This post was written by Alicia, one of Lauren’s own interns! She goes to school at Towson University. Alicia is a Mass Communication major (with tracks in Public Relations and Advertising) and an Italian minor.

This week, I will be focusing on my summer internship applications – and I think you should be, too. Most of the agencies I am applying to have deadlines as early as the first week in January, and those deadlines are rapidly approaching. Take the time this week to knock out all of your applications so that you have the rest of your winter break to relax.

For starters, research all of the companies you want to apply to. Make a list of around 15 organizations, big or small, that you want to intern with. While that seems like a lot of companies, it’s better to keep your options open and have multiple offers than to be without an offer for this summer.

When I am looking into companies to intern with, I make an Excel spreadsheet that organizes company information with my application status. For each organization, I list:

• links to the internship application so I can find it easily when I am ready to apply
• notes about the company – including things I like about the culture, practice areas I’d like to work in, clients I want to work with, and most importantly, contact information of anyone I know that works within the company that could put me into contact with the internship coordinator
• application due dates
• date I apply, in case I need to reference it in a follow-up conversation
• company’s response – in some cases, you might be told that you don’t meet the company’s qualifications (I’ve been rejected based on my class standing before, some companies only hire seniors in college in order to hire them after their internship) – but it’s good to note these things so you can apply again in the future
• salary offered – however, you shouldn’t expect many companies to offer paid internships unless they are full time
• interview date – to keep track of when I am scheduled for interviews so I don’t schedule interviews at the same time
• and finally, I have an offer column in case I am lucky enough to be offered multiple internships –this section is particularly helpful if you are looking into internships for which the time commitment is only a few hours per week; that way, you can accept multiple internships at different companies

Organizing your internship applications will really help you stay on track to land your dream summer internship(s). Good luck with your internship search and remember: any company would be lucky to have you as an intern!

Sometimes the search for internships is just about as hard as the application process itself! With all the different companies and all the different types of internships it could make you feel like you are out in the crowd on black Friday searching for something that you don’t think you will ever find. Luckily, you can make this a little bit easier on yourself! Take some advice from your black Friday knowledge and put it towards your hunt for an internship. The similarities might just surprise you.

1)Know what you’re looking for: Black Friday shoppers don’t go out to giant stores just to look around! They plan ahead, sometimes weeks in advance, so they know exactly what it is they are looking for and where they can get it fastest. So if you are looking for an entertainment internship don’t shuffle through all the business internships to find it! Go straight to what you are looking for. Narrowing down your search is the easiest way to find internships that interest you.

2)Don’t look for things you don’t need: The reason people go out on black Friday is to get things that they need. Don’t waste your time looking through internships that don’t meet your criteria. If you want to stay in town don’t look at an internship 400 miles away. If you need a paid internship take away all the ones that aren’t paid. Or if you are wanting to receive academic credit only look for internships requiring that. This will keep you stay on track for what you need.

3)Fight for it: Those black Friday shoppers may get a little crazy but they always fight for what they want! Never write yourself off because you think you won’t get an internship. If you apply the worst that could happen is they say no. However, if they say yes than you have your dream internship! You never know until you try.

For the average college student winter break is the 4 weeks where you can do absolutely nothing- and get away with it. But for the not so average college student (*cough, cough* overachieving Intern Queen lovers) it is the time where instead of obsessing over schoolwork and extracurricular activities, you can take some time and focus on planning for your next internship.

Winter break is the perfect time to start researching the companies you might be interested in and polishing up those resumes and cover letters. Most internships start accepting applications in February and March so it’s a good idea to get all of it over with before you get back to school, and become consumed with your other work.

Now don’t get me wrong, its important to give yourself some ‘R and R’ during the holidays. It’s totally healthy (and much needed) to spend a few days on the couch watching TV and eating all the candy you got in your stocking.

But by January 1st, there’s a good chance you will start itching to actually do something. What I find works is that on New Years Day you make your action list. This list should consist of places you want to intern, what you need in order to apply for each internship, and the due date on their applications.

When choosing which internships to apply for, its okay to go and apply for the one which may be out of your comfort zone, or one where you’re not 100% sure you’re qualified for. By taking a chance on your dream internship, it might be your big break.

