Real success through virtual internships – How I realized my true potential
About the Author: Biswadeep Ray is pursuing Integrated M.Sc. in Nanoscience and Technology from Karunya University, Coimbatore. He talks about his experience of doing virtual content writing internships and how it helped him grow as an individual.
During my summer break, I was working with CRY – Child Rights and You as a child rights activist. After a long day of field work, it was time to sit back and relax. However, when I returned to the place where I was staying, I noticed that my friend and co-worker at CRY was engaged in some other work. After talking to him, I came to know that he was working from home for another company. Internshala was the platform that he had used for getting that virtual internship.
I was intrigued as I never thought that it was possible to work not just on different projects but also for different companies. I also wanted to experiment with my work and registered on Internshala. I used to think that only the guys good in coding or designing (like my co-worker) were capable of doing internships, so I wasn’t much excited. However, when I started browsing on their website, I was pleasantly surprised to find the vast opportunities across different profiles. From writing to event management, they had internships in almost every domain. With the little skill that I had, I started applying for internships.
My first successful application was for an NGO called Delhi OYE for the role of Content Developer. I was shortlisted and asked to submit an assignment. I submitted a couple of write-ups on women empowerment, combating sexual harassment of women at public places, and the condition of women rights in India. They liked the assignments and a brief telephonic interview followed in which basic questions about my availability and future plans were asked. After a few days, I got the confirmation email that I was hired for the role. My happiness knew no bounds!
I really enjoyed working with Delhi OYE during the internship. My work included writing on the topics of women empowerment, gender discrimination, etc. and marketing them through different channels. I also handled the digital marketing of the project Even Cargo initiated by them for the welfare of women.
And this was just the beginning. I used to write sometimes to vent my frustration on different topics, but the idea of working as a writer had never crossed my mind! This experience helped me realize my potential as a writer. Also, I had never considered that it was possible to do an internship while attending college full-time. As the new semester started, I applied for several internships. In the next 3 months, I was hired for 3 more virtual internships through Internshala. The companies where I interned were – Wedding Bells, Scribblers, and Zailet. One after the other, I was successfully completing the assignments and clearing interviews during the selection procedure. The assignments primarily included writing content on various topics, focusing on the theme of the organization. For example, for Wedding Bells, I wrote an article on the topic, Marriage – The union of two souls’.
I wrote a lot of content during these internships on various domains ranging from automobiles, travel, food, education to anything and everything. After completing these internships, not only I evolved as a writer, but the experience also helped me develop as an individual. I had better insights into different issues and was more informed about the current affairs and social issues. This experience also helped me when I tried to get in Make A Difference (MAD). I had always wanted to become a part of MAD as I believed in their vision, but their recruitment procedure was quite difficult. Though I cleared the first two rounds of interview, I was rejected as I didn’t know Tamil which was the medium of communication for the children in orphanages of Tamil Nadu. However, I didn’t lose hope and applied for another position in their Public Relations domain as a content writer. I was asked to submit a write-up revolving around child rights and education. All the experience of writing for different platforms came to my aid, and I submitted a detailed assignment which was sent for evaluation by the National Team of MAD. After 3-4 weeks, a brief interview was taken after which I was selected. Yes, I was finally a member of the MAD team!
I would like to thank the entire team of Internshala for making me aware of my capabilities. I hope that you’ll continue to be the reason for bringing that smile on the faces of students!
Do you also want to discover your potential? Register on Internshala and kick-start your career with an internship.
