Are Internships Worth Pursuing?

Benefits of an Internship

So you’re a travel blogger, but you want to be a professional journalist. You want credibility and recognition.

That means building a portfolio of published articles, honing your skills to produce quality content, and developing a network of contacts with editors and publishers.

It means writing for prestigious media outlets, not just your own or others’ travel blogs.

But that can be a tough field to break into, even if you’ve been writing for a long time on your own website and have a decent number of readers (beyond your friends and family).

The fact is that there is a wealth of qualified, seasoned, professional journalists already in your competitive space.

Internships are an opportunity for a free education

So how do you accomplish your goal while avoiding years of being overlooked or having your submissions rejected?

As with nearly any other profession, an internship is a good way to get your foot in the door and learn from the experience and wisdom of those who’ve traveled the path before you.

While many people think of internships as unpaid slave labor, savvy go-getters realize that they can be opportunities to get a free education, taught by successful experts in their field.

Benefits of an Internship:

Most journalism internships will teach you:

  • How to do proper research and fact-checking, and how to find reputable sources
  • How to craft well-written articles that conform to a publication’s standards
  • How to select impactful but appropriate images
  • How how to communicate appropriately with editors and publishers (to get a ‘yes’!)

In addition, you’ll have an opportunity to network with publishing industry insiders, editors, and other freelance writers, and quite often — and most importantly — an opportunity to publish some of your own work with a byline.

For students, an internship can often provide course credit in your chosen degree.

For anyone, it looks good on a resume when applying at a media outlet.

So if you’re looking down your nose at an unpaid internship, but your writing career isn’t progressing as quickly as you’d like, maybe it’s time to change your POV.

Have you been, or hired, an intern? Share your experience!

About Trisha Miller 116 Articles
Trisha Miller Editor-in-Chief, TravelWritersExchange.com - Trisha joined the Travel Industry in 1996 with a background in telecommunications and helped to build (and later sell) one of the industry's top inbound call centers specializing in air travel. Her career in Travel Writing began with creating destination-specific content for a corporate travel intranet, and continued as she contributed content to a large number of travel-related companies that were establishing an online presence throughout the late '90's and early '00's. Currently she is a member of the Society of Professional Journalists, and a former Board Member of the International Food, Wine, and Travel Writers Association (2009-2015).  Still a frequent world traveler, and occasional guest-blogger on a number of other Travel Blogs, Trisha writes about travel and technology, sometimes both at the same time. You can follow Trisha on Twitter at: http://twitter.com/TravelWriting

1 Comment

Sorry, Commenting is automatically closed on all Posts older than two years.

Some links on this page do earn us a small amount of money if you click on them and make a purchase. Not much, maybe enough for a cup of coffee or a beer, but we would never recommend any item if we didn't believe in it's value to you. Plus, every little bit helps keep this site going and helps us continue to provide you with great information.  We appreciate your support!