MTV Networks: Interns having "The Best Week Ever"
MTV Networks: Interns having "The best week ever"By Chanin Coyle
"I want my MTV"
At 12:01am on August 1st, 1981, the landmark station, MTV, aired its first image. The station launched with the famous MTV picture of Apollo 11 landing on the moon with the MTV flag firmly planted in the ground.
MTV Networks, a unit of Viacom, is one of the world's leading creators of programming and content across all media platforms. It catapulted artists such as Michael Jackson, Madonna and Bono into life long careers. Its evolution has steadily kept pace with the adolescents and youth culture expanding from videos, to animation to reality television.
MTV Networks' winning strategies are apparent not only on-air, but off air as well.
Ellen Czelada, a ten year veteran at MTV Networks, has maintained that winning strategy by developing one of the most sought after internship programs in the country.
"There are so many opportunities in so many different departments," said Czelada. "It's a great place for students to learn about the industry."
Czelada, a graduate from Rutgers University and Columbia University, initiated the career website www.mtvncareers.com. "This site allows students to review the MTV Networks internship and job opportunities in detail. All of the departments and various opportunities are provided for students to review."
According to Czelada, students are often surprised by how involved they become in the internship projects. "It's really a credit to the department supervisors. Interns are treated like employees," she said. "They are an integral part of the team and treated as such."
MTV Networks currently consists of over 300 business and creative departments with dozens of shows in production. "Students can work for any number of shows such as TRL, The Best Week Ever, Made, I Love the 80's, The Daily Show, or various production teams within Nickelodeon, Spike or LOGO. In addition, students can work on the business side in marketing, sales, technology, finance or research departments. If a student is interested in working on a particular show or business unit, they can mention it on their resume or cover letter. Overall, our decision is based on the best fit for the department and the student."
Czelada reviews thousands of resumes per year through the MTV Networks career portal, www.mtvncareers.com. "We receive the highest volume of resumes for the summer semester. We received thousands of resumes last summer for several hundred internship opportunities. The spring and fall semesters are less competitive due to the lower number of application submissions."
Requirements noted on the www.mtvncareers.com website indicate that the internships are unpaid and students must be attending college and receiving college credit to participate in the program. Interns are typically in their junior or senior year working two days a week from 9:30am to 5:30pm. The internship opportunity runs for about 10 weeks, dependent upon the department needs.
"We look for students who are hungry," said Czelada. "They should have enthusiasm and the right attitude about wanting to learn all aspects of the industry," she said. "Our overall goal is to hopefully transition some of our interns into full-time placements.. It doesn't happen for everyone, but there are numerous success stories."
The following suggestion list can help a student when applying for an internship or job:
1. Review the requirements in detail at www.mtvncareers.com. Submit a cover letter and resume through MTV Networks career website.
2. Don't apply too early. Students are discouraged from sending their resume a year prior to the internship or job. The high volume of submissions doesn't allow staffers to go back and review old applications.
3. The best time to apply for an internship is three to four months prior to the semester of your choice.
4. The best time to apply for a job is about a month before you expect to graduate. It is critical for the student to be available to work when they apply.
Students sometimes have misconceptions about the MTV Networks internship program. "From time to time, we work with students who think MTV Networks is one big party. Some students feel like they are still on campus and treat the internship that way." Czelada emphasized that interning at MTV Networks consists of a lot of work, multi-tasking and learning the basics of working for a large corporation. Follow-up skills and attention to detail are essential to the program.
Another popular misconception is the notion of "being discovered". Students might apply for the sole purpose of visibility to help launch a career in television. "This is not what this internship is about. If you want to be an actor or actress, I would suggest that you get an agent, get some headshots or a reel. Interns work strictly behind the scenes in talent, development and production," she said. "Wanting to be talent and wanting to work with talent are two completely different things"
MTV Networks works to provide a quick response to applicants. Upon review of the resume, Czelada will meet with the student for an initial interview. The next step is deciding the best fit for the candidate and for the department. Once a department is chosen, a second interview is arranged with the supervisor. Upon acceptance of the internship, the student will receive a formal offer letter from the MTV Networks college relations department.
"Our "on-boarding" process has proven to be very valuable and very successful!" Students start with a formal orientation and company overview. Czelada provides a thorough program which includes guest speakers, resume critique opportunities and an end-of-semester career forum.
Twice a year, Czelada hosts an MTV Networks intern networking event for freelance employment. "Our in-house networking event allows interns approaching graduation to learn about possible freelance opportunities at any channel at MTV Networks. Freelance opportunities are usually production related."
The networking event is open exclusively to current and former MTV Networks interns. Resumes are provided to each department providing a pool of qualified candidates whenever a new opportunity is available.
"We are looking for students that have the right attitude about the program and the industry. You could have spiked hair and body piercing and it wouldn't matter. It's a very unassuming environment."
Students across the nation strive to be a part of the MTV Networks evolution. After 26 years, it's clear they still want their MTV.
To find out more about the MTV Networks internships, go to www.mtvncareers.com or www.newyorkintern.com.
MTV Networks, with more than 130 channels worldwide, owns and operates the following television programming services - MTV: Music Television, MTV2, VH1, mtvU, Nickelodeon, Nick at Nite, Comedy Central, TV Land, Spike TV, CMT, Noggin, Logo, MTVN International and The Digital Suite From MTV Networks, a package of 13 digital services, with all of these networks trademarks of MTV Networks. MTV Networks connects with its audiences through its robust consumer products businesses and its more than 100 interactive properties worldwide, including Atom Entertainment, GameTrailers.com, IFILM, Neopets, Xfire, Y2M, and online, broadband, wireless and interactive television services.