INTERVIEW WITH VISUAL COMMUNICATION STUDENT – AURELIA JESSICA

Aurelia is a Visual Communication student who interned with news and social networking service Twitter during her ADM internship. Aurelia applied through the ADM database of companies as well as self-sourced companies on her own and eventually landed a 13 weeks placement with Twitter.  Alongside with other itineraries lined up, she will be sharing with everyone her experiences on the different company sourcing options on:

Wednesday, 9th November @ ART B1-03
4:30pm – 5:30pm

Pop by and check out what Aurelia has to say about her journey ! She will be there to answer questions and provide useful advice.  Meanwhile, below is a sneak peak of Aurelia’s experiences with Twitter during her internship !

What first got you interested in the ADM internship programme?

I have always wondered what I can do with my skills after graduation and how can I apply what I have learned into the real world out there.  When I found out that ADM has a 10 weeks internship programme and also this blog to assist us in the internship journey, I set my mind to get onto it.

What was the most memorable experience during your internship?

I knew next to nothing about brand strategy when I started interning for Twitter, but within weeks I was thrown into the deep end helping out with design pitches for some high profile clients such as Unilever, Samsung, Pepsi and many more in a very fast paced environment. I was attached with a team comprising of colleagues of 6 different nationalities located across 4 countries.  My colleagues were very supportive of my internship throughout the internship and gave me lots of opportunities to get involved in the projects which helped me grow immensely as a professional creative. I have enjoyed being part of the team and have huge respect for their professionalism and expertise.  

What was the coolest/weirdest/craziest thing that happened while on the job?

There is never a dull moment at the Twitter office but the coolest part of the job are the opportunities to make friends from all over the world. Due to the multinational nature of the company, I got acquainted with many very talented and interesting people from different backgrounds and nationalities. There were Singaporeans, Indonesians, Indians, Chinese, Americans, English, Russians and many more!  The company’s open and easy-going culture provided lots of opportunities for its employees to interact with colleagues outside of their own team.  In the span of 13 weeks, I had a regular table football rival whom I play with daily, I had coffee with different people each week, watched NBA live-screening for the first time, attended an extravagant US embassy party and got to know the names of some of my colleagues kids and pets ( yes, one of them smuggled her corgi into the office once!).  Apart from the weekly lunches, the office also organizes fun events such as yoga sessions, chili eating competition and also an annual summer party at a club in Sentosa!  

What would you say is the biggest takeaway from the entire internship programme?

It is important to get onto the internship with an open mind and the hunger to learn.  I have developed observation skills and the ability to adapt and be flexible in various crucial circumstances. As an intern, I found that many things were new for me so it is important to observe carefully and adjust decisions accordingly depending on the situation.  I have also learned to contribute to the team by either drawing from my own studies or from my own unique experiences allowing me the opportunity to be more outspoken.