Internships are a stepping stone for a college student. Most people would think that it’s just free work and an additional obstacle to get our diploma but actually, it’s an eye-opening journey through the trials and tribulations of adult life. It prepares us for the best and worst in our future careers; the euphoric fulfillment when getting work done and the nihilistic feeling when you’re stuck in a mundane job.
It was earlier this year when I was still struggling on finding where to have my internship. The semester was about to end and almost half of my classmates have already found a company for their internship. I was feeling pressured at the time because I didn’t want to be left out. I did, however, manage to find work at an online news website a few weeks later. Working at that company gave me one of the most amazing summers of my life.
I met a lot of inspiring people in my unit and even got to see popular musicians because one of my tasks were to be a cameraman for the website’s live music program. Despite the fun of it all, it was still a job rather than a typical minor class output.
I remember being deployed immediately to Makati to cover a celebrity’s death. It was thrilling. I was with the cameraman and we’d camp out in front of the hospital for hours just to wait for a two-sentence statement. When a representative finally came out, the cameraman asked me get a mic in front of him. That’s where the real challenge came. I was going against other news stations. He handed me the mic and I started looking for a spot. Luckily, my arms are long and I desperately reached my mic close to the representative’s mouth. I got good audio quality. The lesson here is that work, at least in the news field, is no joke. It’s no fun and games once you start covering the truth.
This isn’t just my story. I talked to three communication students to share their internship experiences as well. These are stories about self-discovery:
Jazmine Bautista, 21 years old, had her internship at a big media network in the country. Upon entering for work, she immediately realized that this was nothing like a production output in class. “Kailangan talaga alam mo yung gagawin o yung ginagawa mo para ‘di ka mag mukang walang alam sa course mo,” she said. The now-senior college student worked as a personal assistant for one of the network’s variety programs. There, she gained empathy for PAs and realized their importance in the program. “[Hindi] makakatakbo ang isang show nang wala sila,” she added. They’re not just cogs in the machine, they’re the oil that makes the machine run smoothly.
Internship could also be a way to learn from the greats. This was the case of Juan Miguel Cabalda, a professional graphic artist who had his internship at two different software companies as part of their creative departments. “It was fun kasi marami rin akong natutunan. Yung mga colleagues ko, sobrang magagaling. Tinutulungan din kaming mga interns,” said Cabalda as he recalled his experience. Juan is also known around school for his videography and graphic design skills but despite this, he still absorbs new information from his superiors who were very supportive of him.
If you’re lucky enough to get into a company that has celebrities coming and going, you just might end up like Dexter Conche, who had his internship at a local radio station where he would meet local and international musical artists almost everyday. “Nakasabay ko umihi si [Luke Hemmings],” the 21-year-old gushed over meeting the lead vocalist of Five Seconds of Summer in the men’s urinal. Meeting international artists alone was already overwhelming but the senior communication student was even blessed to have such a welcoming crowd around him. For him, the radio station felt like a ‘third family’.
Conche, who is also a DJ at Adamson University’s campus radio station, would often observe on how an actual radio station works then adapt some of their ideas to his campus radio station. “Ino-observe ko kasi yung airings nila so I guess natuto ako sa radio broadcasting in a way,” he admitted. His internship has become an opportunity to exchange ideas for the betterment of not only his own school organization, but also his skills and passion as a radio broadcaster.
Most internships don’t pay you, but that shouldn’t discourage or demotivate you on finding work in the future. Internship is a chance to get to know what you really want to be in the surroundings of inspiring and passionate people in our field. Think of it as seeing a glimpse of what life could be after college.