On Figuring It All Out (Or at Least Trying)

Since the start of my college career I have declared four separate majors and have gone to three different schools. The truth is I never really knew what I wanted to do with my life. I never had this practical passion that I thought I could make a career out of. And to be really honest, I am still not sure I know. Currently I am a senior advertising student, a major I declared after my first semester at Temple as a strategic communications student. I have had my ups and downs with the major but my focus right now is graduating. I wish I would have gotten an internship sooner to figure out what I really want to do and where I really want to be but instead I waited until the start of this semester.  Now that I’m done being cynical in my blog post, I am here to talk about how rewarding my internship experience has been and even though I’m still trying to figure out my next move, I am definitely gaining the insight I need to get there.

At the start of this semester I started my internship in the HR department at Interstate General Media, the company that owns Philly.com, The Philadelphia Inquirer, and The Daily News.  Being in the HR department isn’t exactly in anyway related directly to the advertising industry but the company was my main motivation for accepting my position.  On my first day I did get a chance to explain my position to Mike Lorenca, who currently works as the chief operating officer and general manager of newspaper operations for the company.  He had told me how he had also had an array of different college majors and reassured me that I would figure it out. It was a bit of a confidence boost to hear from someone who has such a substantial position at the company that I too would be able to figure things out and will eventually find my way.

After starting in the position I quickly made connections with everyone in the small HR department by making sure I said hello to everyone as I came and went and also by making myself accommodating to what they needed.  I learned more about the HR department and what they actually spend time doing and potentially see the position as a good fit for me. It’s also been interesting to listen to what they like to see on a resume and what they see as a potential red flag. I worked closely with my internship supervisor Ann and knowing my uncertainty about what I wanted to do, she has set up different people to meet and work with around the office.  I have since met with the sales department, the Events and PR department, and the advertising department who I am planning on setting up more meeting with. I am also excited to get the chance to shadow one of the Daily News reporters.  One of the best experiences I had was recently assisting the Events and PR team on planning an event that night for Philly.com. I absolutely loved the chance to work behind the scenes to see what goes into it. After the event I was asked to help out with other events by the Events and PR representative and I will hopefully get the chance to do so.

I’m still not completely sure I know what I want to do however I do feel more confident in myself.  Maybe I don’t have that one dream position but I do know that I can handle many tasks that are thrown at me.