An Intern’s Perspective
Written by Christie Higgins
100 hours…
Five weeks of part time work, easy.
100 hours of unpaid work…
I mean, it’s still easy, but I can’t say you’re winning me over.
100 hours of unpaid work, but you also get a degree…
Now you’re talking!
100 hours of unpaid work, you get a degree,
$40,000 debt whether you do this or not,
oh and there’s no guaranteed employment
when you finish 😊
Um…
University is a privilege. There is no doubt about it. I’m honoured to have had the opportunity to further my education. But this is my sixth year, I should have a PhD by this point (I don’t). I’ve spent so long at university because I had no idea what I wanted to be when I grew up. I graduate in November and I’m proud to say I will be part lawyer, part environmental scientist, part businesswoman and unemployed.
After studying what felt like every field under the sun, I got told if I wanted to graduate, I would need to complete an internship relevant to my degree. I did what I normally do and went in another direction – MARKETING.
The only thing I was certain of, was that I shop a lot, and shopping requires money. Every time I’d scroll through Instagram, an ad would appear out of nowhere with a face cleanser I was just talking about, like a gift from God. As I typed in my PayPal details, it got me thinking… If I’m spending my entire week’s pay on these perfectly placed ads, whoever makes these ads must be rich!
Lo and behold, I was taken on board by Rebel Nation as an intern.
“The only thing I was certain of, was that I shop a lot…”
I knew companies needed marketing if they wanted to grow their target market, but I wanted Jade to show me how. I remember the first day working with the #rebelteam so clearly. The first thing Jade asked me to do was write a blog, on anything. I don’t see myself as this creative word artist, in fact, I’m more of a person who speaks/types before they think. I had just finished up as a salesperson and decided to write about closing a sale, something I’m actually not great at. I knew the theory behind it, and I knew it worked, just because I can’t execute it doesn’t mean someone else won’t. Luckily enough, Jade liked it and said she saw talent. I can’t remember exactly where she saw that talent, but I went along with it anyway.
As the weeks passed, I sat in on meetings, I spoke up in meetings, and got free Zambrero’s. I learned new systems, how to create content and how to interpret social media statistics. I discovered that there isn’t one marketing strategy that can be applied to every company. Each strategy is uniquely designed depending on the client’s resources, time, and specific goals. It is such an amazing experience being able to witness a company coming to Rebel Nation with nothing and leaving with an entirely new mindset!
The last five weeks here at Rebel Nation have been exciting, full of laughs and a little wild. The entire team welcomed me with open arms in such a difficult and busy time. I’ve loved every minute of it, and I can finally say with confidence, I want to have a career in Marketing!
Thank you to everyone at Rebel Nation for making me feel like part of the team!