Internships are about gaining experience and networking. So, you would automatically assume that you want to be sociable and dressed in a presentable manner.
You are there to set an impression, not a first impression--but, a lasting impression. Maybe they are looking to hire someone, or they know someone that is hiring. If you leave a negative impression, then you may have just missed out on a great opportunity.
I am currently at my third internship, and it has never occured to me that it would ever be acceptable to wear jeans and a tshirt or extremely tight or low-cut tops into the newsroom. Every day I wake up and get dressed in business professional attire (not necessarily a dress suit--but sometimese it is best to be overdressed than underdressed). I never wear anything that is wrinkled, and I never wear flipflops. I never realized that interns actually think it is okay to wear things to an internship that they would wear to the club.
Today as I walked into the newsroom, I got several compliments on what I was wearing. This caught me very off guard because I was not wearing anything exceptionally nice or something out of the ordinary. And after we got to talking, I understood why I received the compliments.
Apparently, a new intern came the day before dressed inappropriately. They said she wore a very low cut top with a short skirt and stilleto-like heels. And, not only were her clothes inappropriate, but so was her attitude. They said she said things like "why are people staring at me? is somethings wrong? (apparently she didn't realize that her boobs were hanging out)," "I have been doing beauty pagents all my life, so I know I will start out as an anchor and not a reporter," "how did she become an anchor, she does not have the look."
If I could give an intern advice about interning, it would be: take advantage of the opportunity, introduce yourself to everyone, dress appropriately, have a positive attitude and never tell people that you want to be an anchor (people hate to hear this), usually, you don't start out as an anchor, it takes times).
Friday, June 11, 2010
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
College--3 Years Wasted
Wasted...as in worthless, useless. Not wasted as in drunk.
An ordinary college student goes to college for four years--well, I decided to cut it short and squeeze all my classes I needed into three years. And, as graduation is slowly approaching (I graduate in Decemeber), I feel like I have wasted these past three years.
Granted, I drowned myself in 18-21 hours each semester, went to summer school every summer and worked anytime I did not have class--I still had fun, but not the kind of fun that I expected to have.
You watch movies growing up about "the college life," but in all honesty, my college experience was nothing like that.
After going to a few parties, staying out late, and dragging myself to class the next morning during my first semester of college, I realized that "the college life" is not for me.
I went to college with a goal: to graduate and make something of myself. And, there was no way I could achieve this goal by partying and staying out late all the time. Some people would call me a party pooper...but I like to call myself determined.
Putting my social life aside and focusing on school seemed like a good idea until now. Now, I realize I will be walking across that stage December 17 only to realize that I have wasted three years learning things that are pretty useless.
You go to school with a major in mind--something that you are passionate about and want to learn everything about because you eventually want to get a job in that field. Well, your major is really your minor because the majority of the classes you take don't relate to your major. They are just general education classes that everyone takes.
Earth's 4 spheres. Rock types. Drainage Basins. Photosynthesis. Nitrogen Cycle. Glaciers. Will I really need to know about this stuff when I am reporting the news? And, if I do, can't I just look it up on Google....that is the glory of technology.
Media Research. Media Writing. Print Journalism. Broadcast Journalism. Producing. Media Law. These are the classes that I loved and that I really feel will benefit me the most in the long run. And, I wish we were required to take more classes that pertain to our major and less classes that are just general education ones.
Since I didn't get to learn everything I wanted to in my mass communication classes, I felt it was important to do internships to learn more about the news industry. But, unfortunately, most tv newsroom internships do not pay.
However, I think I learned the most during all 3 years of college at my internships. So, I would definitely recommend other broadcast journalism majors to look into doing as many internships as possible.
I'll post more about my internship experiences in a later post.
What I learned: People say graduating college in four years is a myth--but I disagree. I am doing it in three years! But, do I think these three years of schooling were worth it?--I'll let you be the judge.
An ordinary college student goes to college for four years--well, I decided to cut it short and squeeze all my classes I needed into three years. And, as graduation is slowly approaching (I graduate in Decemeber), I feel like I have wasted these past three years.
Granted, I drowned myself in 18-21 hours each semester, went to summer school every summer and worked anytime I did not have class--I still had fun, but not the kind of fun that I expected to have.
