Job & Internship

September Internship Spotlight

Name: Nathan Stienstra
Major: Jl MC
Emphasis: Electronic Media
Company: MTV Networks

Duties: This summer I was with MTV News in Santa Monica, California. My internship was with production management, as opposed to production, which I did when I was with them in New York. Production management basically takes care of all the planning and billing side of all our productions (i.e. shoots, interviews, shows). A lot of my day-to-day tasks were fairly minor, but I also assisted on numerous shoots as well.

In the office, I was given a desk with my own email account and phone line, and I basically helped with anything our production managers or coordinators needed. It's tough to explain in full detail what I did every day without using terms nobody would understand, but I can tell you I made a lot of travel arrangements, did a lot of filing, and am now really good with Google Maps.

Most Memorable Experience: My most memorable experience during my internship this summer was working on the Movie Awards. Working a live show is so much fun, especially when it's an awards show and you're on the red carpet (MTV News is always in charge of the pre-shows).

The best part of this show, however, was being able to see and work alongside a lot of the same people I worked with New York as well as our amazing Santa Monica staff, whom I have grown so fond of. The pre-show went great, I was able to sit in on some of the show itself, hang out backstage, and even go to the post-show party... a rough day at the office.

Special Contribution: It's funny, the first thing that comes to mind isn't even that special, but I think it was a very appreciated contribution. About halfway through my internship I got really sick of how messy and unorganized the office was, so my fellow intern Nicole and I took a couple days and completely reorganized and cleaned up the place. A huge part of this was sending old binders (show binders, bill books, etc.) to a storage facility, which was a bigger (and more tedious) task than it sounds. I will to be very disappointed if I go back and find the place disheveled once again.

Advice to Future Interns: Don't sell yourself short. I dreamed of interning with MTV, and the only reason I ended up doing it is because I went for it; I put myself out there and got what I wanted. I see so many people just settling for mediocre internships without even trying for something bigger. The internships are out there, and no matter how competitive they are, there's no loss in trying.

Also, put together a solid resume and cover letter; these are all employers are going to see when you apply for a job, so it has to not only look great, but it needs some relevant content. There are so many things on campus you can do to gain experience and it looks good when you have it, so don't be lazy, go write for the Daily or something... it worked for me.

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