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Entry 8: Overall reflections

Reflecting on your past can give you an idea of just how much you have overcome and shift your perspective as a result (Tanaka, 2017).

This reflection would be more coherent if my memory served me better, but I’ll attempt to summarise and reflect on my time at Holmesglen as best as I can.

I didn’t really know what to expect going into this bachelor’s degree, especially considering the fact that I had only finished Year 12 about four months prior. Regardless, I felt as though I adapted well to Uni life and was able to carry out solid work in my first year in a different environment.

The decision to jump straight into the sports media course was one I didn’t think twice about. While it might’ve been beneficial in another way to take a year off to travel, work, or even to do more research on other courses, I can’t help but think I made the correct choice.

It might make for a more interesting and intriguing story if there were more bumps in the road for me throughout this course but honestly, it’s been a relatively smooth ride with only a couple of headaches here and there.

One headache was COVID-19 and the negative role it played in 2020 as well as in 2021. Forcing us to learn from home, I took this opportunity to use the extra time to put more effort into my assignments and other tasks. What did make this period frustrating, however, was not being able to complete our assignment with our VAFA club, St. Bedes FC, in a manner we would’ve preferred. It also meant we missed out on some crucial aspects of the media landscape like getting a better understanding of the Adobe Suite.

2020 gave us an unprecedented situation but after a slow start to the year in terms of grades, I achieved some of my best marks in semester two.

Then came my third and final year and finishing it has quickly become a bitter-sweet feeling. For most of 2021, I had been doing volunteer work for Sportsmate Mobile outside of Holmesglen while also completing my final seven subjects – mostly on campus.

Sportsmate ultimately became the partner I completed 228 internship hours with which was a massively beneficial and fulfilling experience. With Sportsmate, I was able to do audio and video broadcasting, write articles and mix around in the world of social media.

Overall, I think my decent grades are a satisfying representation of the effort I’ve given and the endeavour I’ve shown throughout the past three years and although I might not think it now, there’s a large chance that this degree is my biggest and most meaningful accomplishment to date... actually, maybe I already think that.

Tanaka, A. (2017, July 18). Why Reflecting On Your Past Is a Good, Necessary Thing. Gen Twenty. https://gentwenty.com/reflecting-on-your-past/

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Entry 7: Supervisor evaluation reflection

Evaluation and feedback are important factors that contribute towards an employee’s, or in this case an intern’s, overall growth (Bhaskaran, n.d.).

Since internships are becoming more widely used as learning tools for students to help fill the gap between classroom learning and the practice of business, receiving feedback from a supervisor in a professional capacity is an advantageous tool (D’Abate et. al, 2009).

My first evaluation from Gordon and Sportsmate was completed after approximately 100 hours and I was extremely pleased with the score (5/5) and words provided.

Something that stood out to me personally was the fact that Gordon had highlighted two of my traits that I like to value when in an interview-type situation – these being punctuality and diligence. Knowing that these two traits were not only noticed but valued at the same time was a reassuring feeling. It was also pointed out in the first evaluation that I was able to assimilate the Sportsmate environment and work well within the group which is an important factor for any new worker/intern.

The second evaluation I received is one of the things I’m most proud of from the past three years.

Similar to my first evaluation, I was able to achieve a full score, however, this time it was a 20 out of 20. Gordon analysed in great detail several big picture aspects such as my strengths, achievements, and general skill set while also pointing out possible improvements and suggestions.

The suggestions for improvement mainly revolved around the technical side of things. Making sure I’m technically proficient at producing multimedia pieces as well as developing and creating them will go a long in enhancing my employability. Getting to know programs like Final Cut Pro, Premiere Pro, Photoshop, etc. will most likely be the next project I work on so I can add these to my resumé in confident fashion.

Most importantly, the summary provided at the bottom of this evaluation is a huge confidence booster. Although I didn’t end my internship with a guaranteed part-time role at Sportsmate this was the final comment provided by Gordon:

“It has been a pleasure to have Luke as part of the Sportsmate editorial team. His performance throughout 2021 has been a credit not only to himself but to the training he received at Holmesglen as well. I sincerely hope that Sportsmate is in a position to take on new staff soon, as Luke will be at the top of my list, but I have no doubt that Luke’s byline and credits will be scattered throughout the sports media landscape in no time at all.”

Knowing that what I did made an impact and that I’m capable of producing high-quality work promptly in a professional environment is a massive positive.

