Internship Insider: Ian Stancato’s story and how B/R can advance your career
Every week I share key lessons that can help all of our writers on the site. In addition, I routinely tout the advancement advantages afforded by the Bleacher Report Sportswriting Internship. Hopefully you find these helpful, but maybe our program still seems remote and non-applicable to your professional situation.
Then a story like that of Philadelphia Eagles Featured Columnist Ian Stancato comes along, perfectly illustrating the wide-ranging (and sometimes unexpected) benefits this experience could have for your career. Ian explains:
Ian Stancato
B/R helped me land a position outside the realm of sportswriting. I am currently working for a middle market investment bank which focuses on sell-side advisory and helping to facilitate mergers and acquisitions between businesses. I am responsible for breaking down complex financial reports and forecasts, translating them into layman’s terms for presentations, sales pitches and quarterly journals for our clients.
I know you’re thinking, “OK, what does that have to do with B/R?”
As a graduate of B/R’s Fall 2011 Internship program, I produced a lot of work over the course of a few months. While I’m sure that everyone who undertakes the Internship experience does so in hopes of turning it into a sportswriter position, I am proof that the program can also be a conduit to positions outside the sports world. I did expect my internship experience to pay off in some way, but I never imagined that it would work to my advantage in the manner it did.
I never would have had an opportunity at this position if it weren’t for my writer archive on B/R, which was extensive mostly because of my internship experience. Through my archive, I was able to prove that I am a very capable writer and, given my educational background (I was an Economics major in college), I was able to sell myself as having a unique set of skills that could be valuable to the company.
The internship experience can be trying, but it can also be the most valuable experience you possibly gain as a writer in general, not just as a sportswriter. The opportunity B/R provides extends well beyond the world of sports.
It is important not to discount the fact that your work is published on a credible website, offering a ton of exposure. Competition for jobs is fierce in today’s market, but when you can prove that you are a good enough writer to be featured on the country’s fourth largest sports website, suddenly the work you produce here carries far more weight than any writing sample ever could.
Your writer archive could prove to be your most valuable asset when getting into a career that requires proficiency in writing.
Want to add another arrow in your professional quiver? Spots are still available for our Fall Semester! You can find all the juicy details here.
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Joel C. Cordes is Bleacher Report’s Sportswriting Internship Program Feedback Editor. Along with fellow editor Greg Pearl, he develops B/R interns by providing feedback and mentoring, the highlights of which are shared with the B/R Blog here.