Hey everyone!

I’m sad to say that my internship has finally come to an end and the last two months of my internship went by in what now feels like a blink of an eye.

I truly am grateful that I had the opportunity to do my internship at the Shire of Kalamunda as I know that from it, I have definitely gained and expanded my skills in writing, communication, networking and that I have also further developed a stronger work ethic.

From beginning my internship with nerves and questioning my ability to complete work and perform up to the standards required within the Shire, I can happily say that I managed to pull through and performed to the best of my ability.

One of the highlights of my time at the Shire was being involved in the “Vote NO, Save Kalamunda” campaign, reading articles over the local 102.5FM radio station and proudest moment of all, seeing my works featured on the Kalamunda Shire website for the public to see.

I don’t think that I had always fully acknowledged the hard work and understood the effort the public relations team puts in to the operations of a company/organisation. I also didn’t actually realise how much responsibility resided on the departments’ shoulders especially during times of a crisis. However this all came to light during my internship.

Furthermore, throughout my internship I learned that the future of a company or organisation is not only based on finances, productivity and management… But also how well the company understands and communicates with its stakeholders and the public at large – a vital aspect of great importance.

I’ve learnt that PR is critical and essential in conveying messages and information on serious and also less significant issues.

Having the public relations internship as a compulsory feature of a public relations degree is a great idea for the students and I am glad that I got to be apart of it as it truly gives us, the students, a real feel and real life experience of what the future holds for us. And as a result has made me appreciate and value my degree even further.

To the other students who’ve completed their internship – hope you enjoyed your internship as much as I have and good luck for what the future holds!

To those students who are yet to embark on this final journey of their degree – keep an opened mind; make the most of your experience, as there is a lot to learn and good luck!

- Kiranjeet