This past summer I had an internship at a non-profit, human services organization in New Jersey. My position title was “Photography & Communication” Director, which included a range of tasks that involved public relations, advertising, marketing and, of course, communications. Despite the varying assignments given to me, I found that nearly all of them were successfully completed with the help of my English background – even if it’s not a typical department title! I had a range of tasks that included writing weekly newsletters, brochures, operating social media, developing strategic communication plans and event planning. A task as simple as running a popular social media page had links to my English learning: writing a caption is a lot like writing a thesis. When social users scroll through Facebook or Instagram, they often need a captivating and informative caption that is short, otherwise they’ll continue scrolling. When it comes to writing target-marketed brochures and newsletters, I thought back to writing for all my (fabulous) English Department professors. Every professor has a unique objective that helped me build a different voice, which is definitely important when writing for vastly different audiences for the same organization. While it may not be in the title, being an English major positively impacted my summer internship experience.
Perhaps the most influential moment for me during my internship was when my boss, a Business Administration major in college, approached me at work one day. While I was worried I had posted a picture of my acai bowl on the organization’s Instagram by accident – rest assured, I hadn’t – she wanted to discuss some ideas she had for the company. Full of ideas, my boss struggled with putting all her thoughts into words to be presented to the board; luckily, I was there to help her and together we wrote up an entire proposal. Rest assured, I never felt more certain of my English major as I sat with my nonprofit boss, a business major, and helped her run an organization. After my experience this summer I feel almost ready to graduate college and enter the world of employment--almost, not until another National Championship, of course!
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| Ang Malenda |
