Currently on internship with The Black Sheep Backpackers, Emma is working across a variety of roles for her 9-month fully paid placement! From reception to marketing duties, she’s learning a lot and enjoying her experience.
“The thing I most enjoy about my internship is hearing the stories about where each guest has come from”
Where are you doing your internship? And what is your job title?
I am doing my internship at Black Sheep Backpackers, and was hired as a receptionist and assistant marketer. However I am also cross trained in housekeeping to assist them when needed. This is super beneficial as it also gives me an understanding of the part of the business that I am managing through my receptionist role.
What are your main responsibilities at work?
My responsibilities as a receptionist include checking people in, helping them around the hostel, and ensuring they have the best experience. I am also responsible for replying to emails and keeping the booking channels up to date. My marketing role so far has included creating a customised Black Sheep map of Queenstown for guests, an in-room compendium, stickers for vans, skiers and snowboarders, as well as marketing and sales trips around Queenstown. My housekeeping role ranges from general cleaning of the hostel to making up beds for the guests each day.
How did QRC help with your internship placement?
When I applied for the job at Black Sheep, I initially found the job placement through an advertisement, KP (internship team) was great at supporting me through the interview process, she read over the contract once I received it to make sure I knew what I was getting myself into!
What have you enjoyed most about your internship?
The thing I most enjoy about my internship is hearing the stories about where each guest has come from or what they plan to do in Queenstown. I’m naturally pretty chatty, so any excuse to learn something new or hear an epic travel story I will take gladly!
Any take aways from the overall internship experience so far?
Overall, make sure you’re doing something you want to be doing! It makes working so much easier and you forget it’s a job! Make sure you work well with the team as well, having great coworkers makes everything that little bit better!
What advice would you give future students preparing for internship?
Some tips and tricks for future students would be to think about where you’d like to be placed early! The early bird gets the worm and being on top of your work and your ideas for the future is only going to put you ahead!
Check out other internship stories here!
