Who are you?
I’m Loes, 23 years old and a master student BDM. Since my first year I have been a member of Flow. I’m not an active member, but friends of mine are. Thanks to this I did join a lot of Flow activities in the past years.
Where did you do an internship? And when?
In the second half of my master I did an internship at RTL Netherlands, the largest media company in the country. Most people know RTL from television, but RTL is much more than that. Videoland, Buienradar, Pepper and Couverts are all part of RTL. It is a big company with many employees and different departments. I did an internship at channel communications. Their goal is to promote RTL’s programs. They do this by arranging interviews with papers and magazines, organizing photo shoots and press events and by getting presenters and actors to be in talk shows.
I did an internship from February to July 2016 at the Media Park in Hilversum, where the RTL headquarter is. It was a full-time internship, Monday to Friday from 09.00 to 17.30.
How did you end up there?
I first saw this internship on Facebook. I applied right away, because I knew this was what I wanted. I have lot of affinity with television and RTL programs and showed my enthusiasm during the first interview. After a few days I received a call and I got to come to the next round. I had to come to the office to make a case assignment in one hour. I had to write a press release about the All You Need Is Love Christmas Special with a new component I created myself. This way, they appealed to my creativity and my writing, the two things that are a must if you do an internship there. In addition, knowledge of and interest in the RTL television programs is a plus.
Why did you want to do an internship?
In my opinion, our study doesn’t really prepare us for the labour market. You learn a lot in total, but never really go into the depth. That’s something I really missed during my study. Therefore, I wanted to gain practical experience. In addition, you can study communication as a college study too and that includes an internship. I think graduates that did an internship have an advantage. Partly for this reason, I decided to look for an internship. And I have found one!
What did you do and learn at your internship?
Writing press releases (in collaboration with communications consultants), newsletters, looking for fragments of upcoming episodes to spread online, join communications consultants at interviews, talk shows and live shows, check newspapers and magazines for relevant messages for RTL (programs), and many other supporting activities were my daily activities. No day is the same and I got to know a lot of nice people.
Did you get study delay and/or a compensation?
Since my internship was fulltime and I lived in Hilversum, I could not follow any courses during my internship. That’s why it now takes me one and a half year to finish my master.
I received €350 stipend per month. This is a fixed amount paid by Media Internships. This organization regulates all internships in the Media Park. So, if you are looking for an internship at a company like RTL, keep an eye on Mediastages.nl!
