Georgina Newham – The New World of Remote Internships: Working with Purpol Marketing

I’m sure all of us graduating right now imagined an entirely different year with many of us having to change our plans to align with what is now normal. A part of that is companies canceling many of their internship programs due to their offices simply not being open. That is when I found a wealth of remote internships that allowed graduates like myself to work with a company through the magic of zoom calls. I was (thankfully) chosen to work with Purpol Marketing through one of these opportunities and wanted to express why I believe this form of an internship is a valuable thing for graduates and students.

Working at your own pace

From the time I’ve spent in an office or workspace trying to complete a project I know it can feel like a pressure cooker. As an intern, you can feel like you are constantly being inspected to check you are fulfilling your role. With the remote format, I could ask for support if needed but was left to my devices in terms of my working hours and working habits. This flexibility is so important when working with students and was a valuable asset to me.

Opportunities regardless of location

With students scattered to winds when lockdown came into effect many were worried about gaining experience or getting a job in their hometown. For myself, I stayed in Bath as there are very few jobs that appeal to me in my little Welsh farming town. And there are so many more people that deal with this issue. By having an opportunity open to more than people in the area of the company, you not only benefit those who live in hard to reach places but as an employer, you get a wide variety of people from different backgrounds that can have different and valuable input from your business.

And obviously, experience

At the end of the day, doing a degree is great but the only way to get experience is to get experience. When companies are willing to offer opportunities to work with them it can make a world of difference to future employability and can be the difference between getting and not getting a job. Internships are necessary for graduates entering job marketing and we all appreciate any company that wants to work with us.

It feels rare that a company seems to genuinely want to help students who need experience and I feel lucky to have been given this chance by Denise. I learned so much about the world of marketing from both an expert in the field and my fellow interns who all took the project in different directions. Sharing our take on the marketing strategy was so important as a learning opportunity and I am excited to learn even more as I continue down this career path.