During the pandemic period, it is hard to find an internship. There are also option to work remotely or work onsite. Considering the situation was getting better, and to feel the atmosphere in the company was very important, I finally decided to find an onsite internship.
I started to look for an intern position one month before the semester started. As the internship had to be relatice to communication science, I selected to work in the advertising industry, I focused on the recruitment information in that field. These companies have their one websites which would publish job vacancies. However, if some intern position is lack of people, the information might be published on social media.
I found my internship as an AE intern at Publicis Media through a social media account. The account usual collects information of intern vacancies in media industry. When I found the information, and got the email address of the recruiter, I sent my resume directly. My resume was already prepared. I used to renew my resume when I had done something new. Therefore, my resume is always the latest version, and is ready to use. But I would also make some changes when apply to different positions. As the position I was applying for needed the data analysis skills. I emphasised my quantitative research ability in my resume.
Publicis Media is a leading advertising agency, it is mainly data-driven. My first week in the company was totally an orientation week. In the week, I learned to use six applications, which were the necessary tools to use during my internship. The manager and another intern taught me how to use the tools, and explained to me what exactly the meaning of norms that the clients used. The work of tactical planning is data-drive. My daily tasks are to deal with the latest TV viewing data, to support the planning team and our clients. At the beginning, I found there were too much new things to learn. However, after several weeks, when I was familiar with the operations, the tasks seemed easier for me. With the experience, I got to know new tools applications to filter and analyse media-related data. I could apply the knowledge I had learned into practice. With the background knowledge in communication science, I could better understand the meaning of data.
The atmosphere in the company was really nice, and I had many chances to know my colleagues, also other intern, which provided me an opportunity to build up a professional network. The company has a complete system and clear cooperations, which meant that in my daily work, it was hard to meet the staff in other departments. But the company would hold some activities in festivals, which provided opportunities to know new people.
This is my first internship, and the three-months experience in Publicis Media was valuable. I stepped into the advertising agency, and got to know the behind scenes of tactical planning. I would say, advertising is a potential choice for my future career.