WHAT YOU SHOULD TAKE INTO ACCOUNT BEFORE TAKING ON AN INTERNSHIP
There will be plenty of opportunities for internships for students heading towards third-year at university. From someone who has completed mine (at SBS), here is what I learned.
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Oliver Walker-Peel
Credit: SBS
While at university, you are slowly shaped towards 'the real world'. You hone your craft, and work away in classrooms, improving skills and getting opportunities to show yourself to the world.
When third-year rolls around, the opportunity to get a glimpse into life beyond graduation comes into focus, and after commentating cerebral palsy football matches for SBS On Demand late in 2023, I hoped to find my way back.
The month I spent there was incredible. I had the opportunity to live alone, experience a new city, and publish content to the world for a company I had always dreamed of working for.
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Here are five things I learned.
1. Back yourself
When doing assignments at university, a sense of imposter syndrome tends to linger. The amount of times I thought 'I am a uni student, why would they want to talk to me' would be more than I'd care to admit.
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In the outside world, there was none of that. Whether you go through a formal application process, or use previous contacts to gain your internship, whoever takes you on will do so for a reason.​ When you walk into that office on the first day, you are no longer just a uni student. You will be a part of a reputable company, and the confidence boost that gave me when walking into SBS was astronomical.
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From personal experience, the tools I had used previously at university benefitted me beyond the classroom. When asked to help with a Canva graphic, I trusted in my abilities honed in Understanding Sports Journalism last year. When tasked with editing a World Cup match for 2018 for SBS On Demand, the Adobe Premiere Pro skills I had picked up in Reporting Sound and Image gave me the basics from which I could build.
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You may not know it immediately, but by giving you an opportunity with their company, at least one member of staff will place immense faith and trust in you. The onus will then be on you to trust yourself, and believe in the reasons you were hired in the first place.​
1. Back yourself
When doing assignments at university, a sense of imposter syndrome tends to linger. The amount of times I thought 'I am a uni student, why would they want to talk to me' would be more than I'd care to admit.
​
In the outside world, there was none of that. Whether you go through a formal application process, or use previous contacts to gain your internship, whoever takes you on will do so for a reason.​ When you walk into that office on the first day, you are no longer just a uni student. You will be a part of a reputable company, and the confidence boost that gave me when walking into SBS was astronomical.
​
From personal experience, the tools I had used previously at university benefitted me beyond the classroom. When asked to help with a Canva graphic, I trusted in my abilities honed in Understanding Sports Journalism last year. When tasked with editing a World Cup match for 2018 for SBS On Demand, the Adobe Premiere Pro skills I had picked up in Reporting Sound and Image gave me the basics from which I could build.
​
You may not know it immediately, but by giving you an opportunity with their company, at least one member of staff will place immense faith and trust in you. The onus will then be on you to trust yourself, and believe in the reasons you were hired in the first place.​