This past quarter, I interned for the UC Davis athletic internship marketing program in which interns help out at the different events such as football, basketball, and volleyball. Although I have dabbled in this before with baseball last spring, nothing could prepare me for the hectic and crazy schedule that came along with working the football games. They were often all day long affairs, and actually required a lot more heavy lifting and muscle than I thought they were going to. I learned a lot about myself from doing this internship and about the sports industry in which I want to work in. I think that–now that I’m older as well–I had more responsibility during this internship and could handle situations better than I did before.
Working for the Giants last summer gave me a lot of background on how to market a product and, in this case, market a game, and make sure that the fan experience is at the highest level it can be. There were a lot of days where for my office hours of this internship I would walk around campus and give out free prizes to people for wearing their Aggie gear, and also be in charge of handling Gunrock, our mascot. This was a neat experience because I got to interact with students and encourage them to come to our events and games.
Overall, I feel that my education here in the Communication department here at Davis and my knowledge have provided me with the skill set needed to survive in the real world or at least hang in there! There are a lot of ways in which this position has made me a more effective communicator, for both me and my peers, and sometimes we don’t even realize it is happening. We are being thrown into a whirlwind of all kinds of different people with different communication styles, and it helped me work with all of them. One of the coolest moments was seeing the women’s volleyball team play and to be on the court with them, as I was a player myself. It was also inspiring to see the love and passion these athletes have for their sport.
Whether it’s on the field as a player or off the field working at the marketing table, I think it’s safe to say that communication is key when getting anything done, and if I continue to work hard and have passion in my work, I can reach my highest goals and dreams.
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