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Being a student at the Fashion Institute of Technology, I hear everyday about the importance of internships. The process is SO daunting and seems impossible, but I am here to make it a little easier for all of you! Having had three internships already, I have learned a lot from when I started the process. Here are some of my insider tips to make it super easy and stress-free to find a fashion internship.
Just some general tips before I get into my advice on how to find an internship; don’t forget to streamline your resume before you start applying to different companies. I submitted my resume to 27 companies before I realized there was a typo. Yes, they are going to catch it. Send it to one of your friends and have them look it over, and read it out loud to catch any choppy sentences or missing words.
Also, make sure to carefully read the application requirements, they might need a cover letter, a portfolio, a couple references, or you may have to email the recruiter directly instead of doing a “one click application” on one of the third party sites. I’ve made that mistake and they never receive your materials. Lastly, once you get a reply from someone, follow up! Even if you bombed the interview, or they never scheduled one for you, it is best to follow up and show continued interest about a week after you receive contact. You’d be surprised how far a little “checking in” email can get you.
Here are some ways that I recommend finding internships…
1. Use your school’s career and internship database
I don’t know about other schools, but FIT has a whole website filled with job and internship offerings. I haven’t had much luck with it, but I know so many other people who have found amazing jobs from it. The best part about it is it pushes your resume a little further than people who apply on the general site because they know it is coming from a reputable school.
2. Use Linkedin
First of all, you have to be on linkedin. No matter what stage of life you are in set up a linkedin account right now. Simply add whatever is on your resume. And if you have nothing on your resume, add in your education and any significant volunteer experience. Employers now will not hire someone, even as an intern, if they do not have a linkedin account. There is also a section on Linkedin that has job and internship listings. The most helpful part about it is it reads through your profile and shows if you are a “match” for the position. It is also really helpful for college students because it shows how many alumni from your school work or have worked at the company.
3. Use Fashionista Jobs twitter
This is where I found my first ever internship in the fashion industry. I had been searching EVERYWHERE, and I mean everywhere, and I finally remembered Fashionista.com has a job section of their website and they have a twitter dedicated to job postings. I found the job 9 hours after it was tweeted, applied immediately and had an interview the next day. It was totally fate, and I went on to have the best time at my internship. I completely recommend checking them out because a lot of huge companies post their jobs on there and you never know what you might find.
They always have the job requirements clearly listed and a little about the company so you aren’t going in blind. Even if you aren’t looking for an internship right now, I also recommend looking at listings that interest you to get emails and contacts for future jobs.
4. Use your network
Every single one of us, whether we realize it or not, has a network of people. Just think about it; your parents have friends and friends of friends, your old coworkers have friends in different fields, your professors and teachers have connections to so many companies. USE THEM. If you are struggling to find an internship, ask around. I guarantee you will find at least one person who knows someone who knows someone who is in the industry and may be able to get you an interview.
5. Use websites like internships.com & indeed.com
These websites are a little hard to navigate, but there are tons and tons of internships listed. You can search by company, job title, job type and location. You are going to go insane trying to find an internship because of the insane amount listed, but if you narrow your search down you never know what you might find! Once you put in your resume into these sites, it is super easy to apply to multiple companies because you just click a button and it sends it automatically!
6. Go straight to the company
If you know a couple of companies that you would want to work for, go on their website. A lot of companies list their internships right on their corporate websites. Google search “Company Name Internships” and it might pull up the website. Here are a few that I have found.
7. Look for volunteer internships
I found my first internship by emailing a podcast that I was obsessed with and applying to help them with social media. This wasn’t a paid position, and I didn’t get any school credit, but I learned so much while I was there. It was such a FUN experience, I was doing something that I loved and met so many amazing people from it. I’m not telling you to go to an office and work every day 9-5 for free, that’s illegal and you really aren’t going to get that much out of it. But, look out for remote “internships” that you can do online. They give you something you can put on your resume that helps elevate you for future internships!
Feel free to comment any of your questions or suggestions down below! That was we can all help each other out 🙂
xoxo Gabriela
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