All About Internships and Work Experience Placements

[nothing2wear]

Thanks! No to be honest, I would feel more comfortable doing clerical duties at the moment as I have limited experience and skills. I really just want to absorb the day to day runnings of the office. I have another question for you glorious fashionistas:
I have an interview for a PR internship at Net-a-porter tomorrow. What can I do to impress them? Thanks guys!

[xbryony]

Originally Posted by BetteT

Interning is mostly about getting credit for college ... and most companies require that to qualify as an intern. (Yes, it's in this thread numerous times.) So, I don't know if they would even consider you for an internship unless you are doing it for school. Blogging is most likely not their first qualification, although it could show that you re well rounded, beyond your education.

Just noticed she's from Europe? I don't know about any other cities but in London it is not neccessary at all to get college credit as far as I have learnt. Most internships here (most, not all) require you to work full time 5 days a week, and a lot of the long term ones for bigger companies will pay min wage, if you get lucky. It's best to get a few unpaid 4 week placements though before you go for the long term internships as they don't just hand them out to anyone.
It doesn't work the same here as we don't get college credit, and therefore it's kind of pointless to the company if we can only go in for a few days a week. Again that is most companies in my experience, but not all. So don't worry too much about college credit if you're outside of the US, just call and ask, or e-mail them. Show how enthusiastic you are, what you can offer them and what you want to learn etc. and if they like you enough, they'll find a slot for you

[BetteT]

Originally Posted by nothing2wear

Thanks! No to be honest, I would feel more comfortable doing clerical duties at the moment as I have limited experience and skills. I really just want to absorb the day to day runnings of the office. I have another question for you glorious fashionistas:
I have an interview for a PR internship at Net-a-porter tomorrow. What can I do to impress them? Thanks guys!

PR ... that's a lot about writing, so be prepared to show that off. Have you been published anywhere? Bring a copy. You might not be called upon to write press releases, etc. ... but you never know. But you probably will be asked to email things and to ask for information, so if you can make the company look good in an email, it's a bonus. Also, make them understand that you are happy to do the grunt work ... just as you stated in your post. They will want someone who is reliable, is willing to pay their dues and who would be a pleasure to work with ... a good attitude.

Good luck!

[BetteT]

Originally Posted by xbryony

Just noticed she's from Europe? I don't know about any other cities but in London it is not neccessary at all to get college credit as far as I have learnt. Most internships here (most, not all) require you to work full time 5 days a week, and a lot of the long term ones for bigger companies will pay min wage, if you get lucky. It's best to get a few unpaid 4 week placements though before you go for the long term internships as they don't just hand them out to anyone.
It doesn't work the same here as we don't get college credit, and therefore it's kind of pointless to the company if we can only go in for a few days a week. Again that is most companies in my experience, but not all. So don't worry too much about college credit if you're outside of the US, just call and ask, or e-mail them. Show how enthusiastic you are, what you can offer them and what you want to learn etc. and if they like you enough, they'll find a slot for you

Good information to know. Thank you.

I find the differences between Europe and the US interesting, so i did some research and found a wealth of information just in Wikipedia.

source: Wikipedia

From the US section of the " Intern" entry, which explains why most employers require collge credit for applicants. The truth is if the intern is not doing it for school credit, they must pay them by law ... it's now a job.

Not all internships are paid. Nearly all interns working in the United States must be paid, and at least the minimum wage, for their work in accordance with the Fair Labor Standards Act.[19]

A lot of internships that aren't paid have to do with getting class credit; if the internship is directly involved with a specific class the student is taking, many of the internships are unpaid. The U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division allows an employer not to pay an trainee if all of the following are true:[20]

