One Day, One Internship

DivX

Willy Franzen — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 16:00:28 +0000

We’ve looked at plenty of Internet video companies in the past, but we haven’t spent too much time looking at companies that provide the underlying technology that drives Internet video. DivX is a San Diego, CA based company that develops and licenses video codecs. Codec is short for compressor-decompressor, which is essentially technology that allows you to more efficiently transfer data. In DivX’s case they provide a codec that allows high definition video to be compressed without sacrificing quality on the other end. They’re a big part of why Internet video finally works so well. Transmitting uncompressed video over the Internet takes a huge amount of bandwidth, but using a DivX codec significantly decreases the amount of bandwidth necessary to transmit your favorite time wasting video.

Decoding Your Internship Search

If you’re going to end up interning at DivX, chances are that you know more about video codecs than I do (please forgive me if my explanation above wasn’t up to snuff). While most consumers aren’t familiar with the DivX brand, they most likely use the company’s technology often. Whether it’s on the computer, the tv, or your phone, there’s a really good chance that DivX’s technology makes it possible for you to watch video. Since DivX isn’t typically selling you a product, they have to make most of their money through licensing this technology to third parties. DivX is very much a technology company, so it’s no surprise that their internship offerings are tech heavy. Right now they only have one position posted, and it’s for an Engineering Intern in Malvern, PA. You’ll need some pretty strong Software Development knowledge if you want to land the position. There’s no word on whether it’s paid or not, but you can apply online.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Had you heard of DivX before?

Berry Plastics

Willy Franzen — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 15:51:41 +0000

A couple of days ago the blogosphere exploded (pun intended) with news about bomb proof wallpaper. The story originally came from Popular Science with a video of a wrecking ball trying to knock down a brick wall that has been reinforced with the X-Flex Blast Protection System (the video is included below). I always love news stories like this one, because it puts the spotlight on a company that you never would have otherwise. In this case it’s Berry Plastics, an Evansville, IN based plastics company. Their products range from agricultural films to plastic bottles and from drink cups to trash bags. There’s a good chance that you have dozens of items in your house/dorm/apartment that were manufactured by Berry Plastics—you just don’t know it because most people don’t care who manufactured their shampoo bottles.

Bomb Proof Your Internship Search

I’m pretty sure consumers will be much more brand conscious when it comes to buying bomb proof wallpaper. Obviously the military is talking about using the X-Flex Blast Protection System, and I can also imagine the product’s being used in areas where hurricanes or tornadoes are prevalent. You’ll see why in the video below (subscribers should click through to view):

For me the obvious question whenever I find an interesting company like Berry Plastics is are they hiring interns? Considering that Berry Plastics has more than 13,000 employees (most of them in a manufacturing setting), I’d have to imagine that they have some sort of internship program, although they don’t explicitly mention it on their Careers page. I have found evidence of a Product Development Engineering Internship (.Doc file), an Engineering Internship (.Doc file), and a Marketing Internship (no link). They also have a field to select “Office – Intern” on their online application form. Berry Plastics’ internships appear to be paid, and you should also note that one of the benefits listed on their Careers page is “Fun.” If applying online doesn’t work for you, you could try printing your résumé on Berry Plastics’ bomb proof wallpaper and send it to them. They’d have to hire you because they wouldn’t be able to destroy your résumé.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Are you going to use bomb proof wallpaper?

Weebly

Willy Franzen — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 15:57:51 +0000

I’ve been building websites since 1998 (I think). Even back then, there were online services that made it easy to build a web site without any knowledge of HTML. The difference is that now there are services that enable you to make a website that looks good with no HTML knowledge. These website builders are extremely powerful, and server the purposes of most people who want a relatively simple website. Weebly is a company that offers the ability to create a free website and/or blog. They’re based in San Francisco, and they were named one of TIME’s 50 Best Websites of 2007. Weebly has some of the best names in the Venture Capital world behind them, and they’re actually profitable (based on the freemium model).

Be Part of the We in Weebly

Weebly now has more than 2 million users, which means they’re a dominant player in their market. They seem pretty focused on keeping things lean, which means that they’ve been able to achieve these results without having to take on a huge amount of capital. It’s hard to say where the personal website creation market will go in the future, but for now it seems as though Weebly has a strong hold on moving users from their free service to their paid service. They sound like a pretty cool company, and you can get a better feel for them by checking out the company blog or Founder David Rusenko’s blog. If you like what you see, then you should take a look at internships at Weebly. Right now they have only one position available—Customer Satisfaction/Marketing Intern. The internship is unpaid, but they will buy you lunch and reimburse your travel expenses. You can apply online for the internship, and I think that you should probably build a Weebly site as part of your application.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Have you built your own Weebly site?

Big Ten Network

Willy Franzen — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 15:52:05 +0000

I love Ivy League sports. I really do. Although I think the league gets less respect than it deserves, I know that they’ll never be the Big Ten—even if a powerhouse like Cornell (hey, I’m biased) continues to excel at the national level in sports like Hockey, Lacrosse, Wrestling, and even Basketball. I didn’t realize how big Big Ten sports were until I walked around Chicago on a Saturday afternoon in the fall. The Ohio State bar is packed with Ohio State fans, and the Michigan bar is packed with Michigan fans. Everyone is dressed in their school’s colors—and these are people hundreds of miles away from their schools and many years away from graduation. I guess that’s why there’s the Chicago based Big Ten Network, a television station devoted to everything Big Ten. While I’m watching grainy online streaming video of Cornell Hockey with my laptop hooked up to my tv, Big Ten fans can watch their favorite team—often in HD.

Network Yourself in the Big Ten

The Big Ten Network was launched just over 2 years ago as “a joint venture between subsidiaries of the Big Ten Conference and Fox Cable Networks,” and it’s allowed the Big Ten to gain significant control and leverage in terms of media distribution. Not only do they now have more control over their advertising revenue (they prohibit alcohol and gambling ads), but they also get to bring more attention to Women’s sports and sports other than basketball and football. As they put it:

Eleven schools, 252 varsity teams, one great network to cover it all. Welcome to the Big Ten Network, your ultimate source for Big Ten sports, featuring the games, passion and tradition of the nation’s foremost athletic conference.

