Here's how to... use work experience and internships to land your dream job

Getting a work experience or internship placement can be just as challenging as finding a job, (but you try telling that to my parents) and you quite often need a lot of time, patience and a strong personality to deal with the piles of rejections that you will no doubt receive. But that precious experience you get could be the difference between your CV getting picked over someone else's. So what's the best way to go about getting a placement?

In my experience I’ve found having an endless supply of coffee, tea, chocolate and cake helped me to keep going, so you could always take this approach if necessary. The main things to remember are that you will be rejected, sometimes people won’t reply, there will be times when you just have to sit down and cry but most importantly just keep reminding yourself that eventually someone WILL want to give you the chance to prove yourself.

I chose not to go to university, which has meant that for me to even have a chance at getting into a career in journalism I have had to spend hours upon hours applying for work experience. Because without it no one is even going to glance at my CV. Even writing for this here magazine means I can put my experience down on paper.

I read through a ridiculous amount of advice columns when I first started out, many of which proved to be undeniably useful. Bin the end this is how I personally went about getting work experience. Here are my tips for you:

First of all, make sure you think outside the box. I initially started my search by applying for office-based positions but in reality the first two placements I was given were both online. Without them I never would have gotten myself a work experience placement or an internship in a newsroom a few months later.

Don’t forget to check back through your CV on the odd occasion, I was horrified the first time I looked back through mine; no wonder no one wanted to hire me! It could always do with a bit of a spruce up and while you’re sitting around, filling your time by jumping every time the phone rings or an email pops into your inbox, is the perfect time to do it.

This point is vital; so read it, read it again and then read it a THIRD time: Make sure your cover letter really sells you but don’t waffle on for ages. I know that you will have heard it before. But especially if you're hoping to get into journalism, your cover letter is the first glimpse the editor gets of you. It's where you prove you can, y'know, actually string a sentence together. So makes it count! Make it polite but to the point, and I cannot emphasise this enough, personalise it! When I first started out I sent out a huge amount of generic emails but I didn't get one single reply. I realised where I was going wrong and began to look into the companies and shape my cover letter towards the specific position that I was applying for. Suddenly I started actually receiving replies, admittedly some of these were rejections but at least I was starting to hear from someone.

Don’t be cocky but make sure that you are confident. As I mentioned above I haven’t gone to university and this has made it vital that I at the very least act as if I know what I am going on about. It is imperative that in every phone call, email, letter or face-to-face interview that I am in I ensure that I am confident because if I don’t believe in my own abilities, without a degree to prove I am worthwhile hiring I don’t have a chance.

And don’t forget, once you have got yourself a position, you are still allowed to ask questions. My first internship was brilliant for a little while until I ran out of money and getting to and from London every week became impossible. Instead of just packing it in, I spoke to my editor and she allowed me to continue working from home; you never know if you don’t ask! I’ve also just secured myself another placement with a different magazine, but I wasn’t able to start on the date that they wanted me to and instead of just giving in; I simply asked if it was possible for me to begin on a different day, and it was!

All that is really left for me to say is good luck and don’t forget that being unemployed has some benefits. I mean c’mon, staying in bed all day long with a constant supply of tea while you apply for jobs really isn’t too bad! And I guarantee that when you do get yourself a placement you’ll be wishing you could get back to the lifestyle you have now.

By Shannon.

Fancy work experience at Stylist? The popular free magazine is looking for a feature's intern to start asap! Check their twitter for more details.