Interning for Oscar de la Renta
Thinking about an internship for the Fall? Here's a company I loved!!
Ok so, first thing's first, my internship was in Production. Now, we already talked about how great it is for you to intern at lots of places while you're still in college. Even though I could have done more internships, I do feel like I had some good experiences. Oscar de la Renta was definitely - and by far - one of the best ones. This post will be all about how I got there, how was the interview process and, of course, the overall internship experience.
So, FIT has a great database of places for you to intern and, if you do all your stuff on time, you can find some really amazing ones. That was exactly the case for me. When you apply for an internship through FIT, the whole process starts the semester prior to when you'll be doing your internship. Since I was traveling to see my family in Tampa for all the duration of the winter break, I needed to do all my interviews and land an internship before I left the city. I picked 5 amazing companies and got their contact information. I did a bomb resume, a bomb cover letter (with tons of help and guidance) and that was that. All of the companies I applied to replied within a few days, I interviewed with all of them and, at the end, based on all the emotions and confidence I felt after leaving the offices, I chose ODLR. It will sound cliché but, I felt like I belonged there.
The interview
I was interviewed by two of the RTW production associates (Like I said, I applied for an internship in the area of Production). They immediately made me feel comfortable and, I liked that they were both just a few years older than me (to be fair, this is my second career so, I am a bit older that the average college students). They were funny and, they made me feel much more relaxed during the interview. Halfway through our conversation, even their manager came to meet me and say hi. The questions were regular Interview questions: Tell us about yourself, what are you hoping to learn with this experience, why do you like production, you know... At the end they wanted to know if I had any questions and boy, I did! LOL! I asked EVERYTHING I could ask to help me think and choose my internship wisely. For a list of some of the questions I asked, click here.
The Internship
It lasted 5 months and when I tell you I learned a little bit of everything, I mean it. From day one they made me feel like I was another member of the team. Sure, every now and then, I had to go out and pick up or drop off stuff but, that was not the focus of the internship which, to be completely honest, it's kind of hard to find. Sadly, many supervisors only give interns tasks that are not that hands-on.
As a RTW production intern, I was picking up and dropping off only when it was urgent. Most of the time I was in the fittings learning all about Dupes and TOP's; what corrections needed to be made and how to write them down clearly and correctly; communicating it to pattern-makers; even expressing my own opinion like any other team member. I was learning how to use and update the system; helping with the supervision of the local factories; monitoring cutters-must's to update BOM's; I was even sitting in departmental meetings! I had a great time at ODLR and I am so glad I got to experience working for such a highly recognized brand. The day I left, I totally almost cried (I know... I'm the worst), they all said their goodbyes, and they gave me the cutest present! I'm still in touch with some of them, which is also super important if you want to build your network.
If you are worried about what your experience interning for Oscar de la Renta will be like and, you happen to come across this post (I know I googled "Interning at Oscar de la Renta" like 45 times), I can tell you my experience working with the production team was amazing. I do not know about the other teams in the company because, unfortunately I didn't get to do any work with them but, I did see that everyone is super friendly and seemed willing to teach you as much as they could. Kudos to my supervisor though, she was the absolute best!!
Love,
Lydi