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.