Tips for success at university: Media & communications

It’s often daunting thinking about finishing your university degree. Good advice, experience and knowledge can help you have success at university and beyond.

Specifically, if you are studying a media, communications or public relations degree, it’s important to gain experience in the field you want to work in, to ensure you feel comfortable when you enter the workforce.

This article is going to run through some key things to do while completing your communications degree to enable you to step confidently into the real world once you graduate.

3 unpaid internships

Get at least three unpaid internships in a few different fields you are interested in. You might be thinking, “THREE?!”, but trust us, the more unpaid work experience you get, the better your chances of employment.

Potential employers will regard you as hard working, determined and motivated. This will give you the upper edge on other applicants who don’t have any real world experience. It will also help you when you land your first job – you’ll be used to the office lifestyle, its culture, what’s expected of you during team meetings and you’ll know how to deliver professional work.

Isobel Gordon, Administrative Assistant at Adoni Media, says that getting used to a work environment is really important for new graduates.

Written references

After every internship, make sure you get written references from the team members responsible for you. Try to get them signed and returned to you before you leave.

These written references are key for potential employers who will want to know what type of tasks you completed and how you handled them.

Portfolio of written content

Always ensure you keep copies of any written content you complete in a portfolio that can be presented to potential employers during a job interview or similar scenario. They may want to see your writing style and different aspects of your presentation skills.

Stay positive

Completing a communications degree is hard work but remember the end goal and the incredible feeling of achievement once you’ve finished.

Keep up with the news

Keep up with the news, current affairs and daily stories in the media. Being a PR professional means you need to be across the stories before they even happen. So make sure you read the news daily and keep up to date with the news as well as different trends – even while you’re studying!

So, there you have it, five top tips to get the most out of your years of study media and communications. Remember, nobody is perfect, and everyone is always learning. You’re allowed to make mistakes!