It’s also important to do your research. While browsing InternQueen.com and other websites to find an internship, make sure you’re taking notes on the company and learning about them. Quite often students will find that the day before their interview they begin to realize that they don’t know enough about the company they applied for. Save yourself the panic attack, and use this opportunity and time to learn a little more about where you’re applying to.

When applying to internships, it may say that March 31st is their deadline for applications, but don’t wait until then to send yours in. It’s better to have your application in 2 months early than 2 days early. If you apply early enough, it’ll give you time to re-apply or to call them and make sure they received your application and cover letter. It’s important to be persistent with your application and send follow-ups; you want it to be easier for them to hire you, then for them to keep saying no.

With this list you will be able to start effectively tackling applications and organize your thoughts for what your plans for the summer will be. Remember, the more work you do during winter break the more relaxing you’ll get to do during your semester. Happy holidays everyone!

This blog post is written by our University of Windsor campus ambassador, Alicia D. She has her associates degree in Journalism and is currently majoring in Communications with a minor in Political Science and Spanish. She hopes to pursue a successful career in Broadcast Journalism.

With exams soon approaching and final assignments piling up, we come to realize that we are beginning to feel a tad overwhelmed. We start to feel that sleeping is something we no longer have time to do as a result of our compiled list of assignments. I recently found some great Apps that can help in studying effectively for the remaining semester. Studying Apps that can help us achieve organization and successful results in all our subjects.

Here are 5 great study Apps you can download on your phone to help you achieve excellent results in your studies.

1. gFlash +Flashcard & Tests (FreeApp) : With this App you are able to create groups of cards deck of flash cards in every subject. Also, you are able to downloaded cards, videos, images, sound clips and you can audio record the definitions.

2. My Homework(Free App): This is a great App which will greatly help you in keeping track of your assignments. With features of a calendar to mark the dates of upcoming test and assignments, homework page to write out in detail what you have to get done for all your subjects and classes, listing your classes times and days . Once you log in all of that into your “My Homework” App your phone will send you notifications of upcoming test and assignment due dates.

3. Sparky App review(Free App): Is an App that can best help you for those literature classes because it automatically directly connects you to SparksNotes. This makes it easy for you to quickly get detailed information on plot analysis, character and chapter summaries and key facts on the literature content assigned.

4. Vocabolistic (Free App): Initially this free App is for you to improve your vocabulary and challenges you to learn and understand new words on a daily basis, rated on a scale from easy to hard. It is a great tool to evaluate your English proficiency progress. This App can also be helpful when writing papers, for example; if you are drawing a blank slate from finding a word to better describe or express your points, then you can refer to Vocabolistic to search for an appropriate word to fill in your blank.

5. AudioNote- Notepad and Voice Recorder: This App is not free; however it is worth every penny. For only $4.99 you have access to features such as, a recorder which can

record anything from lectures to conferences and pen mode feature which allows you to draw (diagrams) and take notes. The best part of this App is you can import and export to your computer, your audio and notepad files. You are also able to synchronize your audio notes with your notepad notes. For example, if your Professor was giving you a long detailed word definition, all you have to do is hit record and it will then record your professor’s long definition. You can add to this audio note by writing out your summary definition of the word and then attaching it to the audio recording. By incorporating this you can refer to your audio recordings easily and better understand them.

These apps are great ways to enhance our intake of knowledge so we might as well use them to our advantage.

Happy Friday! I hope you have a lovely weekend planned. I’m actually celebrating two friends birthdays this weekend and going wine tasting in Temecula tomorrow! I fly to Baltimore Sunday to speak at Towson University on Monday night which should be AMAZING!

Anyhow, we got tons of new listings this week. Here are FIVE opportunities that will go super fast. Check them out!

