Applying for marketing internships and turning up for a couple of weeks is just the start for ambitious professionals. This is an industry rich in diversity as it applies to the new world and the old world as well as the offline and the digital. To make a mark and to build a successful career in this field, it is important to see how internships work and how participants should approach them for their own benefit.

Highlight The Placement on The Resume

One of the key reasons why individuals will sign up to marketing internships in the first place is to build their resume and highlight what they have done to complement their classroom and lecture room education. If these opportunities are left unexplored, then owners and managers inside marketing enterprises won’t look to shortlist candidates due to their lack of experience and initiative. Should they wish to progress in their career, they will use the placement as a way to underline what practices and projects they oversaw and how that aligned with their study.

Make Multiple Professional Connections

Applying to marketing internships can feel like a vulnerable and frustrating exercise at the best of times, especially if there is rejection involved. What needs to be understood is that these placements offer people the chance to make professional connections that can last a lifetime and open doors that would previously have remained closed off. From peers who are also situated at entry-level positions to creative teams and upper management where mentors can be identified, these relationships have the power to fast track a career.

Demonstrate Initiative

Those men and women who register with marketing internships as a way to avoid other work and study are in the wrong business. This is where initiative is put to the test and where professionals learn their craft. No one who arrives into these roles will be the complete operator. They need to throw themselves at challenges and clarify to employers that they are willing to push themselves for the sake of the enterprise.

Work Within Unique Marketing Roles

The best way that individuals use marketing internships to their strategic advantage is to make themselves known to various departments at different levels. Men and women who get involved with the SEO team, analytics, public relations, digital, brand management and beyond have a more holistic perspective on the industry. It is very easy to become confined to a narrow role through marketing internships, but this is an environment rich in creativity and teamwork, so why not take advantage?

Complement The Study

Marketing internships are incredibly important avenues to full-time work and ongoing opportunities. With this being said, it is the education around the practice that forms the basis of a thriving resume and outlines the credentials of the candidate. A degree from an accredited university is the type of accreditation that opens doors. Rather than throwing 100% of energy, effort and application into these internships, it should be seen as a complementary piece to the bigger picture.

Push For Further Opportunities

While there will be some people who have the confidence to be their own spokesperson and advocate, other individuals are not so forthright. Whether it is due to insecurities or just a different personality, there are participants who are shy about their skills and what they can bring to the table.

In order to use these placements as a way to kickstart a career in marketing, it is important to showcase at every juncture what attributes are on show and what they are willing to do to enjoy more opportunities with the provider. Perhaps the internship will reach a natural conclusion with other options on the horizon, but those who score full-time roles in the short-term are often those who throw themselves at more openings.