My initial goal was to secure an internship in a field I was actually passionate for, which included journalism, history, politics, and writing. The expectation was to gain vital workplace experience, which being in a field I’m interested in could potentially help inform me of future career options. I was able to meet this goal since I secured in internship in Channel NewsAsia, which perfectly fits in line with journalism, writing, and current affairs, which I am passionate about.
Through the process so far, I’ve learnt how to write professional-looking application letters and CVs, I’ve improved how I communicate and coordinate with others, and I’ve discovered that it isn’t that easy to write high-quality CVs. Before writing mine, I thought that it wouldn’t really require much effort and that I could get it done in no time, but the reality was far from it. I had to put a lot of thought into everything I wrote on it, since that is what employers would judge me on and it would have to be a 100% accurate reflection of my character.
The main skill I’ve built upon is my communication, which was mainly done through working on my formal writing. I used this to write my application letter, my CV, and all subsequent emails I’ve sent to my employer. This is definitely a skill that I will use in other areas of my life, be it other formal emails that I send nowadays, pieces of formal writing for school or otherwise, or communicating with potential employers when I’m looking for an actual job in the future.
Some of my goals for the World of Learning week include learning how the workplace operates, learning key skills required as a journalist, improving my communication and my confidence, and actually being able to help everyone in the office instead of being a burden to them. If I come out of the internship having accomplished at least three if not all of these goals, I’ll know that it was a successful experience for me.
When looking back at the internship, the main thing I would want to see in myself, like described before, is that I was actually helpful to the people in the office, and that they would have found some value in the work that I did. This would make me the happiest, knowing that someone genuinely appreciated my work, which would make the whole experience feel worthwhile.