Obviously the Big Ten is the first to make a move like this, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see more and more athletic conferences take more control over the moneymaker that is televised college sports. If you’d like to get on board and be part of the Big Ten Network as an intern, you need to check out their Careers page—or you can just skip ahead to the Fox job search function where the Big Ten Network’s jobs and internships are listed. If you select Big Ten Network as the company, you’ll see all of the internship openings that they have available. Right now they have opportunities that include Communications Intern, On-Campus Intern, Production Intern, Marketing Intern, and Programming Intern. There’s no word on whether any of these positions are paid or not. You can apply online for any of these internships, and you should keep your eye out for more postings from the Big Ten Network in the future.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What’s your team?

Text 100

Willy Franzen — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 15:59:50 +0000

This is a guest post by Heather R. Huhman. Heather is the media relations manager at a national health care professional association and entry-level careers columnist for Examiner.com.

Text 100 is a global, high tech public relations agency. They call themselves the world’s only “global boutique PR consultancy” or “big agency 2.0.” Like the public relations industry as a whole, Text 100 prides itself in constantly evolving to meet its clients’ needs. Speaking of clients, I recognize nearly every name on their client list, which includes PayPal, MTV, IBM, Adobe, eBay and more. This year, Text 100 took home two awards, including the 2009 Holmes Report “Best Agencies to Work For” where it ranked #6. The other award, also from Holmes Report, was “Best Campaign” for its work with Cisco.

Be a Driver of Innovation

Text 100 offers the typical agency services, but what sets them apart is the sectors they serve, which includes clean technology. This is definitely an area which will continue to grow in importance over the coming years and even decades. Text 100 is currently seeking public relations interns in San Francisco and New York City. You can expect to perform work at the level of an Account Coordinator (although there’s no word on whether the positions are paid or not). What will put you over the top of other candidates? “Creativity, writing experience, ability to work as part of a team, sense of humor, initiative and flexibility.” Interested? Submit your cover letter and résumé online. I also recommend familiarizing yourself with their blog, hypertext.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What have you heard about Text 100?

Center for Court Innovation

Willy Franzen — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 15:57:40 +0000

I don’t know about you, but I’ve been well enough behaved during the course of my life to avoid any appearances in court. I did have to serve on jury duty for a day a few years ago, but most of knowledge about court rooms comes from tv and movies. Despite my limited knowledge of the legal process, I don’t find it hard to imagine that there’s room for innovation in our courts. Center for Court Innovation is a New York City based non-profit organization that is doing just that. They act “as the court system’s independent research and development arm, creating demonstration projects that test new ideas.” Some of their projects include community courts, drug courts, reentry courts, domestic violence courts, and mental health courts.

Innovation in Search of Justice

It may seem strange to have specific courts tailored to specific issues, but I think it makes sense. Different problems require different solutions, and some times a one-size-fits-all approach just isn’t very effective. A lot of what Center for Court Innovation does seems to be related to court segmentation, but their works goes well beyond that too. They’re really about taking great ideas in court reform and putting them to the test. And if the ideas work, then Center for Court Innovation make the move to bring them into wider adoption within the New York court system. If Center for Court Innovation gets your ears perked up, then you should look into their internship opportunities. They typically offer Summer Law Internships in the summer for students in Law School, but I don’t see anything posted yet. (Here’s a posting from last year.) Additionally they had a posting for a Research Intern a few months back, and I’d imagine there are some other opportunities as well. You’ll have to do a little digging to get the scoop on what will be available over the course of the next few months, but I think that you’ll be happy with what you find (although I think the internships are unpaid).

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Have you ever been to court?

The Constitution Project

Willy Franzen — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 17:19:19 +0000

Who doesn’t love the Constitution? Not only is it an extremely cool historical document, but it also happens to ensure our most sacred rights. You would think that such a document would be written with extreme clarity, but you probably know that ambiguity and interpretation come hand in hand with the Constitution. We’ve seen plenty of fractious debates end up in front of the Supreme Court and get settled with 5-4 decisions. The Constitution Project is a Washington, DC based non-profit organization that aims to build consensus on Constitutional issues.

Come to a Career Consensus

Now, don’t misunderstand The Constitution Project’s mission. They’re far from anti-debate; in fact, they’re very much in favor of debate on Constitutional law. They just think it’s important to build some level of consensus on our most controversial legal issues. They do this “through constructive dialogue across ideological and partisan lines, and through scholarship, activism, and public education efforts.” If this sounds like an exciting project to you, then you should check out internships at The Constitution Project. They only have two positions available right now—Public Interest Law Intern and Undergraduate Public Policy Intern—but they both look pretty interesting. The positions are unpaid, but that’s pretty much expected at most non-profits.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What have you heard about The Constitution Project?

Orbitz Worldwide

Willy Franzen — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 16:02:53 +0000

Happy Friday the 13th! If you let your belief in bad luck and superstition affect you on a daily basis, then you’re setting yourself back in the internship search. It really won’t do you any good. With that said, there are millions of people who suffer from paraskevidekatriaphobia—the fear of Friday the 13th. One of the biggest symptoms of this phobia is an unwillingness to travel on Friday the 13th. There’s some debate as to whether this actually has a significant effect on the travel industry, but I’ve heard that you can get pretty good deals when the 13th day of a month falls on a Friday. Since I’m not a big fan of superstition—especially when it comes to the internship search—we’re going to fly in the face of paraskevidekatriaphobia and take a look at internships with Orbitz Worldwide. If you don’t already know, they’re a Chicago based online travel company. In late 1999 they were formed through a partnership between 5 major airlines—Continental, Delta, Northwest, United, and American—to compete with Expedia and Travelocity.

Send Your Career into Orbitz

Although I couldn’t tell you what differentiates Orbitz from the plethora of other travel sites out there, I do know that I’ve used them before and would use them again. Their brands beyond Orbitz include niche plays like CheapTickets, eBookers, HotelClub, RatesToGo, Away.com, Asia-Hotels, and Orbitz for Business. Over the past decade Orbitz Worldwide has gone through a number of ownership changes, and now they’ve finally settled as publicly traded company. They have about 1,500 employees according to their LinkedIn profile, and I’m certain that they offer internships. What I’m not certain about is how they offer them. I’ve seen enough Google evidence to show that they definitely have internships, but you won’t find them in Orbitz’s Job listings. There’s a chance that it’s a seasonal thing, but there’s no way to know right now. Since it’s your lucky day, you should use some Google skills to do some research. You’ll find things like this intern profile, which should lead you in the right direction.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Would you travel on Friday the 13th?

