Apaphia Lefatle, a third year public relations student from Damelin College, joins Flow PR as an intern
At reception, I asked to see Caroline Smith, the lady my lecturer had told me to get in touch with. A few moments later, when a total stranger walked up to me and introduced herself as Caroline, I was amazed at her friendliness. And not only her, everyone she introduced me to was warm and welcoming, too.
After the introductions, it was time to work. The funny thing was that there was no laptop or PC for me to work on. However, the other employees were very helpful, especially the Flow PR CEO, Shoni Makhari, who allowed me to work on his PC for the assignments that were given to me.
It was the first time in my life I had sat for so many hours in one chair, working on assignments for a company as big as Flow PR.
As a third-year public relations student at Damelin College, I feel privileged that I have been given the opportunity to gain work experience at a reputable public relations company. It is an excellent space for me to learn, and is very different to what I thought it would be.
I appreciate the fact that I was given real tasks to do. I thought that, as an intern, I would be given small, odd jobs to perform. But the first day was hands-on and I was invited to be involved in some of the meetings that took place. I am a very curious person and always want to know what is happening in our country and around the world, and being thrown into the deep end of an industry that deals with these issues has been very exciting. My internship at Flow PR comprises 160 hours – I wish it was more than that.
But this is only the beginning, and the journey will not end when my hours at Flow PR end. With integrity and hard work, I believe that I will make it, and I know that one day I will count myself among the best public relations practitioners in the country.