Turning That Internship into a Full-Time Position
As we graduate and enter the ~real world~, it seems like the fragility of securing (and keeping!) a job in advertising is almost more daunting than the work itself… or maybe that’s just me. But based on the conversations I had with fellow students and recent alums, I’m getting the sense that this is a wide-spread fear: the fear of not securing a full-time position after an internship.
Here are some tips that I learned last week to help us all turn that internship into a full time job:
- From Spice Walker at Rokkan: Choose your boss not your agency. If you are lucky enough to receive multiple internship/job offers, make your decision based on who your boss will be, rather than what the name of the agency is/how much street cred it has.
- From Rachel Benner at Siegel+Gale: Set up bi-weekly coffee dates with your boss/supervisor. Once you’ve secured the internship, take it upon yourself to set up check-ins so that you can learn what you’re doing well and what you need to work on. Your supervisor will appreciate your commitment to your job.
- From Chelsea Coleman at Rokkan: Make friends with and be helpful to those outside of your department. When it comes time for your boss/HR to decide if they want to extend that full-time position offer, if you have been instrumental in the success of the agency both in and out of your department, you are more indispensable. Also, it doesn’t hurt to have people vouch for your character as well.
Katherine Dean