“Internships are very valuable. Not only will they help you develop professionally, but they can also help take your career to new heights.” - Neevashni Ram (Content Marketing Executive, NZIE)
Background
Before I get into the nitty-gritty of why I decided to do a Digital Marketing internship. I thought it would be best to give you all a backstory about myself.
Okay, so, my name is Neevashni Ram, and I have a massive passion for all things related to Marketing and Advertising. I have a Bachelor of Commerce Degree, with a double major in Management and Marketing. Shortly after University, I struggled to find a graduate role in Marketing. Although these roles required applicants to have a relevant degree, which I had. They also all required applicants to have specific Marketing skills and at least two years of Marketing experience. And yes, as you may have guessed, unfortunately, I didn’t have either.
But not to worry, after my unsuccessful job hunt, I realised I needed to gain practical skills in Marketing. I also knew that I had to acquire some relevant experience to land a job in Marketing.
Journey After My Unsuccessful Job Hunt
Fortunately enough, I found the New Zealand Institute of Education’s (NZIE) Diploma in Digital Marketing. After reading online about what the Diploma offered and how it would help me develop my skills in knowledge in Digital Marketing. Such as how to do social media marketing, design amazing graphics, build landing pages, and successfully optimise websites. I knew from the get-go that this is something I should do. Why? As it would benefit my career-pathway. And a bonus was that this Diploma would only take a year to complete (full-time). Also, NZIE helped you gain work experience via relevant internships.
Therefore, I decided to put my job search on hold for a bit and go back to studying once again. Although this meant that I would have to wait longer to get a full-time job. It didn’t get me down. I knew by doing the Diploma, it would give me the kick-start I needed to get into the Digital Marketing Industry. And might I add – so far it has done just that!
Oh, and another thing, although NZIE offered students the opportunity to take part in short-term internships while studying. I didn’t find the need to take-up any internships at the time. I instead used what I was learning and applied it towards my family business for the time being. My family owns a Commercial and Domestic Cleaning Business here in Auckland, New Zealand, called RAMS Cleaning Services. I started doing email, content, and social media marketing for my family business because of the Diploma. We couldn’t correctly utilise marketing strategies and tactics before due to the lack of knowledge. Anyways, long story short, because of my new marketing efforts, I helped my family business land, several new clients. Which otherwise wouldn’t have been able to happen if it weren’t for NZIE’s Digital Marketing Diploma. Thank you, NZIE!
Journey After NZIE
Alright, enough of the backstory, so once I completed the Diploma and had my graduation. (And yes – I am excited to announce that I am now a fully-fledge Qualified Digital Marketer!) I realised that I needed to gain more experience in Digital Marketing. Once again, thank you to NZIE for helping a sister out! Because Cleo Akaroa (NZIE’s now Content Marketing Coordinator) approached me and offered me an internship role as a Content Marketer.
This internship was a 3-month contract at NZIE. As the job role suggests, I would help NZIE create cool content for their blog, website, and social media platforms. As well as do other neat things like design graphics and help write email and web copy. At first, I was hesitant to take on the role as I was looking for something more long-term and full-time. However, after much thought, I realised doing an internship would be an excellent start for me and my career. This is because internships can be valuable and beneficial, especially for those heading towards a creative field.
I realised by doing a Digital Marketing internship it would help me:
- Enhance my skills and gain new ones
- Learn new and exciting things about Digital Marketing
- Get hands-on experience
- Add to my CV and portfolio
- Learn from current employers
- Boost my employability
- Get a feel for how the Digital Marketing Industry works and,
- Forge new professional connections that can lead to future opportunities.
All in all, doing a Digital Marketing internship with NZIE is probably one of the greatest decisions I’ve made. I got the opportunity to work with some talented individuals. Gain some valuable work experience and add more exciting pieces of work to my online portfolio. To top it all off – I did so well during my internship that NZIE ended up hiring me as well. So yes, I am now a Content Marketing Executive at NZIE! – Yay!
Next Steps
If you’re looking to get your foot into the Digital Marketing Industry. I recommend starting first by doing NZIE’s Online Digital Marketing Diploma. While studying, make sure you take advantage of the wide variety of Digital Marketing internships they offer. Trust me; you will not regret it!
