Who knew that my Twitter account would lead me to my dream internship? Not me. After working for a year at the UVU Review I had made myself an online website for all of my articles. I linked my website to my Twitter page and to my surprise, I was sent an email from the Chief of Staff for the Utah Senate. He mentioned seeing my Twitter page and my news blog, and thought that my skills could be of use to them. I immediately went up to the capitol for an interview with the Chief of Staff. They hired me as a social media/public relation intern.
My internship at the Senate was flat-out amazing. I not only learned about government relations, but I also gained a deeper appreciation for our local government and senators. When I was working at the Senate I spent a lot of my time shooting and producing videos, taking photos and operating and monitoring social media outlets.
It was really overwhelming at first, however my boss did a great job working with me by making me feel valued and appreciated. The commute to Salt Lake City everyday was worth it, and it was fun feeling engaged with issues happening within our community.
I also had the opportunity to network and meet a lot of great well known people in our community, such as journalists, famous artists, senators, mayors and lobbyists. I even got to know president of our university, President Holland, on a more personal level.
My advice for students is to start writing. There is no way I would have been offered this internship if I did not have any writing experience. My second piece of advice would be to make a name for yourself by working hard, using social media and reaching out to organizations or companies that you are interested in working with. My last piece of advice would be to just ask. I was amazed at how helpful, informative and open people are when asked a genuine question. Have confidence in yourself, start writing, build up some experience and go for it.