NBC and Telemundo Chicago

Willy Franzen — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 16:55:56 +0000

I have to admit that I pretty much stopped watching local news after going to school and living in Central New York for four years. I swear that every night the news would come on at 11 PM, and there would be a new crew reporting live from a barn that caught on fire. Here in Chicago it’s more likely to be a shooting or possibly some government corruption. I’m sure that your area has its own regular story. Usually I like to talk about how the Internet is kicking traditional media’s butt, but that hasn’t been true when it comes to local stuff. TV and newspapers still own the local market, which is why NBC Chicago and Telemundo Chicago would be pretty cool places to intern. (Telemundo is a local network much like NBC 5 Chicago, but it’s tailored to a Spanish speaking audience.)They’re still the place to go for local news (whether it’s on the web or on the tube).

Intern Locally… If You’re in Chicago

I recently came across the Internships page for NBC Chicago and Telemundo Chicago and was impressed by how many opportunities they are offering. The only thing that bugged me is that they stick a bunch of legalese in the first few paragraphs instead of using the space to tell you how awesome the internship program is. I guess they want to make it painfully clear that their internships are unpaid and only for current students at accredited college. They’re also adamant about the fact that interns can’t do certain work because of union contracts.

With all that said, there are still a ton of cool opportunities including internships in: Advertising and Promotion (NBC and Telemundo), Station/Community Relations (NBC), Digital Sales, Consumer Unit (NBC), Health Unit (NBC), Investigative Unit (NBC), National Business Development (NBC), NBC Network News Midwest Bureau, News Assignment Desk (NBC or Telemundo), News Department (NBC or Telemundo), News Planning Unit (NBC or Telemundo), Sales Research and Marketing (NBC), Sports Department (NBC), Web Development Department (NBC), and NBCChicago.com Editorial Department (NBC). There are 4 internship sessions per year at NBC Chicago and Telemundo Chicago. There’s a PDF application form that you need to fill out and mail in, so check out the NBC Chicago and Telemundo Chicago Internships page for all of the details.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Do you watch the local news?

EatingWell Media Group

Willy Franzen — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 16:00:50 +0000

Although we don’t have a Veterans Day themed post for today, we hope that you’ll celebrate by thanking a Vet and possibly checking out our post from last year on internships at the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Earlier this week we took a look at Seed Media Group, a relatively new company that is finding success in an otherwise declining industry by focusing on a specific niche. Another company that is taking a similar approach is EatingWell Media Group, which is based in Charlotte, VT (near Burlington). They are “a fast-growing, independent communications company producing an award-winning national consumer magazine, high-quality food and nutrition-related books, a content-rich website, e-mail newsletters, and serving content to strategic partners with other electronic media.” It’s all about healthy eating without sacrificing the enjoyment of food. Some people think that those two things are mutually exclusive, but EatingWell Media Group has built its business on delivering content that proves otherwise.

EatingWell, InterningWell

EatingWell has grown to reach millions of people through a variety of channels because they are very much a trusted source for health conscious people. The reason for this is that they have been able to combine science based nutrition with the artistry that is essential to creating delicious recipes. They’re a relatively small company, but they do appear to be a growing. A quick look at their Internships page shows that they are offering a number of positions for students. They have both an Editorial Internship Program and an Interactive Internship Program (this includes positions in E-Marketing, Web Development/Design, and Web Writing/Production). The positions are unpaid, but well fed, so check out the full postings for information on how to apply.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Do you eat well?

Flat World Knowledge

Willy Franzen — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 15:04:12 +0000

Today’s post comes with a big announcement. I’m writing a book! A textbook on Career Development to be precise. The best part of that news is that the textbook is going to be available online for free because I’m working with an awesome publisher named Flat World Knowledge. They’re a Nyack, NY based startup that is aiming to revolutionize the textbook industry. I’m sure many have you have been forced into spending thousands of dollars over the course of your college career on textbooks (and how many of them remained in their shrink wrap?). Flat World Knowledge is building a business by providing you with better, more affordable options. Textbooks from Flat World can be read online for free. You can pay to print a chapter (or the whole book) at home. You can buy a softcover copy in black and white—or color. You can even get an audio book version. When my book comes out, you can read it however you want to read it—and you’ll never be forced to pay an arm and a leg for it.

Navigating a Flat World

Here’s a quick video introduction to Flat World Knowledge:

I’m sure that there has been plenty of outcry on your campus about how expensive textbooks are, and you’ve probably noticed that the mainstream media is starting to pick up on this story. Flat World is tackling this problem head on by making a bet that they can sell more textbooks at a lower price. It may seem crazy for a publisher to give away full textbooks for free, but Flat World knows that a lot of students can’t bear to read an entire textbook online. Some students will want to pay for hard copies of the book, and that will leave enough profit for Flat World. They’ve raised $8 million in funding to get started, but hopefully a certain Career Development text will be so popular that they won’t need to take on any more money in the future.

Now, I do have a vested interest in the success of Flat World Knowledge, but that’s because I believe that they’re doing something great for students. If you’d like to have a vested interest in Flat World, then you should check out their Internships page. Flat World is looking for 10 students at campuses across the country to join their Sales & Marketing Campus Rep Internship Program. These are paid positions ($8/hour) that require a 10-hour per week commitment from January through April. You’ll be busting your butt to spread the word about Flat World Knowledge and to increase adoption by professors and students on your campus. You might even be promoting my book! The application deadline is December 1st, and you can find all of the application information here.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Will you read my book?

Seed Media Group

Willy Franzen — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 15:56:20 +0000

The magazine business is dying, right? A lot of people seem to think so, and for the most part I agree with them; however, we seem to be seeing a new breed of magazines cropping up. They’re web integrated, extremely well designed, and laser focused on a specific audience. They still sell advertising, but they offer advertisers access to a well-defined audience that general interest magazines can’t compete with. The company behind one of these magazines (Seed Magazine) is Seed Media Group. They’re based out of New York City, and they are a media and technology company built on the premise that science is culture. They’ve been offering a new take on science since 2005, and it seems to be working with them.

Seeding Your Career

Beyond Seed Magazine, Seed Media Group also runs ScienceBlogs.com. It’s a substantial web property, and it falls right in line with Seed Media Group’s belief that:

Science is transforming our global culture and conversation unlike ever before, shaping markets, informing policy, inspiring the arts and deepening our understanding of who we are, where we come from and where we’re heading.