1. The training, even though it includes actual operation of the facilities of the employer, is similar to what would be given in a vocational school or academic educational instruction;[20]
2. The training is for the benefit of the trainees;[20]
3. The trainees do not displace regular employees, but work under their close observation;[20]
4. The employer that provides the training derives no immediate advantage from the activities of the trainees, and on occasion the employer’s operations may actually be impeded;[20]
5. The trainees are not necessarily entitled to a job at the conclusion of the training period; and[20]
6. The employer and the trainees understand that the trainees are not entitled to wages for the time spent in training.[20]

There are some specifics at the bottom of the page about internships in various countries (Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, India, Italy, Netherlands, New Zealand, Spain, South Africa, UK & Austrailia and the U.S.) so if anyone is interested here's the link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intern

[nothing2wear]

Thanks Bette T, you always give the best advice! X

[nothing2wear]

The interview didn't go too well! I'll divulge more details later, but for now I'm looking for a Plan B. Could someone please tell me what departments one could intern/ do work experience at in a magazine? I'm being ambitious and looking at the biggies like Elle, Harper's Bazaar, Marie Claire etc.

Tx X

[BetteT]

I'm sorry to hear that ... but analyze what you might have done better and learn from it for the next interview.

Anywhere there is a job ... there might be an internship ... so to find out more about various jobs and departments that might be in publishing, here's a thread that has lot's of information:
Careers / Jobs / Positions in Magazine Publishing


there are several other threads that might be of interest to you too ... I did a search for you by keywords- publishing & magazines :


How to Get Work in Fashion Magazine Publishing (see Post #1 for related threads)
What Education is Needed to get into Magazines / Publishing?
Working as an Assistant (for a Magazine, Publicist, Photographer, Stylist, etc.)

[nothing2wear]

Ooh thanks for all that! I just thought I'd let you all know that net-a-porter turned me down because the other candidate had much more experience- I've only been out of high school for a few weeks and the other one had graduated etc.
But it's not all bad news! They offered me a two-week work experience placement as a taster session, with the potential to be considered for a longer term placement in the future. So I am really really happy about that! If any of you have any questions about what they asked in the interview etc, I'd be happy to help! I think I know where I went wrong, so I'd like to help people avoid my mistakes... Also, for those of you who are wondering whether or not to apply to a really good company- I would say go for it! You have nothing to lose, and, for me- it worked out pretty well

[gian-franco]

i'm not adressing anyone in particular and i don't know want to injure anyone, but i was thinking - you are all very open here in this forum, mentioning all the names, all the particular places you worked/applied and how did it go. that's really nice, interesting and usefull, but do you think it's ok - i mean those people with whom you had interview today might be reading this posts - you think it's ok?

[BetteT]

As long as they are not naming names of the people who interviewd them and they don't say anything slanderous ... I think it's fine.

However ... I think I understand what you mean. Many prospective employers do "Google" the names and the emails of applicants that they are considering ... and if they find something inappropriate on the web, it could cause them to hire someone else. (it's really the same for an internship as it would be for a job ...maybe not quite as extensive, but still they investigate).

But the most damaging things are usually Facebook and other social networks ... all those pictures when you are partying, etc. where you are tagged on other people's sites, especially and inappropriate language when tweeting and leaving comments.

[nothing2wear]

I'm aware of that. I try to be careful and anonymous...

[Cicciolina]

Also a quick note, there are a lot of ways to get around the 'for credit' stipulation. So you know, just try

[nothing2wear]

Yeah that's right Cicciolina! I'm from the UK and not yet at university, yet I managed to get plenty of offers to intern in NY, even though they said "for college credit only". Of course, I couldn't get a visa- but that's another issue altogether!! But defo go for it

[Buffaloed]

Originally Posted by snowqueen

Ok im not sure if this is the rite place to ask but ill ask any ways. This year in my school we do work experience. I live here in the uk. Well any ways i really want to do myn in something fashion oriantated, b ut im not sure were to ask etc. does any one have the address or details of any companies etc. that would be worth a try asking. Hope this makes sense lol

thanx

tia maria xXx

This thread is too long so I'm using it to test a new feature.

[BetteT]

This thread is now closed it has a continuation thread Here