Confessions of a Former Intern:
Myths of Internships
Myths of Internships
By: Jay Epperhart
Why is it beneficial to be an intern?
When trying to break into an industry you may have experienced the catch-22 of not being hired because you do not have enough experience, and not having enough experience because no one will hire you. While most major companies refuse to hire a full-time worker with little or no experience, they will jump at the chance to hire that same person on a "temporary" basis for little or no pay. Thus we have internships! As an intern you receive an invaluable learning experience and get on-the-job-training from industry professionals. Add to that the opportunity to make contacts, build a portfolio, and possibly be hired by the company, and suddenly an internship seems like a godsend to someone entering in the limbo of post-educational unemployment.
But I am sure you already knew that.
Maybe you just started school and want to prepare for the forthcoming step of getting an internship. Maybe you are almost finished with school and suddenly realize that once you receive that diploma you are not guaranteed the dream job you planned on when you first started ("Once I graduate, those studios will be fighting over each other to have me!") Maybe you are stuck in that post-educational limbo and are trying desperately to get a job/internship but have deluded yourself into thinking there is no way you can get those "great" internships at major studios. Or maybe you already work at a top studio and want to laugh at someone who thinks they know anything about internships. In any case, the powers that be asked me to write an article based on my own experiences as an intern at a high profile animation studio to help those of you who have not achieved their dream jobs yet and by golly I'm going to try my best.
Let me preface this article by saying that there is no "right way" to get an internship. You have many options in this field and I can only give you advice based on my experiences and the experiences of friends and mentors with whom I have discussed the topic (and are also from studios such as Pixar, ILM, Dreamworks, etc.) This month I will discuss the myths of getting internships and in future articles I will focus on how to make contacts and get the most out of your internship.
Myth #1: If you don't know someone at the company you don't have a chance.
First of all, everyone has a chance at an internship. And you don't have to know someone. But it really helps your chances if you do. While you can get an internship with a great portfolio alone, having a contact to walk your portfolio through the selection process definitely raises your chances of being selected. Unfortunately, when many potential interns hear this they give up because they do not know anyone. Just because you don't know anyone now doesn't mean you can't make contacts for future internships.
Why does knowing someone help? Studios receive thousands of applications every year, and narrowing them down to 20-30 potential candidates is a daunting task. Recruiters not only have to gauge the students' skill but also their work ethic and ability to work in a professional environment. Choosing a few interns from the 20 to 30 qualified students is also very difficult, especially when those students have the same caliber of work. But if a student has a contact in the company who can speak for them and verify they have a good work ethic then the recruiters' jobs are much easier. Making this contact is a subject for a future article but I will say it is easier than you think. So while this myth isn't completely false, it can be easily bypassed by making contacts you didn't realize you could make.
Myth #2: You have to go to a "prestigious" school to get the top internships.
While this may have been true a few decades ago it definitely does not apply now. The reason "prestigious" schools help students get internships is because the schools have contacts in the industry. And once again, having a contact really helps your chances. On the other hand, going to a "prestigious" school with hundreds of students all competing for a chance to meet the school's few contacts does not help your chances. Why pay "prestigious" tuition prices for a chance to meet a contact when with a little research, ambition, and a lot of sincerity you can make your own contacts?
Also, many of these schools emphasize the wrong elements in their teachings, elements which are unnecessary and take the focus away from skills needed to get an internship. I've spoken to many employees who mentioned they learned more during their internships than they did while attending their "prestigious" school. Attending one of these schools does not guarantee a "prestigious" education. These schools are not bad; they just are not the guaranteed success stories many make them out to be. If you have the talent and work ethic to teach yourself the skills you lack then having access to a school's facilities and contacts can be beneficial. Then again, if you have the talent and work ethic then why pay their high tuition prices for access to contacts you can make on your own?
I had an eye-opening experience regarding the last piece of advice. During my internship, I visited a highly-recommended art school to research their graduate program. When interviewed by a department director, I was asked to describe my goals in attending their program. I said I wanted to develop my skills so I could be hired full-time at the company at which I interned. Upon hearing this, the director replied "But you already work there, why do you need to come here?" I stated that my skills were not yet at a professional level and I wanted to hone them at a well-respected school that had ties to my dream job. To which he replied "But you already work there, why do you need to come here?" Again, if you have the drive, work ethic, and an ability to make contacts you do not need to go to a "prestigious" school to get a good internship.
Myth #3: Studios hire interns based on their college degree.