It’s hard to say whether Seed Media Group and similar companies will be able to save the magazine industry, or if their success is just a temporary thing, but you have to like the fact that they’re more focused on a topic than the specific type of media that they deliver to their readers. If you’re intrigued by Seed Media Group, I recommend that you check out their websites listed below and pick up a copy of the magazine. That way you can get to know them and better understand if they might be somewhere you want to intern. Their Careers page currently has two intern positions listed—one in Design and one on the Editorial side. Both positions come with a monthly stipend, and look really cool. We’re already past the deadline for Spring Editorial internships, but I’d imagine that they’ll be posting Summer opportunities soon. There’s no reason you can’t reach out to them now and see what’s available when.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Do you read Seed Magazine or ScienceBlogs.com?

Minnesota Children’s Museum

Willy Franzen — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 15:58:52 +0000

Although I’ve never been there, I hear that the Mall of America is great. It’s an impressive spectacle of consumerism, and it’s a must-see if you’re in the Twin Cities area. However, I’d imagine that it’s not the most educational place to take your kids. Luckily, Minnesotans have the Minnesota Children’s Museum in St. Paul. It was named by Cookie Magazine as one of “sixteen road trip-worthy museums that put the emphasis on children.” The Museum is loaded with cool exhibits like Earth World, which focuses on local habitats, and Habitot, which creates exploration opportunities for toddlers. They also play host to exciting traveling exhibits like Dinosaurs, which will be arriving in 42 days (they have a countdown on their homepage).

Get an Internship for the Children

Now, Minnesota Children’s Museum may not be record-breaking big, but it makes up for it with awesome educational opportunities. A monstrous mall just can’t compete when it comes to intellectually stimulating activities for kids. But what about intellectually stimulating internships for you? The Minnesota Children’s Museum Internships page has exactly what you’re looking for. They have more than a dozen positions for Spring 2010 including internships in Social Media and Promotions, Fundraising Events, Development, Educational Programs – Activity Facilitation, Environmental Education Programs, Exhibit Maintenance, Museum Operation, Education Programs – Museum Classes, Volunteer Recruitment, Membership, Human Resources, Marketing, Information Technology, and Corporate and Foundations Fundraising. You can find links to full descriptions on MCM’s Internships page along with information on how to apply. The deadline for applications is December 18th, and it appears that all of the positions are unpaid.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Have you ever visited the Minnesota Children’s Museum?

Good Sports

Willy Franzen — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 15:53:25 +0000

Did you know that how wealthy your family is has a lot to do with which sports you play growing up? Sometimes it’s a demographic thing, but a lot of times it just has to do with whether or not your family can afford to pay for the equipment. Take hockey for example. There’s a ton of stuff you need, and it’s all expensive; whereas, basketball can be played with just a ball and a hoop in a park. There are no hard and fast rules about this, but it’s very clear that many kids don’t get the opportunity to try some sports because of the costs involved. Good Sports is a Boston based non-profit that “provides sports equipment to disadvantaged youth in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Philadelphia, and Chicago.” They may have pictures of Boston athletes plastered all over their website (yuck!), but they’re doing a really good thing.

Are You a Good Sport?

The idea behind Good Sports is pretty simple—they raise money and take equipment donations from manufacturers and then provide equipment grants to youth athletic programs. Additionally, Goods Sports runs Community Health Programs in conjunction with Community Health Centers to provide “necessary fitness equipment to children being treated in healthy weight, diabetes, or other obesity related medical programs.” They seem to be doing a great job, and the names on their Boards of Directors and Advisors show that they’ve excelled at integrating themselves within the Boston sports community. It’d be a cool place to break into the sports industry, as you’d have tons of networking opportunities. Right now, Good Sports is looking for an Non-Profit & Sports Industry Intern, which, although unpaid, looks like an awesome opportunity for a sports enthusiast. You can apply by sending a cover letter and résumé to Davin Lencz at dlencz@goodsports.org.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What’s your favorite piece of sports equipment?

Bamboo Sk8

Willy Franzen — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 15:58:12 +0000

When I was in college, I lived in a rundown house with 9 other guys. Pretty much all of them rode skateboards. Most people would have a coat or shoe rack at their front door. We had a skateboard rack. I was the one guy who didn’t ride a board, because I did not want to suffer the embarrassment of coming home bloodied and with ripped clothes. I kept my action sporting to crawling through gorges to find undiscovered fishing spots. Now, I’m not sure where my buddies bought their skateboards, but I’m pretty sure that had they known about Bamboo Sk8, they would have considered them. Bamboo Sk8 is an Oceanside, CA based company that uses natural products (bamboo possibly) to make sustainable skateboards.

Sk8 Your Way to an Internship

If you’re into action sports and sustainability, there couldn’t be a better company for you to intern at than Bamboo Sk8. They look like an insanely cool company, and they even seem to be getting a decent amount of press for being a great place to work. Their About page offers a ton of information on the company, and they also have a fantastic Internships page that features profiles of each class of interns that they’ve had. The only thing that it is lacking is actual internship postings, but if you do a quick Google search, you can get the specifics on what types of positions they’re trying to fill. I’ve seen mostly posts about Marketing Generalist internships, but there may be some other opportunities (it may also help to check out intern profiles to get a sense of what other interns have done). There’s also an Interns Blog that will give you more information on what it’s like to be an intern. Once you’ve sold yourself on Bamboo Sk8, you can apply by sending a résumé and cover letter to molson@bamboosk8.com, just remember that they’re unpaid.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Have you ever ridden a Bamboo Sk8 board?

Steiner Sports

Willy Franzen — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 15:31:51 +0000

“Ball game over! World Series over! Yankees win! THEEEEEEEE YANKEES WINNNNNNNNN!” Although I was watching tv and not listening on the radio, I heard John Sterling’s call in my head as soon as Cano threw to Teixeira to get the 27th out and a 27th World Championship. As you can probably guess, I’m a huge Yankees fan, and I’m in a great mood. Since we’ve already covered internships with Major League Baseball teams, internships with the YES Network, and plenty of other internships in baseball, today we’re going to take a look at Steiner Sports. They’re based out of New Rochelle, NY, and consider themselves the “the leader in autographed sports memorabilia and sports collectibles.” They also happen to have a very strong partnership with the New York Yankees, so they are the place to go for your 2009 Championship collectibles. Whether you want a seat from the old stadium or an official Championship locker room t-shirt, they’ve got it. You can even buy a Derek Jeter autographed 2009 World Series ball despite the fact that he probably hasn’t had time yet to sit down and sign autographs.

