Nancy - Corporate Communications

I applied for the internship over my first year of Studying History and Politics at the university of Birmingham. I applied in the hopes of getting hands on experience in local government and see what options there are within a political field. Across my time here I’ve really got to experience what this has been like especially as we have had the opportunity to work over a general election which gave a great insight into how the things I’ve been learning about over my course work in practice.

Over the past few months, I have been involved in various projects as part of my role in communications. These include work such as drafting press releases, which I have found particularly interesting with regards to learning about how to craft language to perform both a creative and a corporate role. Additionally, I have found it really interesting working on social media campaigns which has been a great learning opportunity to try new skills. One of my favourite things about my role in this internship has been the ability to work creatively within my role.

Throughout my time in this internship, I have also particularly enjoyed working with my fellow interns on our corporate Intern project. This I have found has been particularly useful in helping me develop project management skills as well as improved my ability to manage time. Additionally, it was great having a sense of ownership over a project by working with my peers to create the desired result.

From this internship I have learnt many invaluable lessons. Firstly, as a first year at university I haven’t had much previous experience of what a corporate environment is like, which now I have had real life practice in. Secondly, I have found the internship helpful in helping me learn about myself and how I best work as part of a team but also as an individual. Through working on personal projects, I’ve learnt how to motivate and challenge myself and by working with the other interns on my project I’ve learnt how to incorporate my skills into a team. The experience has also been great in broadening my outlook on the future and what to consider as a future career. I took the internship here to learn about working in local government but have found I have really enjoyed working in Comms.

Ultimately, I have really enjoyed my role at West Suffolk Council. I’ve had a great three months being able to earn whilst getting real world experience and would really recommend anyone to consider.