Bhaskaran, V. (n.d.). Why Should You Conduct a Supervisor Evaluation Survey? IdeaScale. https://ideascale.com/why-should-you-conduct-a-supervisor-evaluation-survey/

D'Abate, C., Youndt, M., & Wenzel, K. (2009). Making the most of an internship, Academy of Management Learning & Education, 8(4), 527–539. https://doi.org/10.5465/AMLE.2009.47785471

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Entry 6: Career aspirations including goal setting

Goodyear (2021) states that “I've always been one to reject someone telling me I have to do something. Over the years, I haven't set goals; I've just ignored that advice. But, in all honesty, I set goals without even realising it.”

This is a comment that resonates with me greatly.

Once upon a time, setting goals for my short and long-term future was always something I laughed at doing, especially when I was being told to write them down by a random secondary school teacher on an arbitrary Tuesday morning.

My classmates and I were always told to ‘take a minute’ and think about what we wanted to achieve for the school year and what we wanted to achieve in the near future. “Why do I need to think about this and write it all down when I’ll just do what I feel like when I feel like it?”

As I close in on the final stages of my tertiary studies, I’ve come to realise the importance of setting goals in a meaningful manner rather than just noting down a few things to make the teacher in secondary school think I’m working.

However, setting goals and analysing any career aspirations I might have isn’t something I’ve ever put much thought into; it’s mostly come down to me just wanting to give my all to what is on deck at that specific time. This doesn’t mean that I’ve never thought about what I’d like to be doing down the road – but having these certain aspirations with the lingering possibility of not achieving them is always something that has kept my mind in check.

Aspirations do, however, leave room for different outcomes and results (Eatough, 2021).

Being a content contributor to a sporting team or league’s social media accounts, website, etc. is one of my main aims and to do this overseas or even interstate would be the perfect blend. As a huge fan of American and European sporting leagues, the opportunity to work and live in another country is an experience I want to embark on.

To be provided with an opportunity along these lines would mean my resumé and interview skills are top-notch – which I cannot say is true right now.

In terms of my CV, I’m yet to fully amend it since receiving feedback earlier this year. However, as the past few months have gone by, I have several things to add i.e my internship at Sportsmate. Although the necessary amendments are yet to be made, my CV has a solid foundation, and I will unquestionably update it as I progress through my career.

As for my interview skills, they’re not at the highest level but I intend to work on that aspect. It’s almost as though I try to prepare myself to a tee and instead of answering questions freely, I’ve overprepared and thus sound robotic in my replies. And when I forget a pre-meditated answer, I leave myself stranded.

There’s a chance I even over-prepare and instead of answering the questions freely, I attempt to remember a rehearsed answer that sounds robotic, or if I forget then I leave myself stuck.

Nevertheless, it’s been pointed out that, despite some rough edges, I have the skill set and knowledge of how to land a role that may arise which is a terrific feeling. I just hope it plays out that way.

Eatough, E. (2021, May 28). 3 ways to answer, “What are your career aspirations?” BetterUp. https://www.betterup.com/blog/career-aspirations

Goodyear, C. (2021). Setting goals “from the heart”, Nursing Management, 52(10), 56–56. https://doi.org/10.1097/01.NUMA.0000792040.44913.e2

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Entry 5: Milestones and achievements

A crucial component of a student’s motivation includes achievement goals that reflect the purpose of one's engagement in a certain activity (Bubić et al., 2015).

With the internship being the ‘certain activity’, I have been motivated to achieve things and record milestones throughout my program to date.

Although completing and receiving positive scores on exams, SACs, and tests in secondary school and getting decent marks on several assessments here at Holmesglen have been fulfilling experiences and achievements, having your work go up on a professional application to be read by thousands is something I’m extremely proud of.

After almost three years of this course, I’m still surprised at what I’ve accomplished along the way and having the opportunity to write and talk about sport is a massive professional milestone for me, even if it’s just taking place across a set number of hours. I’ve felt a large sense of personal achievement so far and although my work ethic has faltered at times, I have still been able to engage with lectures and complete assessments to the utmost of my ability.

A reflection of this has been shown through my first three assessment results this semester. With three high distinctions to my name from three assignments, it makes me feel rewarded because I’m someone who hasn’t committed to a lot of things long-term, but to achieve terrific results in my third and final year here has been marvellous.

As mentioned in other posts, internships allow students to further develop their skillset, grow their network, gain professional experience and life experience. But also, an internship allows you to build your portfolio and maintain a tangible record of your on-the-job achievements (Chegg, 2019).