Collect Your Way to an Internship

I used to be really into sports memorabilia, but now I’m happy to just watch the game. Still, sports memorabilia is a huge market that seems to be going strong despite the decline of the collectible card industry. I guess people would much rather have something that is actually scarce like a game used jersey than a piece of cardboard that can be produced en masse. I guess that’s why Steiner Sports is now a “booming, 100-plus employee, $50 million enterprise.” Beyond the memorabilia and collectibles side of the business, there’s also Steiner Sports Marketing. It seems like an awesome company for sports fans, so if you’re intrigued, check out their Careers page. You won’t find any specifics on their internship program, but you will find contact information there. I know that they have internships because a number of colleges have them listed on their websites as offering internships. Iona has them on a list of companies that offer sports marketing internships, and St. John’s lists an internship with Steiner’s charity events and fundraising division. A little Google searching will probably turn up more information, but you might just want to reach out to Steiner Sports and see what they offer.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Yankees win!

I Hire Interns at Southwest Airlines… Ask Me Anything

Willy Franzen — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 19:02:20 +0000

A little over a year ago we featured internships at Southwest Airlines. It’s been one of our more popular post, and it’s resulted in some active discussion in the comments section. Luckily, someone from Southwest has chimed in to answer some of the questions of One Day, One Internship readers. His name is Greg Muccio, and he is the South West Airlines Team Leader responsible for short-term staffing including college relations and hiring for their NoLimits Intern program. He previously worked as a Senior Recruiter supporting the hiring needs of areas such as Finance, Internal Audit, Schedule Planning, and People (HR) for all of their hiring needs, and before that he worked in the Staffing Industry.

Greg is in charge of recruiting for an internship program that gets thousands of applicants every year, so he knows a thing or two about what it takes to get a highly sought after internship. He also knows about working at a company with a storied corporate culture (how many textbooks has Southwest Airlines been featured in?).

Ask Greg Anything

After answering a few questions on our original post about Southwest Airlines, Greg reached out to me and said that he’d love to do a Q&A with the wider One Day, One Internship audience. He’d prefer to focus on general internship and career related questions, but if you have a great question that’s not related to Southwest or internships, I’m sure that he’ll be happy to answer it.

Right now, we’ll be accepting questions through the comments form below. We’ll keep the comments form open for the next week or so, and we’ll try to get Greg’s responses posted during the week of November 16th. He probably won’t be able to answer all of your questions, but we’ll do our best to have him answer the most interesting and relevant ones.

Start asking!

The Wrap

Willy Franzen — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 15:54:18 +0000

I’m going to be brutally honest with this one. When I landed on the The Wrap’s Home page, I immediately clicked the back button. I thought that I had landed on one of those Google Money Maker scam pages (it’s all because of the font choice). After processing what I had seen, I decided to take a second look. Despite their poor design choices, The Wrap is a legitimate site—if a site that covers entertainment industry analysis and breaking hollywood news can be considered legitimate (I kid). Now, The Wrap shouldn’t be confused with gossip sites like TMZ or Perez Hilton, this is actually an industry focused site that does primary source reporting. They’re venture funded and quite obviously located in Los Angeles. I don’t know a lot about the entertainment industry and how it’s covered by the press, but it looks like The Wrap is growing a solid audience with their web-based content.

Get Wrapped Up In It

Whether or not an internship in entertainment journalism sounds interesting to you, you need to be reading The Wrap if you have any interest in the entertainment industry whatsoever. On the other hand, if you’re looking for an internship covering Hollywood news, you’re in serious luck. There are two internships posted on The Wrap’s Jobs page, although they come with no description. It’s unclear exactly what they’re looking for, but I’d imagine that the positions have something to do with journalism. It’s the perfect opportunity to break into Hollywood reporting, so if you’re interested, send a résumé and cover letter to info@thewrap.com. There’s no word on whether the positions are paid or not.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Do you read The Wrap?

Fanzter

Willy Franzen — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 15:45:22 +0000

One thing that I find really exciting is the fact that there are cool startups popping up all across the country. Yes, Silicon Valley and the Pacific Northwest are still the primary places for technology focused companies to open up shop, but that’s becoming less and less true. That’s why I was intrigued by Fanzter—they’re web products company based in Collinsville, CT. Considering the fact that I’m from Connecticut and have never heard of Collinsville (it’s near Hartford), you have to consider it an unusual location for a startup (they would tell you it’s optimally located between Boston and New York City). Fanzter’s first (and only current) product is called Coolspotters. It’s a website that “makes it easy to discover and buy the products, brands, and fashions being used by your favorite celebrities – in their real lives, and in movies and television.” It reminds me a lot of what Delivery Agent is doing.

Spot These Cool Internships

The business behind Coolspotters is pretty clear—their content can flow seamlessly into e-commerce. Coolspotters relies heavily on user-generated content, so the site can grow organically on it’s own. To get a feel for Coolspotters, let’s take a look at Joba Chamberlain (go Yankees!). His profile page will show you products that he’s been spotted with including a picture of him with the product. I see a picture of Joba playing Guitar Hero, and then I can go buy my own Guitar Hero. There are still a lot of kinks to be worked out on Coolspotters’ site (like having Mariano Rivera’s picture for C.C. Sabathia), but the concept is there and so is the funding. Right now, Fanzter’s Internships page shows two opportunities: Technology Intern and Editorial Intern. Both look great, and I’m pretty sure that they’re paid. You can apply for an internship with Fanzter by sending a cover letter and résumé to jobs@fanzter.com.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What do you think of Coolspotters?

Cohn & Wolfe

Willy Franzen — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 14:57:41 +0000

This is a guest post by Heather R. Huhman. Heather is the media relations manager at a national health care professional association and entry-level careers columnist for Examiner.com.