In other industries this can be true. But in an art-based industry you are hired based on your work, not your degree or educational pedigree. All things being equal, a person without a college degree will be hired over someone with a MFA if their portfolio is better than the MFA holder's portfolio. While a college degree may demonstrate a person's work ethic and perseverance, it does not guarantee talent or job placement. Sure, many schools advertise a high job placement average, but what they don't advertise is what jobs qualify as being "placed." I know of a few art school grads working at fast food restaurants after graduating who were surprised to learn they were counted as among the 98% with jobs.
When it comes to your education, you get what you put into it. The artists who have great portfolios/reels are the ones who work hard and continually strive to perfect their craft. It doesn't matter if they do this at the top school in the country or their local community college. While a good school may give you more learning opportunities, it is up to you use them. But once you have a great portfolio/reel it is time to get it to the studio with the help of your contacts.
Don't get me wrong. I highly recommend going to a college to further your studies, especially if you intend to work in the technical areas of the industry. Many internships require you to be a junior or senior to qualify. But don't delude yourself by thinking that going to the top school or getting a specific degree greatly improves your chances of getting an internship. In the end getting an internship comes down to two factors: your portfolio/reel and possibly having someone to shepherd that portfolio/reel to the right people in the company. A school can help you build a good portfolio/reel and possibly help introduce you to a contact, but it is up to you to nurture those skills and contacts. While a school will try to take the credit if you get a job at a major studio, they won't take the blame if you fail on all accounts.
And those are the myths regarding internships and, to a lesser extent, the educational pedigree required for them. Again, there is no "right way" to get an internship and these myths are based on observations and conversations made during my own internship. During my orientation, the recruiter asked each intern to describe how they got there. From the replies I learned 80% of the interns knew a past or present employee (often an ex-intern), two interns went to a "prestigious" school visited by a recruiter, and one intern went to an obscure school but had a phenomenal reel which won over everyone who saw it. Everyone there had great portfolios and strong work ethics but for many it took the extra helping hand of an industry mentor to help them get the internship. So continually strive to improve your work and in future articles I will discuss the dos and don'ts of making the contacts that can help guide your portfolio/reel to the right hands.
Jay Epperhart is currently in his third term at Animation Mentor. Prior to attending Animation Mentor he earned a digital arts degree from Henderson State University and moved to San Francisco for an art internship at a major animation studio. You can find his animations and other works at www.JayEpperhart.com.
When trying to break into an industry you may have experienced the catch-22 of not being hired because you do not have enough experience, and not having enough experience because no one will hire you. While most major companies refuse to hire a full-time worker with little or no experience, they will jump at the chance to hire that same person on a "temporary" basis for little or no pay. Thus we have internships! As an intern you receive an invaluable learning experience and get on-the-job-training from industry professionals. Add to that the opportunity to make contacts, build a portfolio, and possibly be hired by the company, and suddenly an internship seems like a godsend to someone entering in the limbo of post-educational unemployment.
But I am sure you already knew that.
Maybe you just started school and want to prepare for the forthcoming step of getting an internship. Maybe you are almost finished with school and suddenly realize that once you receive that diploma you are not guaranteed the dream job you planned on when you first started ("Once I graduate, those studios will be fighting over each other to have me!") Maybe you are stuck in that post-educational limbo and are trying desperately to get a job/internship but have deluded yourself into thinking there is no way you can get those "great" internships at major studios. Or maybe you already work at a top studio and want to laugh at someone who thinks they know anything about internships. In any case, the powers that be asked me to write an article based on my own experiences as an intern at a high profile animation studio to help those of you who have not achieved their dream jobs yet and by golly I'm going to try my best.
Let me preface this article by saying that there is no "right way" to get an internship. You have many options in this field and I can only give you advice based on my experiences and the experiences of friends and mentors with whom I have discussed the topic (and are also from studios such as Pixar, ILM, Dreamworks, etc.) This month I will discuss the myths of getting internships and in future articles I will focus on how to make contacts and get the most out of your internship.
Myth #1: If you don't know someone at the company you don't have a chance.
First of all, everyone has a chance at an internship. And you don't have to know someone. But it really helps your chances if you do. While you can get an internship with a great portfolio alone, having a contact to walk your portfolio through the selection process definitely raises your chances of being selected. Unfortunately, when many potential interns hear this they give up because they do not know anyone. Just because you don't know anyone now doesn't mean you can't make contacts for future internships.
