Interns: The handshakes that change lives

Chantal Tregear walked into the room. Linda Imadojemun rose from her chair, looked her tutor in the eye and shook hands firmly for three seconds. It was the first time I had seen a formal lesson in how to greet someone.

Such simple matters of etiquette are taken for granted by those experienced in the business world, but for new graduates they can make a difference that lasts a lifetime.

For some graduates from ethnic minority backgrounds not steeped in such niceties, or from disadvantaged backgrounds in which shaking hands politely and dressing conservatively are largely irrelevant, they can severely limit life choices.

Which is why, when one recruitment firm set up a course to prepare candidates from ethnic minorities to work in public relations and communications, it chose the University of East London as one of its partners because of its high proportion of youngsters from ethnically diverse and socially deprived environments.

Graduates from UEL are invited to apply for a 10-week paid internship programme, initiated by Taylor Bennett, a recruiter that seeks middle and senior ranking candidates for jobs in public relations. It saw a need for such a course after being challenged by its clients to produce more diverse shortlists of applicants.

Faye Wenman, a consultant with the firm, says: “As hard as we tried to produce more diverse shortlists there simply weren’t the practitioners in the market from those backgrounds.” It became apparent that this under-representation of ethnic minorities needed to be tackled at its roots.

Unicorn Jobs, Taylor Bennett’s east London-based sister organisation that recruits staff for entry-level and middle management positions in PR and corporate communications, believes “talented people from those communities have not been encouraged to consider working in this sector, or provided with the skills and knowledge required to launch a PR career”, says its website.

The resulting training programme has the long-term objective of preparing up to 100 candidates from diverse backgrounds for jobs in communications each year. The task of expanding the programme is about to be taken up by the Taylor Bennett Foundation, an independent charity launched this week.

The scheme began in the autumn of 2008, with six interns that year, six in 2009, six more this summer, and another six completing a fourth course last Friday.

Of the 18 youngsters on the first three courses, 13 have jobs – eight of them in communications and marketing, with another on a graduate scheme that includes communications. Three have secured work experience or internships in communications and one is taking a PhD with the intention of pursuing a PR career. The remaining former intern is looking for a communications role.

I sat in on a recent training session and was struck by the air of professionalism. The topic was interview etiquette and Ms Tregear, a Taylor Bennett director, was teaching six interns how to make an impression.

The students were more than half way through their 10 weeks and were all confident and articulate. Yet even though they admitted they were much changed by the tutoring, it was clear the course is more finishing school than Pygmalion – providing a sheen to already bright raw material and opening eyes to new possibilities.

Among those in the room was Ms Imadojemun, one of this autumn’s interns with an interest in fashion PR. Her parents came to the UK from Nigeria and she and her two brothers are the first in her family to graduate from university: “Friends have nicknamed me ‘Miss 9-to-5’ since I’ve been on the internship,” she says.

Beside her was Nishal Ratanji, a British born Indian who grew up in a village in Kent. He says: “This internship has definitely been the pivotal point in my life.”

I also spoke to former interns. Charlotte Robertson and Jenard Dyer completed the course last year and now both work for Brunswick, the financial communications organisation. as PR executives. Ms Robertson says it was an experience that will shape the rest of her life: “It gave me the confidence, skills and drive to seize opportunities that may not have otherwise been available, and allowed me to transcend the expectations I had of myself.

“A year ago, I found it difficult to stand up in front of my class, and now I’m communicating proficiently with some of the most influential business leaders in the country. The programme continues to give me an invaluable career support network, which includes leading consultants, PR practitioners and academic staff,” she says.

Her experience is in stark contrast to many of her friends: “The grave reality is that most of my friends are still struggling to find work a year after graduating. These are extremely talented people that don’t have the experience to compete.”

Mr Dyer found it similarly inspiring: “My self confidence grew along with my employability skills. I was introduced to new places and situations; I visited media companies, charities and even went to the opera – something I didn’t think I would have liked but enjoyed immensely.

“I am still astonished at what the course has exposed me to. In 10 weeks I learnt and experienced so much. The people I have met and the places I was given access to are mind-boggling for a guy like me, who didn’t graduate from one of the top tier universities.

“My aims and my view of the world and my career were totally different before this course. Now, my outlook on life and my career has been changed dramatically and I truly wish all the people on my university course could have experienced what I have.”

The programme is co-ordinated and delivered by Unicorn Jobs and its trainers and in-house experts. Specialist training in corporate communications is provided by practitioners at Brunswick, which has been involved with the programme since the beginning and is its fourth key partner. Taylor Bennett staff offer targeted careers counselling.

The scheme has already won an award – the Lord Mayor of London’s Dragon Award for social inclusion – and is now ready to expand.

Ms Wenman explains: “Having pulled together our training modules, we are happy with the intellectual property we have built and are confident we can take it out to other agencies and help them to deliver it, with us providing the quality assurance.

“The students receive training in media skills, career advice, etiquette, career counselling, teamworking, management, interviews, coaching around job applications and so on.

“Brunswick receives the interns once a week and gives them specialist communications training – preparing pitches, writing press releases, how the financial landscape works, a basic introduction to the City, how to read the FT and the Lex column, profit and loss – the nuts and bolts of business.

“The interns also make weekly presentations and visit organisations every week to learn about the life of a communications professional.”

Ms Wenman says that the lions’ share of the funding has so far come from Taylor Bennett, with a contribution from Brunswick: “We hope each agency that delivers the programme will make a contribution to cover costs as it expands,” she says.

Applicants for the course face a gruelling day-long assessment: some say they learn a huge amount from that alone.

The chosen few enter a new world. Ms Wenman says: “When our interns arrive their mouths drop as they look around. They can’t believe how grand everything looks – so one part of the process is immersing them in the professional world and helping them to feel more comfortable and confident in those environments.

“We see a big change in them – how they dress, how they hold their bodies, how they speak, their confidence, the questions they ask and their interest.”