Cohn & Wolfe, a global public relations agency, recently won the 2009 Holmes Report “Best Agency to Work For.” That’s not the only award they took home this year, however. In 2009 alone, they won eight other awards, ranging from the 2009 PRSA Bronze Anvil Awards for Commendation: Press Kits/Media Kits – Digital to the 2009 Gold Sabre Award for Social Marketing. It’s always so exciting to work at an agency that’s being recognized by the industry for excellence. With 10 wide-ranging practice areas, there’s likely to be a fit for nearly everyone. As a huge baseball fan, sports marketing would probably be my favorite!

Join a Team that Puts Team First

Another interesting aspect of Cohn & Wolfe is its place in the WPP family. Because of this, it has strategic partnerships with Quinn Gillespie, a leading public affairs firm, and Schematic, a strategic interactive agency that creates branded experiences. This means more services to offer clients—and extra relationships to be made for you! Cohn & Wolfe is currently seeking a part-time, paid Communications Intern in its New York City office. In order to qualify for this 20-hour per week position, you must “demonstrate strong writing and editing skills, as well as strong research and analytical skills” and “be organized, detailed-oriented, resourceful, and able to multi-task.” Interested? Submit your cover letter and résumé to caitlin.james@cohnwolfe.com with “NY Communications Intern” as the subject line. I also recommend you start reading Wolfe Tracking, Cohn & Wolfe’s all-agency blog where PR professionals across nine industry practices explain how to build, create and defend brands in the new communications landscape.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What have you heard about Cohn & Wolfe?

Wildlife Conservation Society

Willy Franzen — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 15:49:57 +0000

I’m a nut about wildlife. I don’t watch Animal Planet all day or anything, but I get ridiculously excited when I see a new species in the wild. My hope is to one day run into a mountain lion in the wild, at least as long as I’m not being hunted. As fanatical as I am about wildlife, I bet I don’t even come close to the people at the Wildlife Conservation Society, a New York City based non-profit. They were founded in 1895 with a “clear mission to save wildlife and wild places across the globe.” Their first major success was aiding the recovery of American Bison, and now they’re working to “protect many of the world’s iconic creatures here and abroad, including gorillas in the Congo, tigers in India, polar bears in the Arctic, and ocean giants in our world’s amazing seascapes.” Beyond doing that, they also run 5 parks in New York City—the Bronx Zoo, New York Aquarium, Central Park Zoo, Prospect Park Zoo and Queens Zoo.

Internships in the Wild

According to Wildlife Conservation Society’s About page, they’re committed to protecting 25% of the world’s biodiversity. I’m not sure where that number came from, how it’s measured, or what exactly it means, but it sounds like an ambitious goal for a passionate organization. The way that pursues this goal is by focusing on 4 key issues: “climate change; natural resource exploitation; the connection between wildlife health and human health; and the sustainable development of human livelihoods.” With so much on their plate, Wildlife Conservation Society has a lot of internship opportunities. You can find all of the information on their Jobs page, where they separate opportunities into New York City Full Time, New York City Seasonal, Opportunities in the Field, and Interns and Volunteers. The Internships section will give you a quick overview of their Internship program, but most of the information can be found by using the WCS job search function. There you’ll find positions like Animal Intern, Development Intern, Human Resources Intern, and Information Technology Intern. There’s no mention whether the positions are paid or unpaid, but they do list them as Non-Exempt, which should mean that they are paid. You can apply for any of the positions online.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Have you ever been to any of Wildlife Conservation Society’s parks?

Children’s Dental Health Project

Willy Franzen — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 13:16:10 +0000

Happy Halloween! Yesterday we took a look at Mars and talked about Halloween candy, but today we’re going to take a different tack. Since we’re told from an early age that candy will rot our teeth, I figure that Halloween is the perfect time to discuss a dental non-profit. It’s also appropriate because many people would consider the dentist to be way scarier than even the most deranged Halloween costume. After a little searching, I came across Children’s Dental Health Project. They’re a relatively small Washington, DC based non-profit organization that “advances policies that improve children’s access to oral health.” Now, this definitely does not mean that I think that anyone should give out toothbrushes for Halloween, but make sure you brush after eating all that candy.

Dental Hygiene for the Win

Now, when I was growing up, I always thought it was ridiculous that I had two scheduled dental appointments every year to take care of my teeth, but only one annual checkup with the pediatrician for the rest of my body. Although I’m still tempted to that feel that way, I realize that most of us significantly undervalue dental health. The truth is that tooth decay at an early age will have significant negative impact over the course of one’s life. Considering the fact that of American children “one-quarter will have at least one cavity by the time they reach kindergarten and one-half by second grade,” we need to do better with our children’s dental health (and probably our own too). This is why Children’s Dental Health Project is actively working to:

Prevent childhood tooth decay, because cavities are the result of a disease that is overwhelmingly preventable.
Promote solutions that are grounded in the best available research and supporting exploration when evidence is lacking
Engage policymakers and other decision-makers in addressing ongoing inequities in oral health and to implement cost-effective solutions.

It sounds like a great organization, and although I don’t know if they’re taking interns now, I think it would be worth reaching out to them to see if they have anything open—especially if you are a fanatic about dental health. Use their Contact page to learn more about how to reach them.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Did you brush your teeth today?

Mars

Willy Franzen — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 15:10:17 +0000

Tomorrow is Halloween, which means that we need to talk about candy today. We’ve already looked at companies like Jelly Belly, The Hershey Company, Charles Chocolates, Vosges, and Just Born Quality Confections. We’ve also discussed jobs at Mars & Co., which is a consulting firm, and not to be confused with Mars, the CPG and candy company. You probably know them best for M&M’s, Snickers, Dove, Milky Way, Twix, and Mars bar; however, they’re also behind Pedigree, Whiskas, Uncle Ben’s, and quite a few other brands. For your sake I hope you only run into the good stuff and not Whiskas or Pedigree during your trick-or-treating. While headquartered in McLean, VA, Mars has locations all across the world. They’re a huge company with a ton of international business, which makes for a great place to gain some experience.

Take a Trip to Mars

It all started in 1911 with butter cream candies in a kitchen in Tacoma, WA. Frank C. Mars and his wife started selling these candies, and now you’d be hard pressed to find a person who has never tasted one of his company’s confections. If you’d like to be part of this true American success story, then you need to check out Mars’ Careers page. They offer a lot of information about their company and what it’s like to work for them, and they even have a separate section for students. There doesn’t seem to be much information on internships, but Mars’ job search function does have a selection for internships. And since you’re in the trick-or-treating mood, I’m going to leave finding more details up to you—but just so you know, they should have job opportunities in areas including Engineering, Finance, Human Resources, Information Technology, Logisitcs, Manufacturing, Marketing, Purchasing, Research & Development, & Sales.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What’s your favorite candy from Mars?