Due to having completed the bulk of my hours at home, it is reasonable to think that I’ve missed out on fully showcasing what I had learnt at Holmesglen. This more relates to the technical side of things but in terms of general work, I have pleasantly surprised myself.

So far, I have played a role across four of the sports Sportsmate covers. Below is a list of tasks I am very proud to have done myself or played a part in.

FOOTY LIVE

Match preview articles

Weekly review article (Great, Hate, Debate)

TRADE CENTRE (Two-week period)

Team chat podcasts with James

Daily social media posts on Instagram & Facebook (using pre-made templates)

Daily wrap-up podcasts

Poll creator

EPL LIVE

Weekly social media posts (self-created)

NFL LIVE

Weekly review article (Hot, Cold, Lukewarm - self-created)

Preseason review articles

NBA LIVE

2021 Mock-draft piece

NBA Summer League social media posts and review articles

I entered the internship with the goal being to reach employment status post-program and while that may be too far-fetched, I’m still grateful for the overall experience and the opportunity to achieve in a real-world space. I look forward to growing my list of milestones and hope to make them even more substantial in the future.

Bubić, A., Krile, K., & Kuzman, I. (2015). The Importance of Achievement Goals and Attitudes Towards Education for Explaining Adolescents' Career Decision Self-Efficacy. Društvena Istraživanja, 24(3), 387–405. https://doi.org/10.5559/di.24.3.04

Chegg Internships. (2019, December 3). Make The Most of Your Internship: Recording Your Internship Accomplishments. Chegg. https://www.internships.com/career-advice/workplace/recording-your-work-accomplishments

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Entry 4: Challenges faced

I’ve said it once, twice, and probably more times, but I’ll say it again – the obvious challenge has been the ongoing global pandemic, COVID-19.

COVID-19, as I’m sure everyone is aware of, caused state and country-wide lockdowns which have indeed prohibited me from attending my internship partner’s offices for almost the entirety of my internship experience thus far. The aforementioned circumstances have caused me to complete the bulk of my hours at home online which, and while understanding why it was necessary, it has still been quite frustrating from a personal perspective.

With these parameters in place, students like me have needed to be more autonomous. Maintaining motivation can be more difficult for online students/interns as they face technical issues and miss out on real-world experiences (Rakes & Dunn, 2010). Although I haven’t suffered from any technical issues but missing out on the full internship experience has been far from a favourable situation.

Another challenge that tends to affect people in my position is the juggling of various commitments.

As a 21-year-old university student, I’m... you guessed it. Extremely busy, and this is even without the social aspect which COVID-19 has suppressed. Maintaining my paid job has been crucial as well. Luckily for me, my place of work is very flexible, and my schooling and internship commitments never clashed negatively with my paid work.

In terms of juggling my course and the internship, it hasn’t been too difficult of a task. Most of this comes down to how my internship has operated due to the type of tasks I’ve been completing and of course, the online factor. Rather than completing full days in the office, I’ve taken on various roles throughout different stages of the week due to the impact of the restrictions. Because of this, I have had more opportunities to crank out assignments and weekly readings.

A common aspect of internships is that the intern may become overwhelmed (Loretto, 2019). I’m sure I would have felt overwhelmed and stressed on more occasions if I was on-site more for my internship, but so far, I have only felt the weight of too much work once. And it only lasted about five minutes before I realised that I could complete the tasks efficiently and promptly with little to no trouble.

Sometimes though, my motivation has dwindled slightly, and this is something that our very own Sam Duncan has pointed out several times in the earlier portion of this semester. He stated that third-year students’ work quality tends to drop off but even though my motivation hasn’t always been high, I feel I have done a solid job of both accepting opportunities at Sportsmate and producing high-quality assignments for university.

Overall, the main challenge of COVID-19 has prevented me from gaining a full internship experience which, as mentioned, has been frustrating up to this point. It’s meant that I’ve likely missed out on learning several practices that Sportsmate undertake when in the office but I have still got plenty out of the program so far and have done my best to make a positive impression.

Loretto, P. (2019, June 25). Importance of Internships for Your Professional Career. The Balance Careers. https://www.thebalancecareers.com/is-an-internship-really-all-that-important-1986800 

Rakes, G., & Dunn, K. (2010). The Impact of Online Graduate Students Motivation and Self-Regulation on Academic Procrastination, Journal of Online Interactive Learning, 9(1), pp. 78-93. http://www.ncolr.org/jiol/issues/pdf/9.1.5.pdf

Skillsoft Youtube. (2020, March 25). Challenges of Working Remotely. [Video]. Youtube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EVI39iu8_lY

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Entry 3: Becoming an effective team member and contributor

Good and effective team players are often defined in trait terms; that is, they are described as dependable, flexible, or cooperative (Driskell et al., 2006).

