that you do not know everything. In my experience, it is better to ask for help and be honest about not being sure how to complete a project than messing up and having to explain it afterwards. A good boss or superior will use it as a teaching lesson and it’ll improve your skillset.

Overall, my experience as an assistant was one that I can look back fondly on. However, like with any job there are always ups and downs. If I knew these few tips going into the position it would have certainly eased some of those anxieties.

Agency Life in Public Relations

During my last semester at Arcadia, I have been interning at Vault Communications, a
Public Relations Agency in Plymouth Meeting. After experiencing various internships, I have
noticed the differences in agency work versus work for one brand. In an agency, you work with
many different clients, all with different goals and tasks. The diversity of this work can be quite
refreshing and allow one to explore different areas of public relations. It can also provide
opportunities to learn more about the individual needs for specific clients.

Since starting in September, I have worked on accounts such as Takis, Subaru, Party
City, Hologic, Live! Casino & Hotel Philadelphia, and many more. All of these accounts have
different work and goals set for them. For example, Takis partnered with Teracycle, (a recycling
company), and told their fans to recycle their products for a chance to win merchandise. At
Vault, we worked to put together the boxes with different Takis products inside and send them
out to the winners. This helps Takis and Teracycle benefit from each other and create more
marketing opportunities. Another example of work I have done is writing up event descriptions
for Live! Casino & Hotel Philadelphia. I have been given different events to write out
descriptions for. Once approved, I go down a list of outlets on an excel sheet and submit the
events to these websites. This promotes events hosted by or at Live! and makes them more
popular and seen by others in the area.

Vault Communications has taught me a lot, especially when it comes to media
monitoring and media lists. I have worked on many lists using services such as Critical Mention
and Cision. These platforms allow us to find media outlets, articles, influencers, and more. For
Party City, I have been working on monitoring the media for any mentions they may have. On
Critical Mention, there are specific key words programmed to show any and all mentions of
those words with Party City. Since we are getting close to Halloween, we look for things such as
“Party City, Halloween” and “Party City, Balloon” etc. Any important media clips or articles are
defined every day, put into an excel sheet, and sent out to the Party City account team every
morning.

Looking at Cision, lately I have been compiling a list of media contacts for Harsco
Environmental. These lists consist of outlets that talk about construction, steel, metal,
agriculture, building supplies, environmentally friendly supplies and more. This list is essential
for finding key outlets that Harsco can promote their business to for more publicity. After
defining all the outlets, I will be pulling editorial calendars to show opportunities for Harsco to
pitch their ideas. This makes it easier to understand what outlets fits and which do not for future
use. These lists are constantly growing and changing, and many other accounts have this need as
well.

Overall, I have learned a lot in my short time at Vault. It has officially been one month
since I started, and I have worked on so many different things. Agency life can be fast paced and
change every single day. You never can truly know what the workday will look like, but that’s
what makes it so much fun. I can’t wait to see what other tasks I will complete at Vault and decide of agency work is right for me.

How I Got Into PR as an Acting Major

When I first started my time at Arcadia University, I never thought I’d be involved with the Public Relations programs, let alone be running a Marketing and Public Relations student team for the Theatre department. Back in 2019, when I initiated my academic path as a Knight, I was an Acting major pursuing a Bachelor of Fine Arts. And although performing is my passion, I was a freshman eager to learn about as many subjects as possible. So I did as much as I could. I signed up for as many clubs as I could fit into my schedule, made plans for studying abroad, and took a lot of classes outside my major. I was so enthusiastic about being in college that I didn’t care about whether or not I would be exhausted. So, applying my recently gained Improv knowledge, I’d say “yes, and…” to as many opportunities I could. From Scene Study and Latin American Art History to coding my own website and learning about event management. My mom used to tell me that as a child, I was a little bit too curious. I would always ask her too many questions about everything as I was excited about understanding the world around me. I guess my college experience proved that story to be true. I was exploring as many areas as Arcadia could offer.

It was during one of these ventures that I found a new area of interest: Public Relations. After a period of taking PR classes, I figured it was something I wanted to do professionally. But the only issue was figuring out how to implement that in my academic plan. It wasn’t easy to be a double major as I was already pursuing a B.F.A. in Acting. After considering many options, I was able to create an individualized major in Public Relation and Acting. During this process of arranging my academic path, I found the internship I work at today.

Professor Kathryn Petersen was my Theatre designated academic advisor, so she has been watching me grow as a student ever since my first day at Arcadia. As Professor Petersen observed me balance my interest in PR and Theatre, she also noticed the needs the Theatre program had regarding Public Relations and Marketing. As I signed up for classes for my senior year, one of the requirements was an internship. It was then that the opportunity presented itself. Professor Petersen asked me to do something the Theatre department had never done before: A team of students focused on promoting our program through Marketing and PR.

Hence, here I am, running a Marketing and Public Relations team of students for the Theatre department. And as much as the fact that we’re pioneering this team can be scary, it’s just as thrilling. Again, because we’re pioneering this group, there are a lot of introductory steps we need to take. Even though the internship only truly started in the Fall semester, during the summer prior to it, I was able to have multiple meetings with my supervisor, Kathryn Petersen. Our goal for these meetings was to understand what our team needed to do, what our resources were, and how we could achieve our goals.

During these sessions, we were able to set some primary details. Professor Petersen already had an idea of what the Theatre needs were, so we started with that. A lot of Arcadia students aren’t aware of our program, nor of what it has to offer. Taking a moment to promote it a little bit here, the work that the department does is truthfully incredible: Every semester we present two plays for which any Arcadia student can audition for, therefore participate in. And for those productions, the department hires professional theatre artists to be involved with. That way, the students can get a full sense of what is like to be in a show for a Theatre company.

