5 tips for excelling at your PR internship this summer

This year marks the fourth time I’m joining a new organization as an intern. Some experiences have been better than others, but I have learned from each opportunity.

If you’re starting your first internship this summer—or your fifth—here are five tips I’ve picked up along the way to help you.

1. Sit in on as many meetings as possible.

Although your supervisors may not involve you in high-level projects, make sure you’re inquiring about taking part in meetings and strategy sessions. That way, you can see how the organization operates.

Even if you don’t play a direct role in the meeting, at least offer to take notes and email a follow-up message to the employees involved. This is a good idea for a number of reasons:

• It shows initiative and reliability. Eventually your superiors will trust you with more important tasks.
• It helps you retain information. Your teachers have been right all along: Taking notes will help you better remember the important stuff.
• It breaks up the day. Do you really need a reason to get out of your cubicle to interact with others?

2. Offer to do projects that your supervisor may not have considered.