Life at ELSE as an intern
How my internship shaped a new career path
Before joining ELSE, my perception of what a student placement would be like was totally different to what I went on to experience. I assumed as an intern at best I might get the chance to have a mentor, to shadow a few internal meetings, and do some basic tasks to earn me some university credit. But here at ELSE, I was made to feel like a true member of an expert team and got to discover the real meaning of strong teamwork, generosity, and dedication.
I started my internship in August 2021 in the hope of finding my preferred future career path in the world of digital design. During these six months, I’ve been right in the thick of various projects. From strategy to designing customer experiences, and on to delivering final digital design outcomes. Working alongside experienced designers gave me the chance to improve my practical skills in both user experience and user interface design.
Besides learning through working on client projects, I’ve had the opportunity to explore the world of speculative design by participating in the company’s R&D programme. Through this, each of us can embark on self-initiated projects which allow us to explore areas we’re passionate about. These R&D sessions have expanded my horizon on what design is and can do.
ELSE’s Show & Tell, IXD, UX huddles and UX clinic sessions all help the team and me to see the outcome of previous or other ongoing projects. At the heart of these sessions is encouraging us not to be afraid to share the work in progress and take away points from different people’s feedback earlier on in the process. This helps to spot the problems early on in the project and get you better at accepting and responding to input throughout the process. Over time, I’ve found this has shortened my learning curve, allowing me to create better work, faster.
Overall, this internship had three highlights for me:
- It was a great trial for me to see which area of the digital design industry was a good fit for me.
- It provided me an opportunity to apply my experience and knowledge gained in the classroom to “real-world” client challenges.
- I gained firsthand experience of working in a professional design studio environment, and exposure to new ways of working and rich culture.
Between the experience gained and the people I was able to work with, this internship gave me far more than I ever expected. The culture and energy embodied in and displayed by every single ELSE team member made it so exciting to start work every day. It also made learning about this incredible industry all the more enjoyable.
A final word to students and grads
If I could offer one piece of advice to fellow students and recent graduates, it would be to take the opportunity to do an internship. Even if the company might not immediately seem like the best-fit, based on your studies or career aspirations. With the right company — with a good talent programme — this could give you invaluable real-life exposure to the working world. It might take you in directions you enjoy, but would never have considered. It might give you new skills that lead your career down an important new route.
This internship has helped me find my place in the design industry and set me on a career path I’m now thrilled to pursue.
