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Interview: Tell us about yourself
My name is Rebecca, I am 25 years old, and I am born and raised in Stockholm. During the last three years, I have studied Media and Communications at Stockholm’s University. I graduated in January this year, 2020, and then had my internship as a SEM/SEO Trainee at PHD during the spring.
Why did you choose your education?
Like many others, I applied for several different educations because I wasn’t sure what I wanted to study. For a couple of years, I had worked at a bank and travelled a lot and felt that something had to change. Once I had started the education, I was stuck; it was so rewarding. It was exciting and interesting to study the role of the media in society and its use in a historical and contemporary perspective.
What have you been doing at PHD?
My role in the search team during my internship was SEM/SEO Trainee. I learned how SEO and SEM work in practice and how PHD handles the business and process. Some of my main tasks were to perform keyword- and page structured analysis, build, implement and optimize SEM accounts and campaigns.
I have now been working in the Audio and Video team for one and a half years, and it is an entirely different way of thinking and working. It is inspiring to be back at PHD, and this time to work in another part of the agency. I think that gives me a greater perspective on the media industry.
How has it been so far your internship, and now as a coordinator?
It has been a very fun and transformative period. I wanted to learn as much as possible during my internship and be in a workplace where I had the opportunity to develop and take a lot of personal responsibility. I was working in the PHD’s office for a few weeks before we had to start operating from home because of Covid-19. The internship did not turn out entirely as my supervisors or I had intended, but it still worked very well. We had to adapt and make the best out of the situation. For example, we arranged meetings through Teams where everyone would wear fun hats to maintain the social aspect of our work.
I have learned a lot, everything from how a media agency operates and what the different teams do. Above all, I have grown as a person and felt enormous gratitude that PHD believed in me and that I have had the opportunity to remain as Coordinator in the amazing Audio and Video team. I am now trying to get acquainted with my new role, which is very exciting.
How was in the beginning when you started at PHD?
The first day I was a bit nervous and excited about what was to come. Both that it would be a fun and educational time but also a bit scary that I would not be able to keep up or understand anything. That feeling disappeared quite quickly since everyone was very welcoming. I got to introduce myself to the company at the Monday meeting and had a couple of weeks of onboarding to understand how everything worked at PHD. I valued the introduction because it made me feel more secure in my role as an intern.
What do you feel is your most valuable knowledge from this time?
The biggest lesson from my internship has been not to be afraid to ask what things mean or why we do things in a certain way. I also learned that some tasks might take time to understand. Colleagues you work with have been doing this for several years and should even know more than you, so not comparing too much is also a lesson I have learned.
Why do you think PHD is an attractive place to do an internship?
PHD is a great place to be if you want to be involved in your own learning and take a lot of personal responsibility. You will be working in an open, welcoming and genuine environment. The onboarding process will be reliable, and you will have the opportunity to gain insight into the other departments if that interests you. PHD works with both small and large brands, and in the media industry, things are constantly changing, which is very exciting to be a part of it.
