So you want to work in the fashion industry? Then, first you must intern somewhere. As midterms overwhelm us, we must all be reminded that summer will be upon us (and hopefully spring will hurry on up so I can break out those espadrilles and white dresses) which means that internship application time is … now. There are many areas one can go into in fashion: design, marketing, PR, advertising, publishing, copy, photography or coffee fetching. Some of these tips are specific to the fashion industry, but others might be good life lessons.
1. Interns are rarely paid: Seeing as the White House doesn't pay its interns, you might have tough luck seeking out a fashion internship with pay. There is a fine line between productive, mutually beneficial internships and exploited, unpaid labor. Some magazines and PR firms will pay for an unlimited bus or subway card, which they should. Otherwise, do not expect remuneration for your countless hours spent hauling clothes between publications or airbrushing a model's face. Your compensation is invaluable experience and contacts.
2. Smaller is usually better: From personal experience, the smaller a company is, the better your internship will be. Be it working with the publisher or accountant, personal interaction helps build lasting relationships and future job offers, things that rarely come about when you take orders from a secretary. With that said, there is serious brand recognition for working at a place like Vogue or GQ, which facilitates a holistic approach to learning fashion as an industry and moneymaker that a boutique publication or firm might lack.
3. Keep a black book: The global fashion industry is a very small world. Keep track of who knows whom in your office, of what designer the editor−in−chief loves or what model the designer says has a bad attitude. Don't snoop, don't spy. Be cognizant. It's a lot easier to approach a former boss when you have specific names and places and you are hoping for an entree.
4. Be on time but don't expect timeliness: As an intern you want to impress and always be on time. It's rude if you're not. Do not expect everyone else to abide by this guideline. Just like fashion shows never start more than 30 minutes after their supposed start time, the workday begins and ends later than a nine to five job. Blame it on all the late events and socializing that is mandatory…
5. Have style: This sounds rather obvious, but if you have seen "The Devil Wears Prada" (2006), you know what this means. Regardless of whether you are a thrift−store junkie or preppy, Barbour coat−wearing gent, have a look, have a style. Dress with purpose because in this industry, you can bet people judge you for it. Rules are more lenient in terms of what is office−appropriate (shorts in the summer — sure!) but flip−flops are never chic.
6. Self−edit your social media: Now that every major editor and DJ−cum−stylist−cum−Lord−knows−what has their own blog and Twitter feed and Pinterest board, interns should be allowed to tweet everything that they learn and hear on the job, right? Not true. Depending on where you work, there may be a strict rule against mobile uploads (obviously if you're working on editorials or a designer's newest collection) or blogging. Even if there's not, be wise. Yes, you want to impart knowledge or gossip or whatever, but don't use your Twitter feed (public or not) to rehash specific details.
7. Thank people: Don't grovel at every foot you work for, but thank the people who teach and guide you the most. Get email addresses so you can shoot off quick emails, and if someone went out of their way to mentor you, a handwritten note will certainly be remembered ,and so will you.
--
Elizabeth Landers is a junior majoring in political science. She can be reached at Elizabeth.Landers@tufts.edu.
