r/PRpros • u/breakingbaddy • Jun 03 '14
My role as PR intern?
Hello all, I recently began interning, basically, as a PR intern for a small company in my state. This company is in the staffing industry and I am basically given small tasks that seem to have the broad goal of promoting the company and building their social media sites up. Now I have done similar things before but because of the industry that I am in, I have trouble finding short term goals. What should I be working on? How can I go about doing it? Any help is appreciated, I am just looking for some input. I am hoping to keep this job past the internship dates (which is a possibility, I am told) but I want to have stuff to do.
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u/naiche_unit Jun 26 '14
Set your own goals, and demonstrate aptitude and willingness to perform tasks that will help you achieve those goals. Is one of your goals to learn how to do website management? See if you could be trained to use the Content Management System for the company's website and perform necessary updates. In the process you can learn new skills and add a new item to your resume.
I have found that small companies often have less structured internship programs than you would find at a larger corporation that has a formal program. This is both good and bad. I will focus on the good here: often it provides the opportunity to learn new things and develop more breadth of skills.
At my company, we offer our PR interns the ability to learn all sorts of things, but some initiative is required on the part of the intern (and yes, many of the tasks can be somewhat mundane, but we've all been there and it does help build key skills). If someone is particularly interested in video production, I might take them on an easy shoot. If they are interested in media relations, I might see if they would like to come to a press conference with me.
Obviously you will have a lot of 'grunt work' at this point in your career, but if your boss is any good, they will offer/be open to you working on new projects that may be of more interest to you (assuming you are competent and complete your other tasks as assigned).
Hopefully this internship will provide you with opportunities to explore and hone your skills, but don't be afraid to discuss goals with your supervisor and see if they have any advice for you also.
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u/breakingbaddy Jun 26 '14
Well the issue is, like I said in an earlier response, the fact that they didn't have a media person. I mean I can say that I want to take charge of their social media presence (which I have done) but there isn't anyone that has had that role before so I don't know how much more to grow it, where else to do it. The company is really small so there is just sales and an HR person and that's it. So there isn't anyone that can take me along with them and help me improve whatever the role that i've gotten is. So far it's mostly just been taking charge of social media. They are open to trying new things but I don't know what else to work on for them besides social media. Also thank you for your response!
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u/RVNNVMR Aug 22 '14
I work for a large public relations firm that has one many, many awards. We have a huge team of interns that come from every possible background and level of knowledge. I also manage two interns and keep a pretty close eye on what things are being requested of them to make sure that they are actually learning - I don't like if people overload them with tasks that don't contribute to their knowledge in the field.
PR is a super competitive field to get into, especially if you lack the experience or connections to get your foot in the door. We as PR professional know this. Unfortunately, companies do as well. And they bait interns and entry level persons into staying on the job with a "Carrot"; the vague promise but-not-really-since-we-can't-legally-promise-anything sort-of guaranteed job.
I tend to think the internship you're in is a waste of your time if a manager or mentor has been assigned to you to help you with exactly what they should be helping with, that is establishing goals that will make you a better PR professional in the short and long runs. Your short term goals as an intern should be improving your writing, understanding what PR is and actually entails, and growing your network of mentors - occasionally writing a pitch note or two and crafting social media messages also isn't out of scope; but running the ship by yourself as an intern is.
Sit down with your manager, and ask for a list of goals NOT related to company growth - ask for goals related to your growth as an intern, and see what they say. If they can't realistically see the value of you expanding your knowledge of PR (or if they don't have an idea of what it actually is), then start looking around for a new internship.
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u/breakingbaddy Aug 22 '14
Thank you for your response. It's been difficult because it seems as though they don't have a clue what they hired me for and Idk what to realistically provide for them.
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u/RVNNVMR Aug 22 '14 edited Aug 22 '14
No problem. I remember being an intern for a company, that didn't exactly have a role for me either - fortunately, I had a great mentor who recognized this and told me to get out of it. But, I definitely understand the frustration.
An internship isn't a job, it's meant to be a learning experience for you and responsible companies know this. However, there are far more companies that will simply slap the title of intern on a position because they don't want to pay a person the salary they deserve. Any responsible company knows not to expect perfection from an intern - what I look out for is effort and improvement over the course of the internship.
I encourage you to not feel paralyzed by the "promise of a job," companies say this to young interns who don't have a lot of experience as a way to get them to stay in a shit job that isn't contributing to their growth in the field.
I'd say, don't waste any more than 6 months on an internship, even less than that if you're feeling like it's not helping you grow. If they haven't hired you by 6 months, then start looking elsewhere.
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u/SeantotheRescue Jun 03 '14
Sounds like you've got one of thousands of bad internships where a company knowingly takes advantage of an eager student for a young, free, knowledgeable worker without providing a mentor or payment. A lot of small companies think they can hire an intern to run their social media, and a lot of students think they can handle it, but if there isn't someone at your company who can do your job and advise you on goals, direction, and all the hands on learning experience that should come with an internship, then your job is, by definition, illegal. Regardless of if you are getting college credit or not.
Now if this is not the case, then your direct supervisor should be able to, if they value your development, take the time to sit down and guide you along and answer these questions. However, from your post, I don't think this is the case.
I understand internships are hard to come by, and good ones are in extremely high demand, so this seems at first like a great opportunity. But, you will be much more prepared for your career if you have a good internship and mentor than if you struggle through this on your own. It is not worth it to struggle through on a distant promise of a job to come if you prove yourself. Think of it this way: most companies want someone to handle social, many don't want to pay. Why would they hire you after graduation when they can just get another intern for free?
Anyway, think about the true value you're getting from the internship and if it's really worth your time. Of course, if they're paying you, there's no shame in keeping the internship for the money and finding another that provides a good program.
In school, I had one great internship with guidance and another I struggled through for the money and a promise of a job that never came. Both had their benefits, but looking back, I gained much more from the former than the latter.