Ever since I have switched majors at the start of my college career, I’ve had the most amazing time pursuing what I actually want. Sure, majoring in Supply Chain Management would have been a great opportunity, but my heart wasn’t in the classes I took. I knew I wanted to pursue Communication, but I was unsure of which field exactly. After speaking to multiple academic advisors, I finally set my sight on public relations. It was something unknown, but after completing multiple PR classes, I had come to realize that PR was something I could enjoy doing for a long time. I knew I wanted to be in a creative field, but I also wanted a job that was challenging and always kept me on my toes.

Life (and internships) don’t have to be perfect to be wonderful, and true professionals can do anything to make a sticky situation lighter through treating people with humanity and optimism. There are the two greatest lessons I’ve learned through my time interning at JMG, and I truly consider this to have been the semester of a lifetime (in more ways than one).

I’ve always had an interest in the arts and entertainment industry, but was never really a performer. Instead, I looked into the business aspect of it and that’s where I discovered public relations. PR has always fascinated me since high school and was always curious what this particular field was like. Throughout my college career, I bounced between majors and interests, but public relations was something that I’ve always kept in the back of my mind. Just like in PR where we constantly take risks, I decided to take the risk of my own and chose this path.

Throughout my college career, it has always been my goal to take advantage of every possible opportunity that came my way. It was a big reason that I knew I wanted to move to New York City to be able to have experiences and opportunities I wouldn’t otherwise be exposed to.

Ever since a young age, I was always drawn towards the arts. I owned piles of sketchbooks, and my school notes were filled with drawings. Throughout high school, I was the designated student to decorate the school halls for holidays and special events, create theater sets, and design the yearbook. Once I started college and began exploring different career options, I accepted the fact that I would not be able to combine my hobby with my job. I was disheartened, and I couldn’t help but ask why “growing up” meant sacrificing doing what I love. JMG PR showed me that my profession and artistic abilities can go hand-in-hand.

The latter part of last year I was spending a lot of time contemplating the inevitable; I was due to graduate in 6 months and I still had no idea where to begin looking for jobs. Though it’s not easy to decide where you want to go in life, the first step seemed like the hardest for me. Sooner or later I knew I had to face the daunting question: what career do I envision myself excelling at?

There are not enough words to express how grateful I am for the experiences I got from interning at JMG Public Relations. My school doesn’t offer a PR major, so coming in I was clueless. My first day, Jenna asked me to do a mockup and I had no idea what that even was or where to start. Lucky for me, I was the last of the summer interns to arrive, so I had two amazing women to guide me through it.

Interning for JMG Public Relations has been a true honor. I entered the company with certain expectations and they were exceeded every single time. From the company culture to the work/life balance to the overall learning experience. Being that this internship was not my first, I still managed to learn a lot. No day was like the other at JMG PR, we took on the day with whatever was to be prioritized first which kept things interesting.

As my time at JMGPR is coming to end, I reflect on my experience here and can't believe that I made it. My first day at JMG Public Relations was nothing short of exciting and nerve-wracking. Waking up in the morning, getting ready for the day and actually walking in and working was exactly what I've been looking forward to since finding out I was going to have my first internship.

Walking into the office was nerve-wracking. Nerves I didn’t even know I had were trembling, twisting my stomach into knots. I had been preparing for this day since November, when I heard back that I was going to intern with Jenna. I had chosen my outfit days before, packed my bag the previous night, and barely slept.