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Communication Internship

The course 219.311 Communication Internship provides you with a period of intensive workplace experience. The internship enables you to integrate that experience with knowledge of communication theory which you will have already gained in prior study in your degree.

Internationally it has often been noted that having completed an internship successfully is a significant aid to a graduate in obtaining a first professional job. This demonstrates to employers that a student has performed well in some applied industry or community activities. In developing this programme, we spoke to a number of business leaders and communication industry organisations, including the Public Relations Institute of New Zealand. PRINZ Executive Director Paul Dryden told us an internship was a "must do" item on his list of preferred graduate qualities.

The Massey University Communication Internship was developed after studying models and guidelines from a range of other institutions, including the Annenberg School for Communication, Pennsylvania State University, ACT Department of Education and Training, Bond University, Northwestern University and Stanford University.

This course provides opportunities for your integrated learning, so that while on internship in the workplace or community organisation, you are enabled in your assignments to actively reflect on theory and practice, critiquing the theory you have learned throughout your degree in the light of what you see in the organisation; then similarly critiquing organisational practice in the light of good quality communication theory derived from your studies.

The internship course is offered in all Massey normal semesters but the starting and ending dates for each internship can be negotiated between the student and host organisation. We have course offerings in Albany, Manawatu, Wellington and Distance.