As I walked through the doors at 8THIRTYFOUR for the first time, I thought I was prepared for my first internship. Once I opened my computer and started to work on my first task, I soon realized I had a lot of learning to do.
I spent the last three years of college learning from a textbook. I did not have my first real client scenario until junior year. While it is important to understand the foundations and basic definitions of your career, I struggled to apply what I learned to a real workplace experience. It is one thing to read about what your job is going to be like, but actually doing it is where the true learning happens. After my first day at 8THIRTYFOUR, I realized that there was a gap in my learning because I spent the last three years worrying about turning in my assignments on time, going to class, and taking classes to fulfill my degree, but I was missing experience.
I have learned more in the few weeks that I have been at 8THIRTYFOUR than I have in the last three years. I started with learning how to check my email, keep up with Google Chats, navigate meetings, and stay on top of all my tasks. While it may sound simple, it is something I have never experienced before. When you are in class, the only thing you have to do is pay attention to the lecture and take notes. In the real world, a job is so much more than paying attention and following a weekly syllabus. I have gotten to experience many different aspects of what integrated communications truly means. From figuring out alt text to helping with pitches, I have built a strong foundation for what I will be doing in my first job post-grad.
Working with co-workers who are currently doing what I want to do has been impactful on my educational journey. I would never have known what alt text or metadata was if I hadn’t experienced it firsthand. I have gotten the chance to ask questions 1:1 about what I am doing and how I can improve. Working here has closed the gap between what I have been learning in the classroom to what I will be doing in my first job.
Getting real-world experience during undergrad is more beneficial than what people give it credit for. If I did not have the opportunity to ask questions, make mistakes, and learn from people working in the field every day, I would have walked into my first job and immediately failed. I would have spent the first month at my new job figuring out what to do rather than getting to work right away. Even though it might be scary at first, jumping into a real workplace environment will set you up for more success than a textbook ever will.
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