"Academia, you lift me up, soothe me with your words, when I need your love"-Sia
As students at fashion school (or any one who has ever wanted an internship in the fashion industry) may know, a large number of companies require that in order to obtain an internship with them, you must be able to receive academic credit.
This is something that I used to not quite understand. I thought that having an on par resume, tons of experience and enough drive should be enough to secure an internship. What difference did it make if someone was not enrolled in a school program that did not require that they receive academic credit? Wasn't passion enough? This hurdle can make it even harder for people to obtain their ideal work placement.
I know first hand, because I have been in that situation. However I did not let that stop me. In search for my dream New York City internship, if I found a job posting that stated for academic credit only I would still apply, because in some cases this means that the company requires that you are a full-time student and can provide documentation of this. Fair enough. Unfortunately, that is not the case with a lot of companies and because I am currently enrolled in a program that does not provide academic credit for work placements, I was in a dilly of a pickle.
What was I to do? I wasn't going to shelve my dream just because I have reached a small stumbling block. I decided that I needed to do some serious research and find a way to overcome this. Through my extensive hunt I was able to discover that several New York City-based schools offer internship programs such as, Fordham University and there are often college programs that offer post-graduate programs that have work placement courses.
Upon discovering this I was overjoyed! This made it possible for me to be one step closer to my dream. I have since enrolled in a program that will provide me with academic credit and this will give me opportunity to get my New York City fashion internship! :) Being enrolled in two programs can be challenging but it will be worth it. Sometimes you have to make small sacrifices to get where you want to be.
New York City fashion world here I come! Stay tuned!
Amanda
