FT Special Reports by Alanna Petroff

Monday 21 November 2011

I chose journalism as a career because I value learning, variety and the ability to work with effective, smart people. I have found all of this during my internship at the Financial Times.

While interning in the FT Special Reports unit, I have had variety in my daily work. I edited numerous Women at the Top blogs and an article about archaeology and antiquities. I wrote and coordinated the visuals for interactive, online articles. I took a leading role in compiling nominations for the annual FT Boldness in Business awards. I also attended daily news conference meetings with all of the head editors at the newspaper.

This variety kept me constantly learning on the job: I learned how to piece together a successful interactive article, I learned about the business of antiquities and I learned about the top women in the business world, such as the formidable Irene Rosenfeld from Kraft.

I also had the pleasure of working with spectacularly bright, friendly people during my time at the FT. The journalists in the Special Reports unit have been very welcoming and made me feel that I was part of the team. I have also met numerous people across the FT newsroom and had one-on-one meetings with top journalists and editors. Everyone has been very supportive and gracious.

I have found what I was looking for: learning, variety and good people. As an intern, I could not have asked for more.

FT Special Reports by Daniel Hadlow

Thursday 3 November 2011

Monday morning was a bit of a blur. For the first time in years I had tried to join the dreaded commuters on the way into the office, and by the time I reached the FT building, I was just calming down after a few elbows and bashes along the way. All of a sudden it really hit me, never have I ever interned at a place with such a grand and international reputation. Stress levels were up again.

But these feelings were quickly dealt with through the helpful nature of the editorial assistant who came to meet me and another intern. A brief tour of the offices aside, the first port of call was a morning meeting with all the key editors, and Lionel Barber himself. It was highly interesting to oversee the gathering of all of the day’s news stories, and by the time I got back to my desk they were up on the website.

The remainder of the internship consisted of tasks like researching the prospects of the fleet car management world, gathering information and writing a concise history of climate change meetings, and proofreading and subbing articles for ‘Women at the Top’ (which is your baby if you come to work on the Special Reports desk), amongst other things.

The overall feeling of my time with the FT is a great sense of belonging. Immediately made to feel at ease, the team was very accommodating and there wasn’t a single member I felt I was bothering with questions on my various tasks. And the responsibilities come with the position. Of course you will get the odd task that isn’t that stimulating, but the vast majority of jobs thrown your way are as equally rewarding, as they are testing.