Introduction
When I found out that my internship would be with the Communications team at the Government Digital Service (GDS), I was nervous about how I would fare and unsure how useful it would be for me. I didn’t have any experience in communications, nor was it something I had considered as a future career option.
What I learnt
I quickly discovered that the internship would not be at all what I was expecting. The team welcomed me with open arms and in my first couple of hours at GDS, I was already helping with the final arrangements for the inaugural Learning Day event. I was surprised by how much I enjoyed internal communications and events - getting completely stuck in.
So far, I have learnt how to draft comms plans, send out newsletters, film strategy videos, organise all staff events and much more. I was given responsibility for an audit of the GDS Wiki, a collection of valuable pages where staff go to find important information. I set out plans to check the content, formatting and functionality of each page on the site. This has been a long but rewarding task. Each time I updated a page I felt that I was contributing to something which benefits the wider GDS community.
I have even been given opportunities to spread my wings outside of the Communications team. When my line manager discovered I was studying International Relations and German, he immediately thought of introducing me to the International Team at GDS. I assisted the team with a visit from a Ukrainian delegation and am now leading on a visit from a delegation from the Czech Republic. Coordinating with the embassy and ministerial staff to organise the meeting has been exciting and insightful. Through this, I have realised that there are opportunities for international engagement outside of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office. I now feel more secure in the knowledge that there are multiple paths towards my career goals.
Conclusion
In the first six weeks of my internship at GDS, I gained so much knowledge about what it’s like to work in the Civil Service and skills that will undoubtedly shape me into a more well-rounded candidate for the Fast Stream. The people and working environment are overwhelmingly positive and have left me with a dilemma; I am now seriously considering a career in internal comms and events and would love to stay at GDS for longer!