Professional Public Relations (PPR) is the biggest public
relations consultancy in Perth and with Country-wide and International links, I
figured PPR would be an ideal place to apply for an internship... HOWEVER, I was
away for most of the Summer and left applying for my Internship very last
minute, so I didn’t like my chances of getting one this year! I went on to
their company website and emailed through my resume, references and a little
about me note to the Perth office, less than a week later I received a reply
from Kate Sugars, the HR coordinator, inviting me to come in for an interview.
That sent me into a panic, what to wear, what to say, how
was I going to stand out? Luckily I found Kate was absolutely lovely, we had
quite a casual chat, and she offered me an internship for a month later,
starting March 10. I couldn’t believe my
luck.
The week before, on Thursday the 6th I came in to
the office to have a handover from the intern finishing up their month before
me. Nosa had spent February and March at PPR working as a PR assistant, she
took my through the office, told me a few office rules (happy to include we
could listen to music and eat at our desks!). Nosa quickly went through some
work she’d started and would have to hand to me to complete over the coming
weeks. I was terrified. What was a database? Who was Heather? How did I find the
index numbers for products sold on the Bunning's website, and what did I do with
them once I did? I left certainly doubting my capabilities to replace her in
the company.
Day One: I sent out an introductory email to the 50 or so
employees and immediately received three back, asking for some help on work.
So I:
-
Updated an awards calendar database
-
Worked on an event concept document and PowerPoint
-
Then got an invitation to attend the event, and
see the project the whole way through
-
And finally transcribed an interview for an up
and coming mining publication
At the end of the day I was definitely looking forward to
going to bed... but also finding out what I'd be doing the next day.
Casey
2 comments:
Hi Casey,
It’s so nice to hear that they are so laid back at PPR and that you’re allowed to do things like eat at your desk. It’s not at all what I imagined.
I would love to have a undertake an internship in consultancy at some point so I was wondering if you could answer a couple of questions for me? - Do you have to do your internship full time and forfeit your job for that month?
- You sound as though you were a bit scared and lost on your first day (as anybody would be). Do you feel as though you are receiving enough guidance for the people at PPR? Or are they maybe all a little bit too busy to help?
It sounds as though you are getting quite a variety of work to do, which is great.
I remember when Carla Shearman came in for a speech for PR Law. She stated that ‘We love to hire past interns, we always hold them in high consideration when we receive applicants for a job’. So you’re in a great position if you want to forge a career in consultancy work.
Good luck with the rest of your internship!
Jacqui.
Hi Jacqui,
I've been at my internship full time, but working on the weekends at my casual job. I suppose I'm lucky its casual and open 7 days, so I can still make some money.
They do sort of throw you in the deep end at PPR, but I actually fount that worked better for me. I found my own work, made my own friends and so on.
Thanks for your comment!
Caset
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