GREY ADVERTISING PAID INTERNSHIP (New York City)

MARIE CLAIRE FASHION INTERNSHIP (New York City)

BERMANBRAUN FILM/TV INTERNSHIP (Los Angeles)

CARO MARKETING FASHION/PR INTERNSHIP (Los Angeles)

MCGRAW HILL INTERNSHIP (Indianapolis)

Notre Dame is big on careers, internships, and networking. Our career fair here took place the third week of school! That meant we all had to get to work on resumes and employer research early.  As a sophomore, this was my very first experience at a career fair and it was daunting! I have been waiting to write this blog so that I could give you all the full story, and now I have the results of all my hard work. As a direct result of the career fair, I had the most wonderful problem an internship junkie could ask for – two offers. Our career fair takes place in the Fieldhouse, a huge multipurpose area that used to lodge our ice hockey arena. Over 200 employers set up booths and hand out info, take resumes, and talk about the opportunities they have available. When I walked in, I was overwhelmed. There were massive lines of confident students in business suits shaking hands and taking business cards. Seniors were looking for jobs and juniors were looking for internships. Sophomores? Let’s just say employers weren’t looking for me. But I persevered. I talked to representatives at about 12 different companies. I had done research beforehand and knew that they had internships available, and that they were companies I was interested in. After making that face-to-face connection, I applied to each position through the Career Center’s website.

I ended up with invitations to six interviews. Saks Fifth Avenue, ALDI, Deloitte and Touche, Target, and more! Six interviews, despite being told by each company that they were really only looking for juniors as interns. I actually only ended up interviewing with Deloitte and Target. After three rounds of interviews with each company, I received internship offers with both!  I am happy to say that I accepted the internship with Deloitte and Touche in Chicago. This summer, I will be a Business Technology Analyst Summer Scholar, which is just Deloitte lingo for a Consulting intern. I will be helping big companies solve their biggest business problems! Deloitte has been listed by Newsweek as the #1 place to land an internship. I feel so honored and humbled that I was able to land one. The recruiter actually told me at my interview that they didn’t accept sophomores, but that if my interview went well, they would petition management to give me a chance. No pressure, right?

What do I want you to learn from this? Never let anyone else tell you what you can or cannot achieve. I left the career fair extremely frustrated and dejected because employer after employer had shut me down as soon as I mentioned my age. I had low hopes, but had incredible success that I never could have imagined! In the internship world, there are no hard and fast rules. Employers will make exceptions if you are exceptional. So keep your chin up, shine in those interviews, and don’t stop believin’!

On Monday October 24^th, I volunteered to work for the Handbag Designer 101 workshop at Fashion Institute of Technology’s Katie Murphy Amphitheatre.  This event featured a very impressive panel of speakers (almost 35 speakers on the panel!) who offered advice to business entrepreneurs who want to start or continue building their fashion brands. They offered amazing advice from how to go about getting investors to how to get in touch with magazine editors. The speakers also answered questions from the audience and shared stories about how they got started. Divided into 10 segments, the Handbag Designer 101 Workshop offered amazing tips on launching your own company while weighing your risks in an industry where trend, style and influences change almost daily.  I was interested in volunteering for this event because it was being held at a school that I was interested in seeing. The panel also included Monika Botkier (Founder of Botkier Handbags) and Jessica Kleiman (V.P-Public Relation of Hearst Magazines)

Here are some tips that I thought were very insightful and useful for young students looking to build their brands.

Role of Funding in Fashion: Finding the capital to launch or support your business can be very tricky. Keep in mind that this money can come from anywhere, from friends and family to investors. Whether you’re getting this money from investors, savings or loans, its important to know your risks. Even though your idea is patented, which investors might love, you should always weigh your risks. Patents don’t guarantee success and your brand should always be the headline. Get advice from a lawyer and approach all investors (even if they’re your friends) in a professional way even if they have faith in your product. Know all the information about you brand that you need to know. Remember, don’t become obsessed with money and always put your main focus on your products.

Blogging for your brand: We all know that social media is key in marketing your brand. You can always post about your line on your website and hope to have millions of views. Bloggers should search for ways to increase the traffic of their sites, whether they are with contests or videos and create personal relationships with your viewers. However, social media does not necessarily mean free publicity. You always have to put love, effort and attention to your media sites.  Having a blog can be very useful when launching your brand, because you can create personal relationships with customers. Having younger customers is important too, because they can grow up having known about your brand. It’s like having customers for life. The traffic and fans are not going to just happen. I thought it was really interesting because as interns, our duties often include managing Facebook or Twitter pages for the company we work for. Maintaining these social media sites is not as easy as it looks and mistakes can easily be made, and when they are, of course, everyone can see it.