Why does knowing someone help? Studios receive thousands of applications every year, and narrowing them down to 20-30 potential candidates is a daunting task. Recruiters not only have to gauge the students' skill but also their work ethic and ability to work in a professional environment. Choosing a few interns from the 20 to 30 qualified students is also very difficult, especially when those students have the same caliber of work. But if a student has a contact in the company who can speak for them and verify they have a good work ethic then the recruiters' jobs are much easier. Making this contact is a subject for a future article but I will say it is easier than you think. So while this myth isn't completely false, it can be easily bypassed by making contacts you didn't realize you could make.
Myth #2: You have to go to a "prestigious" school to get the top internships.
While this may have been true a few decades ago it definitely does not apply now. The reason "prestigious" schools help students get internships is because the schools have contacts in the industry. And once again, having a contact really helps your chances. On the other hand, going to a "prestigious" school with hundreds of students all competing for a chance to meet the school's few contacts does not help your chances. Why pay "prestigious" tuition prices for a chance to meet a contact when with a little research, ambition, and a lot of sincerity you can make your own contacts?
Also, many of these schools emphasize the wrong elements in their teachings, elements which are unnecessary and take the focus away from skills needed to get an internship. I've spoken to many employees who mentioned they learned more during their internships than they did while attending their "prestigious" school. Attending one of these schools does not guarantee a "prestigious" education. These schools are not bad; they just are not the guaranteed success stories many make them out to be. If you have the talent and work ethic to teach yourself the skills you lack then having access to a school's facilities and contacts can be beneficial. Then again, if you have the talent and work ethic then why pay their high tuition prices for access to contacts you can make on your own?
I had an eye-opening experience regarding the last piece of advice. During my internship, I visited a highly-recommended art school to research their graduate program. When interviewed by a department director, I was asked to describe my goals in attending their program. I said I wanted to develop my skills so I could be hired full-time at the company at which I interned. Upon hearing this, the director replied "But you already work there, why do you need to come here?" I stated that my skills were not yet at a professional level and I wanted to hone them at a well-respected school that had ties to my dream job. To which he replied "But you already work there, why do you need to come here?" Again, if you have the drive, work ethic, and an ability to make contacts you do not need to go to a "prestigious" school to get a good internship.
Myth #3: Studios hire interns based on their college degree.
In other industries this can be true. But in an art-based industry you are hired based on your work, not your degree or educational pedigree. All things being equal, a person without a college degree will be hired over someone with a MFA if their portfolio is better than the MFA holder's portfolio. While a college degree may demonstrate a person's work ethic and perseverance, it does not guarantee talent or job placement. Sure, many schools advertise a high job placement average, but what they don't advertise is what jobs qualify as being "placed." I know of a few art school grads working at fast food restaurants after graduating who were surprised to learn they were counted as among the 98% with jobs.
When it comes to your education, you get what you put into it. The artists who have great portfolios/reels are the ones who work hard and continually strive to perfect their craft. It doesn't matter if they do this at the top school in the country or their local community college. While a good school may give you more learning opportunities, it is up to you use them. But once you have a great portfolio/reel it is time to get it to the studio with the help of your contacts.
Don't get me wrong. I highly recommend going to a college to further your studies, especially if you intend to work in the technical areas of the industry. Many internships require you to be a junior or senior to qualify. But don't delude yourself by thinking that going to the top school or getting a specific degree greatly improves your chances of getting an internship. In the end getting an internship comes down to two factors: your portfolio/reel and possibly having someone to shepherd that portfolio/reel to the right people in the company. A school can help you build a good portfolio/reel and possibly help introduce you to a contact, but it is up to you to nurture those skills and contacts. While a school will try to take the credit if you get a job at a major studio, they won't take the blame if you fail on all accounts.
And those are the myths regarding internships and, to a lesser extent, the educational pedigree required for them. Again, there is no "right way" to get an internship and these myths are based on observations and conversations made during my own internship. During my orientation, the recruiter asked each intern to describe how they got there. From the replies I learned 80% of the interns knew a past or present employee (often an ex-intern), two interns went to a "prestigious" school visited by a recruiter, and one intern went to an obscure school but had a phenomenal reel which won over everyone who saw it. Everyone there had great portfolios and strong work ethics but for many it took the extra helping hand of an industry mentor to help them get the internship. So continually strive to improve your work and in future articles I will discuss the dos and don'ts of making the contacts that can help guide your portfolio/reel to the right hands.
Jay Epperhart is currently in his third term at Animation Mentor. Prior to attending Animation Mentor he earned a digital arts degree from Henderson State University and moved to San Francisco for an art internship at a major animation studio. You can find his animations and other works at www.JayEpperhart.com.