Ashley Latham
Senior Reporter

After arriving at her internship at Above Average Productions, Elena Dudum (’11) checks the schedule to see which celebrities are appearing on the show, runs around New York City looking for costumes and props, then reads and edits scripts before sitting in on a filming of a skit.

Now a junior attending Barnard College, Dudum has also interned at Oprah Magazine and Teen Vogue.

“I first applied through Barnard’s career website,” Dudum said. “I didn’t hear back after sending in my resume and cover letter. I did more research by going through Google and found a more general email. I also sent my resume to the Hearst Magazine Internship Program.”

Internships provide college students with job experience while still attending school as well as an opportunity to explore careers before entering the workforce, according to Dudum.

As a book intern, Dudum worked alongside a team at Oprah Magazine assisting a variety of editors from beauty, health, features, food and entertainment, and worked with the magazine’s blog.

Hearst Magazines, like many employers, requires interns to be enrolled in a degree program and receive college credit in lieu of financial compensation, according to the Hearst website.

While interning with Red Sox baseball team in the Cape Cod Baseball League, Katie Carlson (’11) even used her own money to relocate for the internship.

“The internship was not paid,” Carlson, who worked in merchandise, ticket sales, concessions, fundraising, and as a pro-scout liaison, said.

“I actually had to spend money out-of-pocket to rent a house and a car for both summers that I spent there, but it was definitely worth it,” Carlson said.

Pearl Plonsker (’11) also interned with the Yarmouth–Dennis Red Sox Cape Cod Baseball League, which according to Carlson, is the most prestigious summer league for college players.

While studying abroad for a semester in Beijing, Ina Herlily (’10) interned with the World Wildlife Fund in sustainable finance. Herlihy got her first internship, at Merrill Lynch, after her freshman year in college and received college credit for two of her three college internships.

Having an internship on a resume can help the job applicant and many college students find internships to be a helpful learning experience.

“I learned to not take ‘No’ for an answer,” Herlihy said about her internships. “The more I heard no, the more I kept on working and trying harder.”

Sixty percent of large companies consisting of 100 or more employees offered internships in 2012, according to Internships.com. Interning not only gives the experience of being in the job force, but it helps with potential jobs by providing a foot in the door for college students before they graduate.

Now a senior at Scripps College, Herlihy has a guaranteed job with Nestlé after a paid internship with the company this past summer.

Being well prepared for an internship is key to landing the job. Both Herlihy and Dudum credit their time at Convent and their experiences with leadership, in Broadview for Herlihy and Student Council for Dudum, as readying them for their internships.

“Coming from Convent and being in Student Council made me very prepared,” said Dudum. “I was able to talk to adults and communicate and kind of be a go-getter.”