I GOT IN!

As a communication student majoring in Public Relations, it had always been my dream to work in the No. 1 PR Agency in the world - Edelman! This company seemed to have everything : reputation, multinational environment, clients from big brands, good facilities and benefits, and most importantly, trainings for the employees' growth.

I applied for the internship position at Edelman during my tenure at LSPR Communication & Business Institute, and a few weeks later I got an invitation email for an interview. I walked into the company for the first time with a beaming heart, trying to suppress my overloading excitement because I needed to act composed for the interview. The ambience of the company was lovely - warm and relaxed.

The manager whom I would be working with under the Brands team interviewed me directly. Beyond my expectation, the interview was not hard nor intimidating. He was a kind and relaxed person. He did not treat the interview like a test I must pass. Instead, it was more of an exchange of ideas and values. I knew right away he was a great manager.

A week passed when I finally got a phone call from the company, telling me that I got the internship position. Being accepted into this company felt like a dream come true - to the point where I thought I might be living in one of Disney's movies. I couldn't be any happier.

However, after a week of working in Edelman, turns out - I fell even deeper in love.

It was the culture. I loved the open office, where everyone can talk directly to everyone. Even an intern could talk directly to the CEO, whom came very early every morning with a cup of coffee in his hands and greeted everyone cheerfully.

I experienced a horizontal culture for the first time. The managers and directors wanted and valued my ideas, I was not expected to only follow orders. This experience made me set my mind - I wanted to work in a company with horizontal culture too in the future.

Edelman pursues collaborative work, where every team can work together. They were very open to questions and were very supportive and helpful towards each other. If I needed any help or assistance, I could always ask to related personnel and they would help. If my teammates assigned a work to me which I did not understand how, they would teach me step by step. They fully understood that interns are still learning, therefore they need guidance and help.

My team would praise a good work without hesitation to motivate me to keep doing a good job. I was also allowed to access training materials and even join the training to learn and improve my knowledge. I was never expected to do trivial tasks such as buying coffee for the whole team or to do photocopy. In Edelman, they would not leave interns in the dark to do assigned tasks if they do not know how. Other teams were also helpful in giving insights.

My internship at Edelman was unforgettable. I was valued and given real work, and they would help me if I found any obstacles. The company culture was great, they collaborated inter-teams and were not reluctant in helping each other. There were also company events for certain celebrations, such as Halloween and Christmas. Interns were also allowed to join trainings, which would be very useful in gaining knowledge and skills as a Public Relations practitioner.