My Internship at Babel: Eyimofe Okuwoga

I could describe my internship at Babel PR in many words—exciting, informative, eye-opening or the-more-you-know-the-more-there-is-to-know. But let’s go back to how it started.

*FREEZE FRAME, “Yep, that’s me. You’re probably wondering how I ended up in this situation…”

My name is Eyimofe Okuwoga. I’m a PR intern at Babel PR. I’m completing my Master’s Degree in  Public Relations and Global Communications Management at Cardiff University and felt that an internship with Babel would be good for me to combine both academic and professional experiences. Being an international student, I also felt that an internship programme would be a great way to kickstart my career in the UK.

I first learned about Babel through a program called 10,000 Black Interns, which is a programme designed to help students of Black heritage find internships or be involved in work experience programmes across 24 different sectors.

10,000 Black Interns thought Babel PR would be a good fit for me so they paired us up. Babel reached out to me after reading my CV and cover letter. When I learned that I would be interviewed by Babel, I was uncertain and didn’t know what to expect because I had never worked in a company so niche before. I went ahead and did my research on them to see what the company was all about. From reading their website and social media pages, I was curious about what it meant to be a tech PR agency and what their culture was like. 

While arranging the interview, I exchanged a few emails with the COO, Narelle, who made a real effort to explain to me that Babel is a flexible company. This gave me a lot of confidence because I knew that they would be able to accommodate me despite the fact that I would be juggling school work with the internship. I interviewed with the MD, Jenny, and she was helpful throughout the process. There was genuineness in the way she made sure to answer all my questions. A few days later, I got an acceptance email. “Something I said must have been right then,” I thought to myself!

I must confess that starting out as a remote intern had both its perks as well as its downsides. I loved being able to wake up and not rush to take the train or bus or worry about how to make it back home from the office. That being said, not being around your team can make you feel a little disconnected, they were having some pizza at the office one time and I just wanted to reach out and grab mine…virtually!

Fast forward to three months later, I get to share the office space with the lovely people who work here at Babel and I think the best part about my internship is meeting people who are genuinely so kind as to answer any questions I have. During my time here, I’ve been able to learn more about what it means to work in PR like managing online media, brand positioning, research, pitching, and garnering press mentions. Not to mention, I finally got my hands on some of that office food.

My time here has been refreshing – seeing how the industry actually works from a practical side really compliments the knowledge that I have from university. I try to avoid cliches like saying it has overall been a great experience and I’m excited about what’s to come, but it’s true and really, what more can I say?