Paper-pushers, skivvies, office-babies... I believe the politically correct term is interns. The concept of interns evokes mixed feelings in different people, depending on one's perspective and experience. But like that horrid stretch mark that no amount of tissue oil can remove, PR firms cannot ignore the importance of training interns.

Although several companies do have an internship programme, or may randomly allow students to get hands-on learning, there is still a shortage of internship opportunities.

There is a rift between students and graduates; and practising professionals.

Students and graduates are disgruntled by the lack of mentorship and orientation offered by PR consultancies. Unlike most other fields such as accounting, law and science, who accept that in-house practical is part of what they do; communications professionals don't seem to harvest potential while it's still fresh.

Where the PR industry is concerned, students cannot simply jump into the corporate field, as this is like a baby running before crawling. They need to learn the basics from PR consultancies and then, once they find a niche whether it's media relations or corporate communications, they can then launch into the wide corporate field.

As a student myself, finding a firm to do experiential learning for me was like trying to find a corner in a rondavel. Most companies gave me the impression I was interrupting the smooth-running of business.

Companies need to consider taking in interns as part of company policy. It's not a case of social responsibility, it is professional responsibility as it ensures that once these graduates are actually placed in PR practice they are assets and not liabilities to the industry. Converting textbook knowledge into practice is an arduous and time-consuming process, but proper mentorship can ease this process.

Internships should be strategically integrated into a company's itinerary so that when an intern is taken in, he or she knows exactly what to do, why they are doing it and how it fits into the 'bigger scheme of things'. They shouldn't be there just to make coffee or push papers. The employees and management's approach to training an intern should be changed from a baby-sitting perspective to a grooming prospective. If even the pro's that have been in the game for years can never 'know it all', how much more do the inexperienced players need to be coached in the dynamic game of PR.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Nangamso Jacobs is an intern at Headlines.