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14th May 2019

Nowadays it’s not enough to show on your CV that you have academic skills - you need to take a step further and differentiate yourself from other candidates, proving that you have something that others don’t, and you can do this by showing your technical skills.

There is lots of competition for a single role, so employers can be very selective. Recruiters are not only looking for qualifications, even though these are important, but they are ultimately looking for skills and experience.

That is why is so important to undertake internships. Even short ones will add something valuable to your CV and will increase the possibility of landing your desired job position. Moreover, internships are a good way for you to know if that is the ideal role/industry for you or if you should think about working in something else.

At the beginning of the academic year, you should think about your own skills, what can you add to a job position? Maybe you are a good photographer and you can show that in a photography studio or an art gallery or perhaps you are studying Film and Media and you decide to undertake an internship at your local cinema.

In my case, I have always been interested in media, film and theatre and I would like to eventually land a position in a marketing department of either a publishing company or a media company. Since I already worked as an intern at several publishing companies in London, I thought that it would be a good idea to develop my marketing and social media skills in the marketing department of a media company.

One of my lecturers pointed out that Nuffield Southampton Theatres were recruiting interns for a six month period to work in their marketing departments. I thought that was the perfect opportunity for me; it was not only the industry and the department I was looking for, but the length of the internship was perfect to improve the lack of long-term positions in my CV.

Now, after undertaking this internship at NST I am in a better position to present myself to future employers. I can give real-life examples of things I’ve done working at NST and working for that company gives my CV credibility and shows my commitment to work in the creative industries.

There are lots of companies out there who are willing to have an extra pair of hands to help in busy departments, especially over Christmas and summer holidays, since then is when most people decide to take their own holidays!