Brightcove

Willy Franzen — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 14:51:45 +0000

It took long enough, but Internet video is everywhere. Yes, we had online video 10 years ago, but now it actually looks good—and works. The main reason for this is that end users (you and me) finally have technology in their homes that can handle playing online video. This means high speed Internet connections and computers with enough processing power to not crash when a website uses a Flash video player. The issue for content creators is that delivering video still poses some challenges. Sure, I was able to produce an online job search training course that relied heavily on video with little trouble, but I wasn’t delivering video to thousands or even millions of people (I wish I had the problem). As your use base increases, the challenge of delivering video increase exponentially. Moreover, managing video content in an organized fashion is a completely different challenge than organizing text and images. Brightcove is a Cambridge, MA based company that provides an online video platform for many of the worlds biggest brands.

Are You Bright Enough?

I’ve probably said this before about other companies, but I’m not sure that I’ve seen a client list as impressive as Brightcove’s customer list. It includes names like The New York Times, Discovery Channel, Sony Music, U.S. Army, and Ticketmaster, so you know that Brightcove isn’t just some flash in the pan startup. They have top flight clients who are paying lots of money for the Brightcove platform. With that said, it will be interesting to see how online video delivery develops in the next 5 to 10 years and how Brightcove adapts to those changes. If you want to be a part of the future of online video, then you need to check out Brightcove’s Internship listings. They have quite a few positions posted including Sales Data Specialist Intern, Quality Assurance Intern, Partner Marketing Intern, and Marketing Operations Intern. There’s no word on whether these positions are paid or not, but you can apply online directly from the links above.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Have you seen websites that use Brightcove to deliver video?

Franklin Fuel Cells

Willy Franzen — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 14:47:05 +0000

Whether you think the human race is going to end at the hands of the greenhouse effect or you just don’t like paying 3 bucks a gallon for gas, you likely have a vested interest in alternative energy. There’s a good chance that some time in your lifetime our main energy source will be something other than fossil fuels. Then again, I’m just coming to the realization that I won’t see flying cars in my lifetime. Hopefully I’m wrong about that one. Anyway, there are a ton of companies that are vying to win a big share of the alternative energy market. Many of these are small startups that you’ve never heard of. Their websites are ugly, and they’re usually not located in big cities. You’d never guess it from their appearance, but they’re actually at the forefront of engineering technology. One of these companies is Malvern, PA based Franklin Fuel Cells. Their focus is on “commercializing a unique solid oxide fuel cell (SOFCs) technology that can operate directly on today’s hydrocarbon fossil fuels as well as future fuels such as, biofuels and hydrogen.” I don’t really know what that means, but it sounds pretty cool.

Career Alternatives in Alternative Energy

Franklin Fuel Cells has a few million dollars in venture capital funding, and they’re working on technology that originated at the University of Pennsylvania. It’s hard to say whether they actually have any products, services, or licensing deals to bring in revenue yet, but it’s very clear that their focus is on developing technology that will shape the future. This is a long term play. Franklin Fuel Cells only has about a dozen employees right now, yet they do offer internships for both undergraduates and graduate students. If you take a look at the Franklin Fuel Cells’ Jobs page, you’ll see a posting for Research Engineer Interns. They’re looking for students in “mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, ceramic engineering, chemistry or materials engineering,” so if that’s you, you can apply by sending a cover letter and résumé to epaz@arbfc.com. Engineering internships are usually paid, so I’m going to guess that Franklin Fuel Cells pays their interns.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Do you think fuel cells will play a big part in our future?

Slide

Willy Franzen — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 14:45:40 +0000

It looks like Yahoo! Finance has taken a page out of my book and used Fortune’s 40 Under 40 list to highlight some companies that are hiring. I found the link on Twitter, and was pleased to see that I had already featured a number of the companies. One that I haven’t yet featured (and don’t remember hearing about before) is Slide. They’re a San Francisco based startup that claims to be “the world’s leading social entertainment company.” I think that’s a bit of a stretch, but they do make social networks more fun for hundreds of millions of people. Their 40 Under 40 CEO is Max Levchin, who co-founded PayPal (which was sold for $1.5 billion to eBay). He is apparently well on his way to having built another billion dollar company, considering the fact that Slide was valued at $550 million last time that they took money.

Slide into a New Internship

The basic premise behind slide is that social networks are better when you can bring outside content in—whether it’s sharing something that you’ve made like a slideshow or using an application that allows you to throw sheep. People want customization, yet they don’t have the web development skills to do it on their own. They need help, and that’s where Slide comes in. Monetizing social network traffic isn’t necessarily easy, but Slide seems to be heading in the right direction when it comes to turning their massive traffic into revenue. Not only do their investors believe in them, but so do advertisers like Starbucks, Sunkist, Activision, AT&T Wireless, Discovery Channel, Estee Lauder, McDonald’s, Lionsgate Films, Universal Pictures, and Paramount Pictures. I guess 5 million sheep thrown a day is worth more than I thought it was. Slide is very clearly growing, and as I mentioned in the opening of this post, they’re hiring. Although they don’t list internship openings on their Jobs page (at least right now), I do know from LinkedIn research that they take interns in Marketing, Business Development, and probably Software/Web Development. Slide allows you to submit an résumé for an unlisted position, so my recommendation is to either try that or do some networking to learn more about their internships.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Do you use Slide?

The Boston Globe

Willy Franzen — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 14:59:32 +0000

It feels pretty good to be talking about a Boston based newspaper today knowing that they have to report on another trip to the World Series for the Yankees; although, I’m sure they’d much rather be publishing stories on what Dustin Pedroia and Jonathan Papelbon are doing during their offseason (possibly watching the World Series from their couches). Now that I’ve gotten in my dig at Red Sox fans, we can take a look at The Boston Globe, Boston’s most widely read newspaper. The paper is owned by the New York Times and has an excellent web presence at Boston.com. Much like other newspapers the Globe has had significant financial struggles, and The New York Times even threatened to shut the paper down if the paper’s union didn’t accept major concessions. Apparently those problems have been worked out, and The Boston Globe is now on more stable ground. At least that’s what the fact that they’re hiring would indicate.

