Exploring a New Territory – My Internship Story at Fairfax, Sydney
When I first got confirmation that I’d be interning at Fairfax, I assumed I would be a marketing intern. Turned out I was to work in the Research team, which was exciting and scary at the same time – I had absolutely no idea what they had in store for me! Who would’ve guessed that I would end up developing a soft side for the Market Research industry?
Working in a completely new field at Fairfax helped me decide my career path. I think every future jaguar should be open-minded and learn skills from diverse fields – this will go a long way in giving you a clear picture of what to pursue in the future. Moreover, like one of our professors here at SP Jain stated, “it’s always good to know a little bit of a lot rather than a lot of a little.”
At Fairfax, I was a Product Research Intern, working on a bunch of assignments to determine consumer preferences and enhance customer satisfaction. I was always being taught something different and it was a lot of fun to interact with people from various teams – they were kind and welcoming, pushing my self-esteem to the top. Being Australia’s leading media company, Fairfax has plenty of interesting jobs; but what stood out for me was that they also have data scientists!
My internship experience was substantially enhanced by the tri-city learning model at SP Jain, which helped me improve my presentation, teamwork, and communication skills, all of which reflected in my performance at Fairfax. During my BBA, there were several occasions where I used to have multiple assignments to complete within a week. Learning to multi-task and submit these assignments on time played a massive role in preparing me for my role at Fairfax – I could complete my tasks swiftly without being overwhelmed by the workload.
My advice to all the future jaguars would be to try and diversify your skills as much as possible before you become an SPJ Jag. Yes, it is crucial to have professional experience; but you’ll need much more than that to be considered for exciting internship and work opportunities. Whether it’s swimming, dancing or writing poems, having a list of extra-curricular activities on your CV will help organisations understand your personality better, which will eventually increase your chances of gaining professional opportunities. The soft skills gained from your extra-curriculars will also help you at SP Jain – your creative writing skills might help you in writing better essays, or your football skills might help you build your own team and network with people sharing your interests.
About the Author: Kiran Ganesh (BBA Student)
Kiran Ganesh is a third year BBA student at SP Jain, specialising in Marketing. A trained pianist, Bharatanatyam dancer and Carnatic singer, Kiran has worked with Ericsson AB (Dubai) as both a TV & Media intern and a CSR intern, Jotun Paints (UAE) as an HR & Marketing intern, and with Fairfax (Sydney) as a Product Research intern.
Kiran was also part of the 7 teams selected from Singapore for a workshop at Merck & Co. Pharmaceuticals (Singapore), where her team carried a detailed research and came up with a feasible design of a device that could possibly eliminate biomarkers (Cancer cells) from the body.
She is currently interning with Etihad Airways (UAE), helping them with In-flight Retail and is also looking to further enhance her extracurricular skills.