You watch movies growing up about "the college life," but in all honesty, my college experience was nothing like that.
After going to a few parties, staying out late, and dragging myself to class the next morning during my first semester of college, I realized that "the college life" is not for me.
I went to college with a goal: to graduate and make something of myself. And, there was no way I could achieve this goal by partying and staying out late all the time. Some people would call me a party pooper...but I like to call myself determined.
Putting my social life aside and focusing on school seemed like a good idea until now. Now, I realize I will be walking across that stage December 17 only to realize that I have wasted three years learning things that are pretty useless.
You go to school with a major in mind--something that you are passionate about and want to learn everything about because you eventually want to get a job in that field. Well, your major is really your minor because the majority of the classes you take don't relate to your major. They are just general education classes that everyone takes.
Earth's 4 spheres. Rock types. Drainage Basins. Photosynthesis. Nitrogen Cycle. Glaciers. Will I really need to know about this stuff when I am reporting the news? And, if I do, can't I just look it up on Google....that is the glory of technology.
Media Research. Media Writing. Print Journalism. Broadcast Journalism. Producing. Media Law. These are the classes that I loved and that I really feel will benefit me the most in the long run. And, I wish we were required to take more classes that pertain to our major and less classes that are just general education ones.
Since I didn't get to learn everything I wanted to in my mass communication classes, I felt it was important to do internships to learn more about the news industry. But, unfortunately, most tv newsroom internships do not pay.
However, I think I learned the most during all 3 years of college at my internships. So, I would definitely recommend other broadcast journalism majors to look into doing as many internships as possible.
I'll post more about my internship experiences in a later post.
What I learned: People say graduating college in four years is a myth--but I disagree. I am doing it in three years! But, do I think these three years of schooling were worth it?--I'll let you be the judge.
Saturday, April 17, 2010
Interviews--Facing Your Fears
For my advanced broadcast journalism class, we have to shoot and edit our own packages. Although I was a little apprehensive regarding the shooting my own video part, it has really grown on me and I have developed a pretty good eye for shooting...if I do say so myself.
Well, I always have good ideas for my packages, especially feature stories--last semester I did one on the installation of the Share the Road signs in Baton Rouge and on LSU's Rowing Team that builds and pays for everything on its own since it is not funded by the University.
I usually have good ideas for hard news stories too, but I have been avoiding stories that deal with the government because I feel like government officials do not want to waste their time with a meesly college student's project.
Well, this time around I faced my fears--I am doing a story on Louisiana's Cash for Appliances program that begins next week. I interviewed the Deputy Secretary for the Department of Natural Resources, since this department is in charge of the program. And, suprisingly, she was very nice and easy to work with. And, I hope to do more stories in the future about the energy saving programs that they are working on for the state of Louisiana.
Currently, I'm in the process of shooting b-roll for the package and then editing it all on Monday. I still need to get an interview with someone from Best Buy or Sears to see how they are preparing for the program.
What I learned: Don't be intimadated by someone's job title. If they can help you, they most likely will. If they can't help, don't look at it as rejection. Instead, look at it as an opportunity to find another source who may have more knowledge about a topic or may know people that can help you with your package.
Well, I always have good ideas for my packages, especially feature stories--last semester I did one on the installation of the Share the Road signs in Baton Rouge and on LSU's Rowing Team that builds and pays for everything on its own since it is not funded by the University.
I usually have good ideas for hard news stories too, but I have been avoiding stories that deal with the government because I feel like government officials do not want to waste their time with a meesly college student's project.
Well, this time around I faced my fears--I am doing a story on Louisiana's Cash for Appliances program that begins next week. I interviewed the Deputy Secretary for the Department of Natural Resources, since this department is in charge of the program. And, suprisingly, she was very nice and easy to work with. And, I hope to do more stories in the future about the energy saving programs that they are working on for the state of Louisiana.
Currently, I'm in the process of shooting b-roll for the package and then editing it all on Monday. I still need to get an interview with someone from Best Buy or Sears to see how they are preparing for the program.
What I learned: Don't be intimadated by someone's job title. If they can help you, they most likely will. If they can't help, don't look at it as rejection. Instead, look at it as an opportunity to find another source who may have more knowledge about a topic or may know people that can help you with your package.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)