Being an effective team member and contributing was something, out of many things, that I wanted to bring to the table for my internship. While it’s been difficult to portray my eagerness, attitude, and skill set face-to-face, I’ve been making an effort to not only fit in with the team but to contribute consistently to the utmost of my abilities. This doesn’t only stem from my natural work ethic, but from my intention to provide worthy work for an organisation that provided me with this opportunity.

Mostly, I’ve been trying to take as much new information in as possible while also finding unique and new ways to add to the content produced by Sportsmate. It hasn’t always been easy though. Normally we’d be in the offices where conversations and ideas can bounce around but having been stuck at home hasn’t been ideal. However, it hasn’t stopped me from learning throughout my internship so far and I’ve still had the chance to produce a variety of work by myself and in a small team.

Co-worker support is something that has also helped build my confidence. A supportive environment undoubtedly makes for a better working atmosphere and it helps to create a sense of community and team spirit, which I have felt (Benenden Health, n.d.).

Writing AFL match previews for Sportsmate’s ‘Footy Live’ was my first taste of being a real team member at the company. Working with a group of other writers has been a valuable and rewarding experience. Being given the task to write the main portion of the preview for the AFL Grand Final between Melbourne and the Western Bulldogs was a positive reflection of how much I had developed and I’m keen to improve even further. The preview was completed with contributions from both myself and another writer and capped off a season of football preview writing which was well received by my internship supervisor, Gordon.

The trade period for the AFL has also provided me with another opportunity to learn from my co-workers and to demonstrate my efficiencies. Across two weeks, a small group, including me, created and produced podcasts, live streams, and social media posts which made me notice just how effective I need to be as part of a team.

Working with James, Nick, Gordon, and Ben was a fulfilling experience and I felt as though I had carried out what was required regarding the trade period tasks, and more. Because of the lively and enjoyable nature of the Sportsmate environment and the personalities I’ve had the pleasure of working with, I have grown to become more relaxed (while remaining diligent) and more confident throughout my internship so far.

Benenden Health (n.d.). Six Reasons to Support Your Colleagues at Work. Benenden Health. https://www.benenden.co.uk/be-healthy/work/six-reasons-to-support-your-colleagues/

Driskell, J., Goodwin, G., Salas, E., & O'Shea, P. (2006). What makes a good team player? Personality and team effectiveness. Group Dynamics: Theory, Research, and Practice, 10(4), 249–271. https://doi.org/10.1037/1089-2699.10.4.249

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Entry 2: Finding your feet in the internship

I’ll start this entry by reiterating the circumstances all of us Victorians are in. The pandemic has continued to impact our internship programs, forcing us to either postpone the start date or, in my case, progress through it online. There was a glimmer of hope for myself and my classmates after COVID-19 seemed to have taken a step back earlier this year but unfortunately, we’re facing the same challenges that classes before us needed to overcome. Through the recent ePortfolios I’ve been required to complete – and this one, referencing the pandemic and its effects has become somewhat repetitious but it is what it is and there’s no escaping it.

Completing my internship online to date has been far from the ideal circumstance, but this doesn’t prohibit the program from what it’s meant to accomplish. These internships are put in place to help soon-to-be-graduating students transition from structured learning into professional workplaces (Bloom, 2018). This concept is further highlighted by Ramli et al., (2018) who state that internships are regarded as a mechanism to explore ones’ strengths and weaknesses while adapting to a competitive workplace environment.

Internships also assist the enhancement of students’ interpersonal skills and personal maturity, and students who have completed internships are better situated when it comes to becoming employed in comparison to those who don’t complete internships (Ramli et al., 2013).

My only internship with Sportsmate Mobile began earlier this year and I’ve been able to find my feet relatively quickly, but considering the overall situation, things haven’t played out optimally in terms of where I’m doing my hours.

Having been in contact with Sportsmate’s James purely online throughout the initial stages of my internship, it was relieving to finally meet him, my internship coordinator Gordon and a couple of other Sportsmate employees in person before progressing further. My first real meeting with Gordon was positive as we were able to get on the same page and layout a map for the rest of the internship.