PR and Going Green: Using eco friendly material is a growing trend that many customers now look for.  You should use green materials if you want to make a difference as a brand and help make an impact on the environment. Some fashion companies now use cotton, hemp, artisan, suede, vegan and animal free materials in their products. It can be tricky to go green with your products when you are first starting out. You have to keep prices reasonable while using these materials because people may not spend too much money on a brand that isn’t well known. Apply PR tricks to your brand when you are starting out to gain attention and build a reputation for yourself. Media landscape has expanded from tradition media tremendously in the past years. Always use short, sweet messages to describe your brand, as they can be more effective. This will help you gain traffic and get good feedback. When using PR and Going Green tricks, be sure to stay true to yourself and weigh your choices and options.

Tips for Contacting Editors: When you are ready for your products to be featured in a magazine, you should take special steps to getting it done. Do research on the magazines you are going to contact. Make sure they will be interested in what you are offering them and don’t offer them something they will not need. Create a special pitch that is simple and thorough but not overwhelming. Do the work for them! Create a link of celebrities to your products if you can to spark interest. Was someone famous spotted wearing a pair of shoes similar to the ones in your line? Send them a snapshot! You can also emphasis that you are sending them your products exclusively. This will have them interested because they may just have their hands on something that other magazines won’t have. This might also give you a faster response.  Remember, they are looking for you just as much as you are reaching out to them.

I love volunteering for fashion events because you often get to be part of the crazy production process. I was very lucky to have learned a lot from the workshop and I got to help the show directors with fun errands like distributing gift bags and helping guest speakers and participants sign in.

I thought it was an incredible experience to be in a room with so many successful, influential business entrepreneurs and designers. I’ve seen many of them on television and in magazines! I loved hearing the panel share their stories about how they accomplished their goals and how others could make it happen.

As an intern I’m learning more and more how important networking is. Networking within your internship can help you feel more comfortable while you are at your internship but it can also benefit you in post internship and graduation. It is important to make long-lasting relationships with people you intern with

There are also tons of ways you can network now with all the technology we have available. I joined a Young Professionals group in my state that has tons of networking events every month. It only cost a 20 dollar lifetime fee. Certain events depending on the venue cost extra but it’s definitely worth it for the exposure. Also, keep a look out for events on your schools campus and try to go to as many networking events as possible. At my school upperclassmen can usually attend some alumni events which I think is a great resource. You never know if there is someone looking for an intern or if a job position is available and you can also get there advice and hear there experiences.

Don’t forget to check your on-campus career center and even major department. They may have information on upcoming networking events or career fairs where you can make more connections that can last a lifetime. If they have resources and postings on a website or on Facebook or LinkedIn, be sure to check that out as well.

I know over the past summer the Intern Queen held a networking event in New York City and I’m sure there are more to come. Be sure to check out the Intern Queen website as well as sites similar to it for upcoming events. Lauren also explains herself in her new book, All Work No Play coming out January 3^rd how crucial it is to network.

So don’t be afraid to use your available resources and happy networking!

In a previous blog post, I wrote about personal branding and how it can help you establish a professional identity. Recently, I have been thinking a lot about how a logo contributes to a brand’s identity – and I think you should have one.

Not only do I think you should have a logo, but I think you should be consistent in using it. I use the logo from my calling cards (purchased on Etsy) on my resume, cover letter, and thank-you cards, and I keep with the same color scheme for all materials I send out. While in some professions, it may not be a good idea to deviate from a standard black-and-white resume, in more creative fields (like graphic design, advertising, PR, etc.) it helps a resume stand out in the pile.

Having a logo is a great way for prospective employers to gauge a candidate’s personality and style, and it will add a little visual interest to a pile of boring resumes. I spent hours on Etsy trying to find the calling cards that best fit my personality, but I’m rewarded for that each time someone sees my calling cards and compliments them.

I challenge you to take some time and find your brand identity, and then harness it to get your dream internships!