Poynter advice for would-be 2014 interns: Start now

Were you hoping to do a summer journalism internship but now you’re thinking it’s too late? It’s not. In fact, you’re right on time.

You know we’re talking about summer 2014, right?

Writing on Poynter.org, Dan Caterinicchia says that students who are looking for internships next summer should start preparing now. And he has a lot of good advice about how to do that.

Very short version: Get some experience, build and polish a “legitimate, thick” portfolio, regularly use social media in professional ways, and when you do apply, make sure you aren’t making dumb mistakes: Correctly spell the name of the person you’re writing to or the city you hope to intern in, for example, and give the organization everything it asks for. If the listing says to turn in five clips, don’t turn in three—or 16.

Caterinicchia actually posted this excellent advice a few days ago, so maybe you are falling behind. Check it out.