Up until that point I had mostly been doing game previews for their ‘Footy Live’ app where I was able to show my AFL knowledge through writing. Due to the pandemic, I haven’t been able to get my hands into the nitty-gritty operations at Sportsmate, but I’ve had plenty of opportunities since joining the company. 

One of my initial tasks was to take on one of the longer, opinion-based AFL pieces called ‘Great, Hate, Debate’ normally written by James. This was a little daunting because of what was required and how well James does it each week but the feedback I received was confidence-boosting. Another one of my first tasks was to form a mock draft for the recent NBA 2021 Draft. This was something I suggested and carried out and I was extremely happy with the feedback from Gordon and the piece itself. It allowed me to stretch my wings in terms of writing while also touching on a sport other than AFL.

I felt as though I had already formed a solid connection with the team before stepping into the offices for the first time and that feeling has only been strengthened. It’s been an unusual but fulfilling experience so far and I’m hoping I can complete some hours in person soon.

Bloom, L. (2018, July 1). What Is the Purpose of an Internship? CHRON. https://work.chron.com/purpose-internship-8335.html

Forbes. (2020, May 5). How to excel at a virtual internship. [Video]. Youtube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wSWIag4PwMQ

Ramli, J., Surbaini, K., Kadir, M., & Abidin, Z. (2013). ‘Examining Pre-Internship Expectations among Employers on the Students’ Characteristics and Internship Program: The Empirical Study of Malaysian Government-Linked Company’s University’. Management, 3(2), pp. 112-120. DOI:10.5923/j.mm.20130302.08

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Entry 1: Internship preparedness & assimilation into organisational culture

Internships offer students an opportunity to gain authentic experiences, evaluate self-interests, and secure future employment (Kapoor & Gardner-McCune, 2020). In a competitive industry like sports media, it’s important to get your feet wet and further develop relevant knowledge and skills at a professional level (Loretto, 2019).

As the cornerstone of this course, the internship program served as the main attraction for me when deciding what course I wanted to do back in late 2018. Seeing Holmesglen’s industry partners’ logos on ‘open day’ when Sam was speaking to us and then hearing about them from Robbie in our first meeting grew my excitement and ambition. However, knowing that when the internship stage was reached, that’s when things would become real.

At the beginning of 2019, when I first started the degree, I was almost calmed by the fact that I wouldn’t need to step into a professional work environment for at least another two years. This wasn’t because I assumed that it was going to be intimidating, it was more because I thought “What if I’m not ready?”

But, as I understand it now, the two and half years of preparation have convinced me that I am. From long, structured academic essays to dynamic and creative videos, all assignments and subjects have played critical roles in my growth towards an internship position. In particular, the Transition to Professional Practice class was a big eye-opener in terms of how I need to be conducting myself in the business landscape.

Initially, I questioned what the subject could help me accomplish but my thought process rapidly changed as I began to appreciate what Sharyn and the class was there to do. It didn’t only tell me what I needed to do and how I needed to act in the future, it told me how which was a valuable aspect.

Looking at the internship itself, I secured mine through different means. As someone who’s quite lazy by nature, I made it my goal in 2020 to do some sort of real-life work so I had something to show potential internship partners. However, Sportsmate Mobile and I worked out an arrangement for me to complete 228 hours with them.

It was important for me to then get a feel for the organisational culture of Sportsmate which is the collection of values, expectations, and practices that guide and inform the actions of all team members (Wong, 2020).

Unfortunately, due to COVID-19, I won’t be able to spend much time in the offices which is a shame because I, like everyone else, am keen to show my enthusiasm towards a new role and immerse myself in a new environment.

However, this won’t change my focus. I aim to take on any sort of opportunities provided, complete everything to the best of my ability and depict myself as respectful, committed, and an overall solid worker.

Denison Consulting. (2016, August 15). What is Organisational Culture? [Video]. Youtube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4cBN8xH-5Qw

Kapoor, A., & Gardner-McCune, C. (2020). Exploring the Participation of CS Undergraduate Students in Industry Internships. SIGCSE '20: Proceedings of the 51st ACM Technical Symposium on Computer Science Education. 1103-1109. https://doi.org/10.1145/3328778.3366844

Loretto, P. (2019, June 25). Importance of Internships for Your Professional Career. The Balance Careers. https://www.thebalancecareers.com/is-an-internship-really-all-that-important-1986800

Wong, K. (2020, April 9). Organizational Culture: Definition, Importance, and Development. Achievers. https://www.achievers.com/blog/organizational-culture-definition/