What an internship in talent relations taught me

By: Irma Negrete

In the Fall of 2020, amid the COVID-19 pandemic, I had my very first internship in talent relations. I felt incredibly proud and privileged that I was able to continue my training remotely. Being my first internship, I hadn’t tried out any other industry. I learned so much and gained valuable experience, but I also learned that the talent relations industry was not my cup of tea.

Throughout a student’s college career, we are constantly told by our professors how vital internships are, not only for the experience, but also to give us a taste of what we like and dislike. Don’t get me wrong, I loved my internship and all the people I got to work with. Every day was a new opportunity to learn a new skill that I could add to my resume. But, the downside was I was not enjoying the industry it was in. At first, I thought I wasn’t enjoying the internship as much because I was feeling overwhelmed by my college courses, but once the workload for my courses lightened up, I realized I just didn’t like the industry.

Before this internship, I just assumed talent relations was what I wanted to do, but low and behold, I was wrong. However, by gaining experience, that is how we learn what we do and don’t like. We have to try something before we are certain this is the path we want to continue on. This experience taught me something about myself and showed me how you truly have to put yourself out there and try out different industries in public relations. You never know you might also find that you love or dislike an industry you never expected to. Still, you’ll never know until you try.