Applying for your first internship can feel overwhelming.
Between polishing your resume and wondering whether you’re ‘qualified enough’, it’s easy to feel intimidated before you’ve even started.
So, we sat down with marketing students – and recent interns – Siya Bakshi and Wern Chien Cheah to hear their advice for prospective interns (i.e., you).
Their biggest message? You don’t have to have everything figured out to get started.
You don’t need to feel ready before you apply
One of the biggest misconceptions students have about internships is that they need to be completely prepared before applying.
But both Siya and Wern Chien were motivated by curiosity, not confidence.
‘I wanted to make sure that I got industry experience before I graduated,’ says Siya. ‘Getting into MMSS really helped. It paved the way for me to get some experience, and helped me to approach companies more confidently because I had that credential on my resume.’
Wern Chien’s path looked a little different.
‘I kind of just came across the internship listing on Indeed after graduating high school, and thought I’d try my luck,’ she says. ‘I wanted to give myself a head start for university, and fortunately, I was selected.’
It goes to show that internships aren’t reserved for students who already know everything. If you’re hungry to learn, there’s something waiting for you.
Standing out starts before the application
When it came to securing opportunities, neither Siya nor Wern Chien relied on simply clicking ‘Apply’ and hoping for the best. Instead, they focused on showing initiative and making the most of the experiences they already had.
‘I sat down and made a portfolio,’ Siya explains. ‘I tailored my resume according to every single company that I was reaching out to.’
She also took a proactive approach to finding opportunities. ‘I ended up researching companies and emailing them directly to see if they had an opening or would be interested.’
For Wern Chien, experience outside the classroom helped build confidence and experience. ‘During high school, I participated in a lot of events and took on roles like prom creative director, yearbook photography director and public relations in student-led organisations,’ she says. ‘I think all these small roles built up my skills and helped me with my resume.’
Her advice is simple: ‘Put yourself out there and participate in whatever opportunity you can get.’
And if you feel like you don’t have enough feathers in your cap? There are plenty of leadership roles, student clubs, volunteering and personal projects you can get involved in right here at Monash. It all adds up.
What the first week actually feels like
Ask any student about their first day as an intern and you’ll probably hear the same thing: relentless nerves.
‘I was very nervous because I didn’t know what to expect,’ Siya says. ‘I wanted to make a good first impression.’
To prepare, she researched everything from internship routines to workplace outfits. ‘I was looking at TikTok videos of people going to internships and taking notes on what people were doing on their first day.’
Wern Chien felt the same. ‘I was really, really stressed,’ she recalls. ‘So nervous!’
But once they arrived, their nerves were quickly settled.
‘They know that because you’re a uni student, you’re not going to know everything,’ Wern Chien says. ‘Once I understood that, I felt more comfortable asking my team questions, which helped me learn much faster.’
Making the most of your internship experience
The stereotype of interns spending their days making coffee and photocopies still exists, but both Siya and Wern Chien found their experiences were far more meaningful.
‘I was given quite a lot of tasks that were very relevant to marketing,’ says Wern Chien. ‘I worked on brand campaigns, content creation and even represented the company at events like Fashion Week.’
She thinks the key is being intentional about where you apply. ‘Make sure they’re the type to guide you and not just hiring you because you asked for an internship.’
Siya agrees. ‘I was trying to be as specific as possible about what I wanted to learn,’ she says.
She also learned the value of taking initiative. ‘When I saw my coordinator was really busy, I asked if there was anything I could help with,’ she says. ‘She appreciated that.’
The common theme? The more proactive you are, the more you’ll get out of the experience.
Managing uni, work and everything else
Balancing an internship with the rest of your life isn’t easy, as Siya and Wern Chien discovered.
‘My calendar was pretty full,’ Siya laughs. ‘I was in two clubs, working full time and studying a summer unit at the same time.’
For Wern Chien, balance didn’t come to her naturally at first. ‘I would be doing work-related stuff even outside work hours because I was hyper-focused on going above and beyond,’ she says.
Eventually, she realised something needed to change. ‘I was neglecting my social life,’ she says. ‘After that, I told myself that I’d focus on work from 9 to 5, and outside of that, I’d switch off.’
That balance is imperative for internship success. So, for those of you convincing yourselves that to excel means to burn out, stop!
When imposter syndrome creeps in
Of course, the question of whether you’re good enough will likely rear its ugly head.
‘When I was applying for opportunities, I was like, why am I doing this to myself?’ Siya admits. ‘I was getting rejection after rejection.’
As an international student, she felt additional pressure to prove herself. But over time, she learned to recognise how much effort had gone into getting where she was. ‘People don’t see how long it took you to get there,’ she says. ‘The emailing, the research and reaching out to people constantly. But it does pay off eventually.’
Wern Chien experienced similar feelings. ‘I was the youngest person at the office, and I often wondered, why am I here?’ she says. ‘I really felt like I didn’t know anything.’
One moment during Fashion Week stands out for Wern Chien. Surrounded by influencers and celebrities, she began to panic before her supervisor stepped in with some perspective-changing advice.
‘She told me, “Remember this is what you’re passionate about. Don’t turn it into something scary,”’ Wern Chien recalls.
What internship success really looks like
When students think about internships, it’s easy to focus on outcomes like graduate offers or other employment.
But both Siya and Wern Chien believe success doesn’t need to look so black-and-white.
‘If I’ve learned something from the internship, then it was successful,’ says Siya. ‘I’ve done two marketing internships during my time at university, and I didn’t do either to get a return offer.’
She also encourages students not to see rejection as failure. ‘Rejection is redirection,’ Siya says. ‘If one opportunity doesn’t pan out, there’s obviously something better coming your way.’
Wern Chien shares a similar perspective. She believes authenticity matters most. ‘Just be genuinely there to learn,’ she says.
So, to anyone on the cusp of going for an internship opportunity?
‘Don’t be afraid of sending that email, because you don’t know what it can lead to.’
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