How do I Choose the Best Event Planning Internship?

In order to choose the best event planning internship, one must consider the types of event planning that one is most interested in. For example, if a student is interested in working in corporate events, then she should try to get an event planning internship with a company that specializes in corporate events. If, on the other hand, the student is mot interested in planning weddings, she should try to get an event planning internship with a wedding planner.

If there is not an internship available in a student's specific area of interest, she should try to get an internship in a kind of event planning that is at least somewhat related. For example, if a student is interested in working as an event planner in the music industry, interning at a record label is a good way to begin to learn about the business, even if it does not relate directly to event planning. Internships are all about getting a sense of an industry and beginning to make contacts, so taking an internship in one's field of interest is always useful even if the internship is not directly related one's ultimate career goals.

Choosing an event planning internship means choosing between a large event planning company and a smaller company that may be owned by just one or two people. An event planning internship at a larger company will give an intern a sense of how large-scale events are planned and managed. However, working for a large company may mean spending a good deal of time sending faxes and making coffee. An event planning internship at a smaller company may only expose an intern to smaller events, but is more likely to allow the intern to work with people higher up in the company and perhaps learn more about the business.

Another difference between taking an event planning internship with a large or small company is the likelihood of getting a job with the company when the internship is over. Smaller firms have smaller staffs and, therefore, fewer occasions to hire new staff members. Larger companies, however, have larger staffs and may have room to hire an intern who impresses her superiors. However, if an intern can land a job with a smaller firm, it is likely that her first job will be more directly related to the work of event planning and less based on daily office tasks.