All About Internships and Work Experience Placements

[missrouse]

I just updated my resume & redid my cover letter. Summer internship searching has officially began =)

 

[knightley]

Are you looking to go international, missrouse?

Indeed, if anyone is looking to go international from America: the time is now to start the work visa application for May.

 

[missrouse]

^i am open to pretty much anything.

 

[fashionistasista]

I think i know the one you are applying for carlish - so good luck

my advice is - i have gone for an interview for a job with them before - is to be quite formal in your approach and letter. Their HR dept is quite stuffy when it comes to interviews and resumes. But of course just be yourself, let that shine through and just keep in mind how many resumes they will be recieving - keep it quite snappy and short but still let it outline what you have done - especially industry and secretarial/ support experience you have had in the past.

 

[carlish]

I think i know the one you are applying for carlish - so good luck

my advice is - i have gone for an interview for a job with them before - is to be quite formal in your approach and letter. Their HR dept is quite stuffy when it comes to interviews and resumes. But of course just be yourself, let that shine through and just keep in mind how many resumes they will be recieving - keep it quite snappy and short but still let it outline what you have done - especially industry and secretarial/ support experience you have had in the past.

I sent in my resume and cover letter. EEK! I hope it's good enough I'm PETRIFIED the job offer wont be there tomorrow morning.. so I emailed it all in today.

I tried calling the lady about more information but she wouldnt pick up all day yesterday and all day today (I left a message too). I hope I at least get an interview because I think this is an amazing opportunity

 

[knightley]

^i am open to pretty much anything.

For me, going international is what I am trying to do to flesh out my resume. The embassies to Britain, France, Milan, and Germany all advised I begin my application for work visas now that way there won't be any hitches after I get a job. If I manage to find one between now and their approval, the employer can back my application and it'd hasten the approval, but just in case (as most people don't hire summer interns for a couple more weeks), it'll ensure I get my application in before the mad rush of people come middle of April.

 

[Cicciolina]

knightley are you in the US?

I'm interested in France and Hong Kong or China right now. How are you looking for internships internationally? It's relatively easy to find it for the US as there are so many internship sites with posts up and advice, but harder elsewhere I've found

carlish good luck! I don't think there's anything remarkably different when applying for a fashion job than any other job, so you should be fine What sort of position is it?

 

[knightley]

knightley are you in the US?

I'm interested in France and Hong Kong or China right now. How are you looking for internships internationally? It's relatively easy to find it for the US as there are so many internship sites with posts up and advice, but harder elsewhere I've found

Yes, I am.

I contact houses individually, sending an email as to why I would like to work for them. I then inquire for available positions and ask if they have anything opening for this May. Typically, if they do and I've interested them, they ask for my CV and I circumvent the internship becoming public. ;-)

 

[Cicciolina]

Oooh I see I've been doing that a bit buuut I haven't had many replies, so it makes me wonder if they actually get to the HR department in the first place!

 

[Deleted member 49693]

Hong Kong is extremely difficult to get work experience, you will need contacts or transfer from the company's office from another country.

 

[kissmesweet]

^ That's not good to hear.

 

[Cicciolina]

Is it perhaps that Hong Kong doesn't have the same internship culture as the US?

 

[clarex]

Is it perhaps that Hong Kong doesn't have the same internship culture as the US?

Just wanted to jump in here and say that internships do seem to be for the most part a US-thing. Here in the UK at least, very few companies seem to offer them and indeed, very few students have time/opportunities to do them. A lot of degrees offer a placement year, where a student spends a year in industry - perhaps that's similar. Or else we undertake work experience at some point, but that's not really as long term as is implied by an internship. I don't know, perhaps someone is going to come along and say I'm wrong and that internships are everywhere in the UK and I'm blind!

 

[Cicciolina]

Australia is the same, it's not as intensive as the US, but you can do it if you want, they're not as formal or well known... yet!

Clarex I can't comment on the UK myself but a friend of mine actually is there doing a fashion retail internship there at a boutique now... personally I think hers isn't very um, helpful, but it's probably like Australia where it does exist but not so intense.

 

[clarex]

Cicciolina - I hope your friend is getting a lot out of the internship, to me if you want to learn retail, you may as well be getting paid!

I know Elle magazine offer them here but I'm unsure as to the nature of the program, the duration, the duties etc. Sadly, I don't think I'll be able to afford to do an internship, I need an actual paid job and some of these internships I hear about are like 6 months! That's a looong time to have no money!

 

[Deleted member 49693]

Anyone else getting the problem of not getting a reply to say whether or not your application has been successful for an intern? I have spoken to the Director and he emailed back to say that the operations director will let me know in due course, but that was last year October!!! I find it very rude!

 

[Cicciolina]

clarex that's what I think as well, I sort of hinted that to her but I can't say too much! I'm sure other UK magazines have internships or at least informal work experience.

eurofashionjunki I know what you mean. Can you do a follow up call? I'm tempted to do one even though it's been about 2 weeks since she hasn't replied - she asked for my resume, so I sent it to her, and I've received no replies since then

 

[knightley]

eurofashionjunki I know what you mean. Can you do a follow up call? I'm tempted to do one even though it's been about 2 weeks since she hasn't replied - she asked for my resume, so I sent it to her, and I've received no replies since then

A lot of times they file them. Send a follow-up email thanking the individual for their time. Cicci, I can help you draft a sample follow-up? If it is for a fashion house, remember this is fashion month and houses are busy with show set up and clean up. But they do tend to file them if you're looking for the summer. A lot of times, a house will take a resume and not get in contact until a month or so before the internship is available.

 

[Deleted member 36123]

Please people take my advice - DO NOT DO WORK EXPERIENCE AT SHOP TIL YOU DROP!

I organised to do a week's work experience there and all I did all day was ride the elevator up and down to collect the mail and then distribute it around the office, take down the posters of last months issue and put up the new one's , run around the building looking for a printer cartridge or sit there doing absolutely nothing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It was a complete waste of time and after the first day I didn't bother going back because I was told it would be like that every day. I didn't learn a thing and found the whole day quite insulting. I mean who needs a university degree to do the ****ty office jobs I could have mastered when I was 5 years old? And it's not like I even got to make contacts - I was either in this little alcove by myself or in the elevator!

I don't know if other people have had the same experience at Shop but if mine is anything to go by I'd stay far far away.

 

[TheElitist]

excuse me everybody, but i could really do with some professional advice

i have this important interview for this internship thing tomorrow with some people from this fashion magazine, and i was just wondering what's appropriate to wear (and bring)