By Steven Jamail (Composer and MD)
This past week, I’ve spent more than my fair share of hours working in the recording studio and it’s made me especially grateful for my intern experience of yesteryear. I wish I could say that I planned and schemed for the opportunity to work at a theater label, but I sort of stumbled into it about ten years ago. The truth is, I had absolutely no idea what I was doing when searching for internships – particularly in the arts.
I wish a certain gal had been around when I was hunting. Her name is Lauren Berger – “The Intern Queen”. She’s built an empire around helping students and young professionals find opportunities. I am not only inspired by her work but by the career she’s created for herself. She possesses exactly the type of mindset, ingenuity and guile that lands you your dream job.
If you’re in the market for an internship, prepare yourself in two ways. First, get over getting paid. Look, I’m a big fan of artists (and everyone else) making money, but it doesn’t happen right away. You need credentials to be able to demand paying work and often the best opportunities come from low to no paying internships. Next, I highly recommend Lauren’s book. It’s a fast read and it’s full of common sense advice that I know I overlooked.
Happy Hunting.
Steven Jamail is a composer and MD in NYC www.stevenjamail.com
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