Navigate The Globe

When it comes to newspapers and magazines, there’s no better way to get to know them than to read them. Luckily, you can do that online at Boston.com, which is a good example of how newspapers should use the web. I’m especially impressed with their Big Picture photoblog, which is constantly getting voted up on social media news sites. Since you’re going to have to start reading The Boston Globe to get a feel for them, let’s jump right to their internships. They offer both a Newsroom Summer Internship program and a Co-op Program. The Internship program is for students who are interested and journalism, and it does offer paid opportunities. The program is held in extremely high regard, so it’s worth checking out before the November 1st application deadline. The Co-Op program deadline has passed for the January-June period, but you have until March 1st to apply for the July-December period. The Co-Op program is also paid, and offers opportunities in a wide range of areas including Business Pages, City Desk, Editorial Design, Editorial Page, Events Marketing, Finance, Globe Foundation, Living Arts, Niche Publications, Photography, Public Affairs, Regionals, and Sports. You can find all of the information you need on each of these programs on The Boston Globe’s Internships and Co-Ops page.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Do you read The Boston Globe?we

American Rivers

Willy Franzen — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 14:52:32 +0000

I love rivers (mostly because they’re where I usually go fly fishing). They’re the lifeblood of our society, and even though we’ve figured out ways to move water on our own, they’re still a huge part of our infrastructure. There’s no question as to why most major cities sit on the banks of a large river. The problem with that is that it means that many of our greatest rivers have been subjected to significant abuse. Dams, pollution, irrigation, and overconsumption have left many of our rivers in pretty sad states. American Rivers is a Washington, DC based non-profit that hopes to fix this. They describe themselves as “the leading conservation organization standing up for healthy rivers so communities can thrive.”

Go with the Flow

American Rivers focuses on five program—Rivers and Global Warming, River Restoration, River Protection, Clean Water, and Water Supply. These are extremely important issues that are sometimes ignored by other environmentalists. For instance, many environmentalists advocate hydroelectric dams, yet they fail to realize the damage that these dams can do to our watersheds. I’ve also noticed that even the most environmentally conscious cities (cough, Ithaca) destroy their rivers by bounding them with concrete and allowing trash like shopping carts and mattresses to litter their riverbeds. Many of our rivers are healthier than they were 10 years ago, but there’s still plenty of work to be done to ensure that future generations have healthy rivers. Here’s a video from American Rivers that outlines the issues better than I can:

If American Rivers looks like somewhere that you might want to intern, you can check out their Jobs page here. They don’t have any specific internships posted, but they say that they are looking for “applicants with a commitment to the environment that are energetic, creative, and enthusiastic about river conservation.” The positions are unpaid, and you can find out more about how to apply on the Jobs page.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What’s your favorite river?

Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation

Willy Franzen — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 14:00:35 +0000

When I saw the name and location of Winston Salem, North Carolina’s Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation, I was instantly reminded of one of my favorite recent reads—Thank You for Smoking by Christopher Buckley. A North Carolina based non-profit with Reynolds in it name has to be tied to the tobacco industry, and it is. “The Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation was established in 1936 as a memorial to the youngest son of the founder of R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company,” and it seems to be one of the few good things that has come out of the tobacco industry—”a trust for charitable works in the State of North Carolina.” The Foundation is focused on making grants to non-profit organizations in the areas of Community Economic Development, Democracy and Civic Engagement, the Environment, Pre-Collegiate Education, and Social Justice and Equity, which, in my opinion, is a huge improvement on the other things associated with the Reynolds name.

Improving North Carolina Grant by Grant

The cool thing about foundations like the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation is that they get to give out lots of money. That’s what allows them to have such a wide range of focuses. Instead of having to do everything themselves, they can find the best organizations with the best people and fund them. Although the Foundation has had to make some changes due to the economy, they still have plenty of money to spread to do-gooders in North Carolina. If you’d like to spend some time working at the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation, then you should check out their Internships page. The Foundation offers “one internship each summer for an undergraduate or graduate student who desires experience related to philanthropy, the non-profit sector, public policy, advocacy and/or community service in North Carolina.” It comes with a stipend and a housing stipend for non-local interns. The deadline for applying is January 11, 2010, and you can find all of the details on the Internships page, so check it out.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What have you heard about the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation?

20×200

Willy Franzen — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 14:00:42 +0000

Since we’re going to talk about art today, I have to give my little sister a shout out for her Vernissage benefitting Artists for Charity tomorrow. If you’re in the Fairfield, CT area and enjoy art, you need to check it out. Now, I’ll be the first to admit that I’m not all that into art. With a painter for a sister, a graphic designer for a mom, and an architect for a dad, I’m the black sheep of my family. Designing this site is about as far as my artistic talent goes. With that said, when you combine art with a cool web based business idea, my ears perk up. That’s exactly what happened when I saw a friend post an article about 20×200 (a part of Jen Bekman Projects) on Facebook. 20×200 is an online art and photography gallery based out of New York City, and they just closed a first round of $800,00 in venture capital funding. Now, you don’t typically see art galleries getting VC funding, but you also don’t typically see art galleries using the power of the Internet to make affordable art available to the masses either.

20×200 ≫ 4,000

The idea behind 20×200 is based on a pretty simple formula: (limited editions x low prices) + the internet = art for everyone. It all started with limited edition runs of 200 pieces sold at $20, and now 20×200 offers more sizes at more prices. Still, the goal remains to keep art affordable so that it becomes more accessible. It’s a brilliant idea because it takes advantage of exactly what the Internet is best at doing—making inefficient markets more efficient. Matching artists with buyers is tough work, and brick and mortar galleries just aren’t big enough to do the job well. 20×200 matches these people up easily. That’s why investors saw potential in them, and now 20×200 is looking to grow. It’s going to be an exciting place to be over the next few years, and there’s no better way to get your foot in the door than interning. If you check out their Jobs page, you’ll see that they’re currently looking for an Office Intern. Yes, it comes with a bunch of administrative tasks, and it’s unpaid, but it still looks pretty cool. Heck, they’ll buy you lunch and pay your subway fare, and you’ll still be interning at one of the few venture backed art startups out there. They’re extremely particular about what they’re looking for, so read over the internship description carefully before applying.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Would you buy anything on 20×200?