RMI Juniors speak with Safeway representative at 2008 Internship Faire.
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Is my résumé ready? Check. Is my outfit pressed? Check. Is my list of questions ready? Check. These are the typical questions a student may ask as they prepare the night before a career fair.
On January 22, RMI hosted an internship fair for the students to meet various retailers.
The Retail Management Institute at Santa Clara University has been building strong relationships with retailers for many years. They include Nordstrom, Macy’s, and DFS; and other retail brands like, Gymboree, Gap, and Levis. Apart from retailers in the apparel and fashion industry, other retailers such as Safeway, OSH, and Target were also present. These retailers offered the coveted internships that juniors hoped to obtain.
The internship fair is the start of a stressful but exciting process for the RMI juniors. Junior year is especially important because of the need to secure an internship for the upcoming summer. At this fair, students wander from table to table, meeting as many recruiters as they can, making themselves known, and expressing interest in different companies. Every student went with a common goal—to be one of the hopefuls who will land a retail internship.
Although all these companies are in the field of retail, they differ in their internship programs. Some companies focus their internships to one specific area, while others expose the intern to various departments and functions. The internships that are available to RMI students are in the following fields: merchandising and planning, store management training, and marketing and public relations.
Students who are interested in merchandising and planning should consider DFS and Macy’s West, because the potential intern will assist the merchandise manager in key functions of the business. Additionally, interns will have the opportunity to learn the cycle of apparel design from concept to being part of a collection in one of the stores.
Levi’s offers an internship that gives the intern experience and understanding of the day-to-day requirements of product management. JCPenney, Nordstrom, and Target offer internships that teach the store’s structure and provide formal training in sales leadership, merchandising presentation, and other hands-on operations.
The third function that some companies choose to focus on is marketing and public relations, such as the one Gymboree offers. Interns are exposed to multiple marketing functions, including public relations, target marketing, advertising, and customer relationship management. These are just some of the examples of the internships that are offered.
After meeting these retailers, RMI juniors have the opportunity to interview with the companies. If the interview goes well, then the student becomes a lucky intern with the chance to work with a leading retailer in the industry. After the summer internship, students have the possibility of being offered a full-time job at the company.
So the next time you are getting ready for a career fair, remember: Is my résumé ready? Is my outfit pressed? Am I ready to leave a good impression on the recruiters who will start my career in retail?
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