In order to get a rough idea of what we’re dealing with, during one of the first weeks of classes, my team and I created a survey to be sent out to Arcadia’s students. In this, we included questions to comprehend the basic information about the students responding (such as year and major), and questions related to the Theatre program (if they’re familiar with the department, if they know things such as non-theatre majors can audition, tickets are pay what you can and so on). As a conclusion of this survey, we confirmed that Arcadia’s community wasn’t largely aware of our Theatre and its opportunities.

Thus, our goal for the semester was to raise awareness of our Theatre program on campus. Once that was set, we were able to collectively form an action plan. One of the exciting aspects of this group is that we have students from both departments of Media and Communication and Theatre. Our unit is formed by a Marketing and PR Team Supervisor -me-, Advanced Social Media Supervisor, Social Media Assistant, Video Content Creator, Video Content Assistant, and Marketing Assistants. In total, we have nine members collectively working and brainstorming ideas on how to achieve our goal.

For me, one of the highlights of this internship was our first meeting. It took place during the Labor Day weekend, and I remember how nervous I was to run a whole meeting by myself for the first time. Because of that, I spent the weekend prior to the meeting studying all my notes from my previous PR classes. And although stressing over this was a lot, once it was time to host the meeting, I felt prepared and confident about it. Along with my team, we were able to create an action plan for the semester, focusing mainly on Social Media and advertisements around campus. We planned to create different content for each Social Media platform, as each has a distinct reached audience. For example, we found out that our Instagram followers are mainly formed by students, therefore the content there is focused on that audience. On the other hand, Facebook reaches an older audience, so the content produced for these two platforms needs to be approached differently.

Today, after having hosted a couple of group meetings and having more experience in running the Marketing and Public Relations team, I feel extremely proud of the work I’ve done so far. We’ve been following the steps of our action plan and soon is the Opening Night of our first production, Into the Woods directed by Kevin Glaccum. And even as I look back at my freshman year schedule and wonder how did I ever take that many classes, I wouldn’t do anything differently. Exploring different areas of interest allowed me to find how to conciliate the two things I want to do professionally: Public Relations and Acting.

Day in The Life of a Flyers Intern

I have had the pleasure of being a public relations intern with the Philadelphia Flyers for the 2021-2022 season. After many, many games we have it down to a system and all know what we need to be doing. On a game day we arrive a few hours before the start of the game. For a 7 pm puck drop, we arrive to Wells Fargo Center at 2 pm. Once I arrive, I make my way up to the press box. We start by doing a sweep of the press box; check to see if all the chairs are in the right spots, make sure all the broadcasting booths are unlocked, check for any papers from the last game and throw them away, etc. After that sweep, we start the process of printing all of our packets. We print games notes, clips, recent stats for both teams and lineups. Once these are all printed, they get delivered to our executive’s suite, both the home and away locker rooms, broadcasting booths and visiting team management. Throughout pregame we check in on press meal and credentials. We always have one of us interns at both of these spots leading up to the game. Press meal is available for any media, team staff, NHL scouts, etc. Credentials is located at the employee entrance and is a busy spot. All media, press, NHL scouts and sponsors all have to stop buy and check-in to get their single game credential. Throughout this time, we will help out with random things for the public relations department too! Once warmups start we make our way back up to the press box and make sure all the media/press are in the right seat, check if anyone needs anything, etc. We watch the game from the press box and get to watch the majority of it. When the clock hits 1 minute in the first and second period we grab the official stats sheet from the NHL crew and then make copies to deliver to all those same spots from earlier. When the clock hits 10 minutes in the third period, we make our way downstairs to help prep for the post-game interviews. We sit through all of the interviews and record them on our phones. After all the interviews are complete, we start the process of transcribing all of them. These transcriptions get used for our official website and are sent to media. Once that is complete, it is usually around 10:30-11 pm by the time we make our way out. It is so wild to think that we are down to just one more game this season! I am so thankful for the opportunity I have had this season with the Philadelphia Flyers and am hoping to be back next season.

My Experience with a Virtual PR Internship

This semester I am interning at the public relations firm VMS Communications. The purpose of this blog post is to highlight what I have learned so far and how my education at Arcadia has aided me.

VMS Communications is a Houston-based public relations firm run by Michelle Stephenson. My role in this internship is as her assistant where I aid her with clients and assist with projects. The firm is currently going through a rebrand where she wants to become more focused on catering to black-owned and women-owned businesses. Due to her being based in Houston my internship has been entirely online. I prefer this method of work because it lessens (in my opinion) the stress of having to physically be present.

As far as the actual work I’ve done so far with her company, it has varied in importance and quantity depending on the client. Throughout the semester I have aided Michelle in drafting press releases, curating a list of celebrities to pitch to, researching possible clients, and more. The format of our relationship typically goes that Michelle will email my assignment for the week (or two weeks), and then when I finish I submit it to her for review, she gives me notes, and then another assignment follows within the next few days. I love this style of work because the weekly/biweekly assignments never feel too rushed or overwhelming.

An unexpectedly helpful thing that has occurred, is that I have been able to utilize some of the assignments I have had over the course of my Communications classes to use in this professional setting. I took the PR courses ‘Crisis Communication’ and ‘Intro to Public Relations’ last semester and they have been extremely useful in working on real-life assignments with my internship. For example, last semester we were tasked in creating fake press releases but in the exact format that would be expected of us if they were real. I’ve been able to take that past assignment and use the formatting to help curate a press release that I drafted for Michelle. She was impressed my knowledge of how to do so, and the accuracy in formatting.

It feels good to know that what I am learning at Arcadia will be able to help once I start a career in the communications field.