Today's installment of Recording Studio Internship Tips will be about obtaining and interview and the interview process itself.
Getting an internship can be just as competitive as the limited amount of jobs that are out in the field. First things first, do NOT expect to get paid, paid internships in the studio world are nearly extinct. You might be able to pull minimum wage if you get picked up by the likes of Sony or Universal but it's an understanding at most privately owned commercial studios that you are working for free in turn for experience and opportunities that may arise.
Timing: When To Apply
So how do you even get an interview? Well, a lot of is luck and timing. For the most part, a studio will have at least a couple of interns each "season". I use the term season loosely, usually somewhere between 3-4 months, many times coordinating with semesters at school. Some studios will have a couple of interns in a day, whether it be 2 interns in the morning/day time and 2 interns at night (or any number really, depending on the size of the studio and how booked the studio is). So a good rule of thumb is to try and contact the studio at least a couple of months before when you want to start working. In the past, I have always applied for summer internships, and I would get in contact with the studio I am trying for in January after the holidays. The response is almost always the same: thanks for your interest, we will keep you in mind and touch base again when the time comes closer. I then follow up again in March or April and they will give me a more definite response, usually (and ideally) asking to set up an interview.
Email, Don't Call
Now to back up a bit, I find email is usually the best way to go about contacting them. As an intern applicant, you don't want to busy their phone lines with relatively petty stuff while they are trying to do business. Now what to put in the email? Keep your email short and get to the point. Introduce yourself, what school you attend/have attended, your availability, and maybe a quick something about your past experience. If it's a studio that really appeals to you, you can mention why you would like to intern at their particular studio and what makes it seem like a good place for you to learn and work at, careful not to border ass-kissing.
Submitting A Resumé
As for a resumé, either mention you have a full resumé and references you can provide if they need (which you should have prepared before you even start looking for an internship), or include it in the email. If you do include it in your first email, DO NOT attach it. Nobody likes opening emails with attachments from people they don't know, so either copy and paste your resumé into the email body, or upload it online where you can provide a link to it in the email (IE: google docs). I won't go into detail about writing a resumé as there are plenty of online resources for that.
Interview Day
Hopefully with some of the guidelines I've given, you're able to land yourself an interview. Congratulations, you're almost there! In fact, getting an interview usually means you're more than half way there, closer to 75%. An interview means they have interest in, or rather a need/space in their schedule to have you as an intern. A large portion of the interview is not to see how much you know about audio but rather to meet you in person to see if you are competent, sane, if they can trust you in taking care of simple maintenance tasks (glorified term for taking out the trash and cleaning), make sure you understand your role in the studio and what's expected of you, and your work ethic. The other part of the interview is very similar to an interview for any other job: to see where you're coming from, where you are trying to go, personal strengths and weaknesses, etc. If you manage to convince the interviewer you won't break their $10,000 microphone and ask famous clients for their autographs (a big no no in studio etiquette), and that you are willing to do as your told and work for the opportunity to learn from the engineers and assistants at the studio, then you'll get the job.
Check back next week for another installment of RSIT!
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