Recently, we published an article on Julie Becker, an alumna who was able to convert an internship into a full-time job. It turns out that Ryan Alloway, who graduated in May 2009 with a degree in communications and a specialization in public relations, was on the same path at the same time at Discovery Communications in Silver Spring, Maryland (just outside of Washington, D.C.).

Discovery Communication offices in Silver Spring, Maryland

Discovery Communication offices in Silver Spring, Maryland

He started his internship just after Memorial Day and was going to end in late August, but his internship was cut short because he was offered a full-time position on July 2. His first official day was July 20, 2009. Read on for the exclusive CSN interview.

CSN: What prompted you to do an internship?

RA: Well, I had done an internship the previous summer (between my junior and senior year), but it wasn’t exactly the type of company I was looking for and I was extremely involved in television at MSU, so when I heard Discovery was coming to MSU in search of a couple people, I wanted to jump right at the opportunity. The offer was an amazing opportunity I couldn’t pass up. They even provided me with a place to stay and did all they could to make moving arrangements around my needs. I had always been interested in working for a media company in their realm with their level of credibility, so I would have been crazy to turn away from it.

CSN: How did you find your internship at Discovery and what was the application process like?

RA: I was contacted by the Club 181 staff at Communication Arts and Sciences informing me that Clark Bunting, president of Discovery Emerging Networks, was coming back to his alma mater in search of a few summer interns. At the time, I was the executive producer for the MSU Telecasters and had been interested in television for years, so when they asked me if I’d be interested, of course, I said, “Yes!” Clark interviewed several candidates right before spring break, and I believe I was made the offer not long after returning from break. From there we started making arrangements, and I left Memorial Day weekend.

CSN: What were your responsibilities at your internship? What was a typical day like?

RA: Well, first to be more specific, the internship was with Discovery Emerging Networks (a department within Discovery Communications) that produces what are known as the ‘emerging networks’: Science Channel, ID: Investigation Discovery, Military Channel, and HD Theater. While I helped to support several teams on those networks (including production, development, programming, marketing and communications), my main focus areas were production and development. I screened acquisitions and attended acquisitions/development meetings where I’d give my critique of the programs and if/how I could see them fitting into one of our networks; read over submitted program ideas from production companies and assisted in keeping track of them for future meetings/discussions; wrote a few marketing brief drafts; researched competitive programming and schedules; and uploaded programs in development into the employee viewing system. In other words, it truly was an awesome overlook of the many different aspects of a television network and an incredible way to spend a summer. Every day I sat down at my desk, started up my computer, reminded myself I wasn’t dreaming, and then most likely got to working on one of the things listed above.

CSN: How were you able to convert your internship into a full-time job?

RA: A few weeks into my internship, one of the people I had been doing some work for stopped by my desk and informed me of an opening in our research department. I quickly applied on our internal system and soon had an informational meeting with the person who is now my supervisor. Then we scheduled an HR screening and a formal interview. After this, they narrowed down candidates, and I was asked to interview with 2 other people from their team as well as complete a quiz. In total this was 4 interviews and a quiz over about a 3 week period. On the half day before the July 4 long holiday weekend, I received a call from HR with an official offer for the research analyst position.

CSN: If you had to pick one reason, why do you think they decided to offer you the job?

RA: If I had to pick one reason…I’d say I had good recommendations from those I worked for as an intern.

CSN: What is your job description and what are your responsibilities now?

RA: I am a research analyst for Investigation Discovery, Planet Green, and Discovery Health. My responsibilities include writing weekly ratings reports on these networks; assisting in the planning and execution of consumer research, such as program clip and brand testing in focus groups; researching schedules and program performance on competitive networks; and advising programming and marketing accordingly. I attend meetings with the programming, scheduling, and marketing teams to discuss this research and collaborate on programming the networks.

CSN: What was it like to transition from working as an intern to working as a full-time employee?

RA: It was very exciting! I was a bit nervous as well, but the team was so welcoming and helpful. I moved a few floors down into a full-sized cube, got a laptop instead in place of my desktop and had a lot of systems installed on my computer that I started getting trained on. My manager needed to start training me, so I actually began working with her before my official first day as a full-time, regular employee. On my first day, I had employee orientation, and from there on I’ve been learning how to do my job and am still learning as we have a number of projects going on.

CSN: What advice do you have for students who are hoping to convert an internship into a full-time job?

RA: My first piece of advice is to not expect it to just happen. Internships are a wonderful learning experience, but unlike how they [perhaps] used to be, they certainly do not guarantee employment. A lot of companies list their job postings on their internal webs before they publically post them and favor internal candidates. Check and apply yourself and don’t wait for someone to ask you if you’re interested in a position (if they even ask).

My second is to not be afraid to ask questions. Questions show you are genuinely interested and actually engaged in your work and often can impress your managers. Also, realize you’ll most likely be remembered for not only what you accomplished but for your attitude. Always stay positive, helpful and ready to learn even when you’re asked to do things that aren’t super fun. Don’t burn any bridges and keep that positive attitude with everyone you work with. You never know who might be in a position to hire you.

Lastly–this is for students with internships and college students in general: Start applying for jobs NOW. Don’t wait for them to just come to you. I know a handful of people who had this attitude and are still searching for jobs. Actually, I know a handful of people who applied every day and are still searching for jobs. I recommend setting a weekly quota for yourself. Something like, “I won’t allow myself to go to Burgerama on Thursday until I’ve applied for X amount of jobs.” There were quite a few weeks where I had to give up going out to catch up on applying for jobs, schoolwork, and Telecasters duties.

With an early start, persistence, a good attitude, and decent resume, your chances will be higher than those who wait until a few weeks before graduation to start applying.

Photo courtesy of: http://www.flickr.com/photos/icantcu/ / CC BY-NC 2.0