If you’re studying communication, PR, or marketing, you know how valuable internships are for landing your dream role, and nothing compares to real hands-on experience. With so many career paths, it can be hard to know where to start, but I am so glad that I landed an internship at Primary Comms Group. While it wasn’t required for my Strategic Communications degree at UTS, I wanted deeper industry insight, and this internship has been the perfect way to give me hands-on experience and real-world insights that have helped me kickstart my career.
Primary Comms Group has given me insight into agency life, but has also shown me how rewarding an internship can be with the right support.
Why Primary?
Initially, I was drawn to Primary because of its different specialties within the company. Primary also has three arms: Primary Communication for PR and GR, Primary Create for all things design and advertising, and community engagement specialist, Primary Engage. I wanted to gain experience across all areas of agency life while broadening my understanding of communication.
I was intrigued by the breadth of clients Primary works with across a variety of industries, including aviation, transport and logistics, tech, and clean energy.
Ultimately, when the opportunity to apply for an internship at Primary came up, I knew I had to apply.
A day in the life
At Primary, interns undertake a variety of work. Some days I’m glued to my desk for hours, powering through tasks and research for clients, and other days are a slightly slower pace, with more of my time spent on office admin.
It’s this mix of really fast-paced days and quieter ones that has given me such a well-rounded view of agency life.
For the first few weeks, I was doing phone outreach to stakeholders for a large client project. This was an extremely rewarding introduction to agency life as I was able to build my confidence over the phone, while also helping the team project manage such a large-scale initiative.
One of my personal favourite tasks was completing research that would then go on to become a part of a credentials document for prospective clients. It was great to see how various elements came together to complete a pitch document.
The variety doesn’t stop there. Each project seems to open a new door into a different corner of the industry.
Media campaigns are a different kind of a beast! From ensuring media lists are pristine and up to the minute to monitoring and tracking coverage during and post campaigns, it all worked to practice the theory of tertiary education. My colleague Veronica summed it up well when she said, “The process is so tailored and detail oriented. I am sure even the client would be surprised at the level of detail and follow through involved, and about their presence online and in the marketplace.”
The insight into agency work has been invaluable, and I can truly say I’ve developed essential professional skills.
Importantly, the mentoring and guidance from the team has given me valuable context for the different elements I’ve been working on. While some tasks may have felt menial or mundane at first, I came to see that each played a role in the bigger picture of the work delivered to clients. Even the smallest jobs, whether keeping the office running smoothly, organising the storeroom, or making the all-important morning coffee run, helped keep the agency humming along.
I feel more confident about the next step; my writing skills have sharpened, my research abilities have improved, I now know not just what to look for, but how to find it effectively and I have discovered the importance of attention to detail!
I’ve learned the importance of backing myself and not being afraid to ask questions. The team is always there to oversee my work, and showing initiative is encouraged. At worst, I get corrected but even then, I’m mentored through the process and shown how to strengthen my work.
The transferable skills I’ve developed have also been incredibly valuable. Time management has been key. Some days are a whirlwind of writing and back-to-back deadlines, while others are slower and focused on laying the groundwork for future projects.
My colleague Lucy put it perfectly saying, “learning to be flexible and adaptable is essential because things often don’t follow a set schedule. Being able to think on your feet and change direction when needed is a skill that will serve me well in any career.”
Primary will always support you
If someone was to ask me what my favourite thing about Primary is, it would honestly be the people. Everyone at Primary has been super supportive and patient. I’m always getting constructive feedback that’s helping me grow and learn. My team not only backs me but recognises the work I put in and advocates for me.
The level of mentorship at Primary is extremely valuable. I am always receiving in-depth briefs for my tasks, anyone and everyone is willing to answer questions and overall makes this internship the best possible learning experience.
Lucy summed it up perfectly when she said, “coming into a new workspace can be intimidating, especially as a newbie, yet the Primary team makes you feel welcome and valued.”
Callum, a fellow intern, shared a similar thought, “This internship has really opened the door into agency life.” He admitted that without the support and guidance from the team, the experience wouldn’t have been nearly as rewarding.
My internship at Primary Comms Group has been more than just work experience. It’s been a genuine step into the world of PR. I’ve learned skills I’ll carry into any role, but more importantly, I’ve discovered where I see myself growing in the industry.
Primary has just been the perfect starting point.
Greta Kasprowicz, Intern
