By: Brisa Espinoza
Before coming to college, everyone always told to me how important it was to find an internship. That an internship could potentially turn into a job, connect me with the right people, and give me the experience I’d need. Who knew that my entire future depended on if I could get an internship or not?
During my first year at Texas Tech, I was stressed at the thought of having to find an internship because the sooner I could get one under my belt, the better, but it was harder than I thought. Most companies were only looking for junior and senior-level students with skills I didn’t even know people could have. I kept applying and applying, and no place would get back to me since I wasn’t meeting their criteria. An internship would set me on the right path to success but how was I supposed to get there if I couldn’t even get on the path?
After months of searching and no responses, I had quite honestly given up, but when I got a notification from an organization group chat that had been dead all summer, I had to immediately click on it to see what was going on. It was a text from one of the organization’s alumni reaching out to let us know about an internship as a social media student marketing assistant at Texas Tech Public Media. Even though I had already gotten 20 rejection emails, I thought that one more couldn’t hurt. So, I submitted my application and to my genuine surprise, they reached out to me and scheduled an interview. Soon after that, I became the new intern at Texas Tech Public Media.
Going into the internship, I had no idea what to expect and even questioned my capabilities. Sure, I knew how to make a TikTok and post on Instagram, but what if they asked for more than what I could do? However, my days at TTPM were any intern's dream. They gave me the most detailed onboarding which explained how to do everything starting from turning on the computer, so there was never really a task that I couldn’t do. But what was even better was that everyone was there to help. They knew that I was just a student who still had a lot to learn but they were ready to be the ones to teach me, and they all taught me so much. I learned how to make graphics following a brand guideline, create effective social media campaigns and read and present analytics. The most valuable lesson I ever learned at TTPM wasn’t from any tasks I did but it was from simply sitting in on meetings and listening. Throughout these meetings, I would hear the marketing team discuss strategy, how to work with one another and what could they be doing that others aren’t doing yet. These meetings were so beneficial to me because I was able to understand how professionals operated and, in a way, I finally got to hear the adults talk. The best parts were when they would ask me to contribute to the meeting and hear my thoughts. Even though I was just an intern, they valued my opinion on what they could be doing, and more times than not, they listened to what I had to say. Getting to see my ideas come to life was so exciting, but getting to work on them myself was even better.
Every day when I left TTPM, I was so grateful that I had found this internship. This is what everyone had talked to me about! It was the place that connected me with the right people and gave me the experience I needed. I created so much work that I am still proud of to this day and will reference it whenever I get the chance. If it wasn’t for TTPM taking a chance out on me, I wouldn’t be in some of the positions I hold today, because now I have those skills that I didn’t know people could have.
For those who are worried about securing their first internship, I know it’s scary and I know how much getting those rejection emails, or even sometimes no emails at all, hurts. But when the right internship finds you, you’ll know that it’s the place where you’ll grow.
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