Work Experience At Girlfriend Magazine | Tips

So in September 2014 I went to Girlfriend Magazine, which is located in Sydney, for work experience. Before leaving for work experience I tried to read up as much as possible on what to expect and some tips on what to do. These provided helpful tips and resulted in me having an amazing week at a magazine. However I didn't find much to help me. So I decided to write a bit on my experience at Girlfriend Magazine and any tips or tricks I have.

Now, a little disclaimer. I was only at work experience for one week and lots of different projects were happening. The team was so lovely and welcoming and so were the other workies. I'm basing these tips on what I experienced. Some may work for you, others may not. I cant stress this enough. The overall advice is to act professional and be yourself!


Apply Ahead Of Time

Work experience spots at highly sort after places fill up fast, so plan ahead. In late 2013 I saw positions were open for 2014 for work experience at Girlfriend magazine. Quickly, I emailed them inquiring about doing work experience in September the next year. Applying early means less pressure on yourself and the place your applying to. I think applying a year in advance probably isn't needed as a girl I was doing work experience with (who I hadn't met prior) said she applied in the middle of 2014. But to secure a spot, apply a couple of months before the date of work experience is a good idea.

 

Dress To Impress

Seems simple right? But it's something many just skip over. I didn't really know the dress code prior to work experience other then the line, "smart casual".  Once getting the work experience position (I'm going to call it a position coz I don't know what else I call it.) I was on the hunt for 'business-y' clothing. I searched high and low through pencil skirts, blouses and simple wedges and settled on a simple outfit on my first day. My wardrobe through the week was a mixture of different looks. I went from a simple black skinny jeans paired with a bright yellow top and boots to a white elegant dress with a bight statement piece necklace and flats.

What I wore on the first day.

Whatever you wear make sure it is something that matches your personality, don't try to dress like someone your not. Play it safe on the first day and see what the rest of the office and the other workies wear. I discovered on the first day that all three of the work experience girls (that's including me) had all different styles that worked well. One girl wore a denim overall set with a pair of vans while the other girl wore a simple black dress and some statement neck pieces.

Always check with the work experience coordinator or on the magazines site to see what clothing they suggest you wear. Each office is different. Another tip is to dress to comfort just as much as style. You will be doing a lot of walking (and I mean a lot) so make sure your shoes and the rest of your outfit is comfortable.

Work, Work, Play?

During work experience at Girlfriend there were no coffee runs (thank god for that as I lack the coffee making skill), laundry pick ups, dog cleaning - really anything bad you see in magazine based movies or shows. I loved that at Girlfriend they let you write and show off your writing abilities. If you go to this kind of work experience hoping it will be all celebrities, photo shoots and no writing, then it may not be for you.

During the week we were given a task to complete, letting us explore beauty, fashion, main articles and even Total Girl columns (the Total Girl office and the Girlfriend office have merged now). It was wonderful being able to show our abilities and really test them. I wont give to much away about the task as it is always subject to change and who doesn't like a little mystery?

 

As well as doing this task we were sent to the mail room almost four or more times a day (the mail room people pretty much knew me). I didn't mind venturing down to the mail room as when else would you be able to hold many cakes, beauty products, clothing and quirky promotional stuff? During the days different editors or people in the office would ask for our assistance and would excuse us form our desks (yes, we got our own desks).

During our week we were also lucky enough to go to a fashion shoot which was an amazing experience. We got to see how hair, makeup and clothing was styled and learnt some things from the Editor in Chief herself!

Ask and Talk

A big part of work experience is getting a feel of the job and seeing if you would like to pursue it after school. Getting to talk to people already in the position you one day may want to have is a great way to learn more. The person who was looking after us workies set up times we could talk to these people. I talked to two editors who really opened my eyes to different possibilities in the job and how to get there. They both told me different routes in gaining experience and how to achieve the best in these fields. I would highly recommended asking if you could talk to someone who is in a position you are interested in. Asking questions is key and shows that you are interested. This can open doors later in life.

 

Work experience is as good as you make it. Just have fun, work hard and be yourself.

 

 

 

If you have any questions comment below!

 

*All photos are mine. Always ask a before taking photos at work experience.*