Internships: Let's Talk About Them (A Fashion Focused Guide)
As college students and being in our early twenties, we are in a prime age of growth that is exciting but also highly intimidating. On top of society's expectations for us to have our life passion figured out, we also add extra pressure to ourselves. But what if you could take your possible future career for a test drive? Once out of college you won’t get many opportunities to simply “test drive” a career. Internships are a great opportunity to get your feet wet in the workplace and build an arsenal of new skill sets and experiences that will set you up for the professional world.
There are a plethora of benefits to having an internship. Firstly, it can help you identify what careers produce joy. It's important that you find a career that makes waking up each morning for your job not something you dread doing, so interning could hopefully give you a better feel for what career would be life-giving. Internships also highlight where you may or may not be more naturally skilled, enable you to hone those skills, and possibly encourage the discovery of new passions or talents. Working at Nordstrom last summer has highlighted to me that where I lack in designing and product development, I make up for in styling. Internships help you gain exposure that you wouldn't be able to receive from school and teach you how to navigate different business structures and etiquette, employee relations, and positions of leadership. Prioritize seeking out a safe work environment to make mistakes, that way you don’t feel debilitated when not performing perfectly and you can learn from your shortcomings. It’s vital when seeking out internships that you are led by someone who is dedicated to aiding your personal growth, and while you make inevitable mistakes, that they are willing to mentor you through them. Continuing the workplace relationships or mentorships outside of the internship could set you up for success in the long run. Sometimes your internships can even turn into permanent jobs!
Now the question is: Where would I even start with obtaining an internship? Answer: Networking. Being able to network is a necessity and a skill that will greatly increase your business opportunities. Many people, myself included, complain that networking is a chore that leads to feeling uncomfortable and drained of energy. In my personal life, I’ve really had to push myself out of my secure little box to reach out to other people. Rather than feeding my internal dialogue the constant narrative that networking feels like a show I have to put on, or an event that I have to pretend to like, the more practice I have networking the more I look at it as an opportunity for discovery and growth. This different mindset has stirred up fresh excitement for the new experiences I could encounter and the new ideas that I have cultivated.
Honestly — getting out of my shell has made me more of an extrovert, and I like it. To start the networking process, begin by reaching out to friends and family, and then your staff or faculty at school. Career fairs are other great networking events as well. Search engines such as Linkedin, HandShake, Indeed, and Glassdoor are some of the more popular online career and internship finders. For Auburn CADS students, you can access even more internship information in your Canvas tab with extra links to career search engines and prerequisite requirements. Social media has also become one of the most important tools for communication, branding, advertising, etc. Having an up to date social media, especially in the fashion world, is key when trying to get exposure. Frequently, companies will look at your personal profile and your posts to determine if you would fit the “vibe” that they are trying to portray. Your goal doesn’t need to merely be becoming an influencer and gaining a lot of followers, but rather focusing on being organic, true to yourself, and posting things that will shed a positive light on you.
Next, it’s important to note that there are multiple types of internships: paid, unpaid, summer break, winter break, academic semester, and job shadowing to name a few. Paid internships, for obvious reasons, are the most sought out type. Large organizations who can afford to pay their interns will often do so, and more and more companies these days are realizing the benefits to hiring interns and the aid that they add in the recruitment process of being able to have an in-person evaluation of possible future employees. The majority of interns are more likely to spread a good word about a company's program if they offer payment, so it also benefits the company in this way. For unpaid internships, you are for the most part limited in how much work your employer can task you with because your work is not to replace another employee's work. This is why some unpaid internships offer their employees other methods of compensation, such as more networking opportunities, provided meals, detailed letters of recommendation, academic credit, etc. Whether you pursue a paid or unpaid internship, you will nonetheless grow in experience.
Emotionally and financially, finding internship housing can be tricky. Usually if an internship is offering housing then they will state it in their application. Before you apply to any job positions you should check their internship details to see if they offer housing, and it's also okay to email the company if there’s any confusion. If the company doesn't provide housing, then one idea for living would be to find other interns to live with. This could save you a lot of money and help you create a community that will make your internship more enriching. Facebook groups and Instagram DMing have been a great tool for me personally when getting into contact with people that I’m not familiar with. For some of my friends who have interned in the past, posting Tik Toks in search of a roommate has proved to be successful. Zillow, Craigslist, and Apartments.com are a couple of other popular housing sites. There are definitely benefits to living in certain locations for your internship, whether that be for the cost of living, the diverse culture, entertainment, commutes, etc. For the fashion industry specifically; NYC, Los Angeles, London, Milan, Paris, and Florence are some of the top locations to work and live in. These are where the majority of fashion companies headquarters are, so rather than just working virtually or in a store, being able to experience first-hand different iconic fashion houses would be a once in a lifetime opportunity.
Tory Burch, Anthropologie, and Net-A-Porter are just a few popular companies that offer paid internships. There are also different advantages to living in these fashion focused places such as attending fashion weeks, fashion shows, exhibitions, and different launching events. Be aware that if you decide to intern in one of these cities, there will be higher competition, especially since big name fashion schools are also located in these areas. Not all of us are able to intern abroad or even in another state, so with choosing a city that's right for you, research what companies you would want to work for and where their headquarters are, what the lifestyle looks like in that area, and how close it is in relation to other cities.
With all of this, hopefully you will feel more confident with the interning process. I encourage you to challenge yourself to try new things and don’t put too much pressure on feeling like you have to have your career path figured out. Take that leap of faith and intern in that new city, reach out to those new people, and put yourself out there. You never know what kind of opportunities will fall into your lap or what passions and talents you’ll discover.
