My dream internship denied me, so I applied again

Last summer I interned in Manhattan at a small PR company and activewear line. It was a fabulous opportunity and I learned a lot that would help me get to where I am in the fashion world (with two internships on both crucial parts of fashion). However, I did attempt to score an internship at Harper’s Bazaar last summer and it did not work out for a few reasons.

I began my internship quest last year around late April. Then May came around and I realized I had made no progress, so my stepmother made some calls and got me some emails to send my resume to. She happened to have a connection with someone at Harper’s Bazaar who told us that all spots were filled for the summer. It turned out that one department could still use an intern, so I interview with them. Of course, I had not yet had any experience in the fashion industry and only a bit of writing experience from my high school newspaper. They also wanted someone extremely computer savvy and I was no technician. It did not work out.

I was mildly upset that I had blown my shot, but I did end up with the other internship in addition to a design class at Parsons and had a fantastic summer. When I returned to school, I decided that I needed to do more things to get more fashion and publishing experience. I joined College Fashionista, took some business classes, started my communications major and looked for and joined more writing opportunities.

Learning about draping at Parsons

So my resume was a bit more polished. I had taken more classes on business and media, had an entire fashion blog, and now The Tab, which I was also an editor of. I contacted the same woman back at Harper’s Bazaar and she agreed to have someone interview me. With my new additions to my resume and, I’m assuming, my persistence I landed an editorial internship at Harper’s Bazaar for the summer of 2016. I also got an internship at Badgley Mischka where I am a sales intern learning all about the clothes and how to track their sales progress. I am absolutely loving it, and it’s all due to my hard work and dedication.

One of the most important lessons I learned from the experience was that every single addition to the resume counts. The PR firm was small, but it was a job and I learned a a lot. College Fashionista got me experience in writing about fashion and The Tab got me writing and managerial experience. Nothing is too small. Now I am a double intern working five days a week and am building a career that is headed in an amazing direction. Here I am, back in my favorite city, ready to conquer.