Karmarama, part of Accenture Interactive, will be rolling out its third virtual internship scheme, following the success of its first two Kadets programmes.
The agency has chosen to continue the Kadets scheme in its virtual form because of the success it has had in attracting candidates from outside the London area, bringing more diverse perspectives into the agency.
Kadets who have found permanent roles include Jeff Baker, who completed the internship from his Newcastle base and subsequently moved from supervising shifts at Five Guys to becoming an account executive at Karmarama.
Kadets internship
The four-week, paid internship provides educational opportunities for those interested in pursuing a career in the creative industries, and will help them to gain insight into the world of advertising, creative, PR & social media and digital.
Successful applicants will also experience client management and pitch work as well as mentoring and personal development training.
Karmarama will also be offering mentoring to those who reach the interview stages but don’t secure places in the final eight for this term.
Katie Hunter who leads the internship programme at Karmarama, said: “As a London-based agency the Kadets has become an important way for us to remove some of the barriers to entry when it comes to joining our industry.
“We have attracted amazing talent who may not have previously applied due to the accessibility barriers they may have come up against, including location, people seeking career changes, those with less flexible family commitments and younger people who haven’t taken traditional educational paths.
“We really want to open up the agency and industry to as many as people as possible, and this has been one way to do that.”
Speaking of his time on last term’s Kadets programme, Jeff Baker said: “The Kadets programme was absolutely amazing and would without a doubt recommend it to anyone looking for a career in advertising.
“I think the programme does a great job of identifying where you are, where you want to be, and how you want to get there.
“Even if you’re not a creative and studied an English language degree, the programme teaches you that anyone from any discipline can possess the skills needed to thrive in this industry.
“All it takes is a willingness to learn and the ambition to go far.”
In its second virtual programme last year, the internship received over 200 applicants for eight places; half of recruits have so far converted their Karmarama Kadet experiences into new roles in the advertising industry.
Diverse talent
Karmarama Kadets was created to bring more diverse talent to the advertising industry by removing the barriers and limitations often posed by London-based agencies, the company said.
The virtual internship’s accessible nature opens up the opportunity for those who cannot, or do not want to live in London and refrains from the industry’s London-centric recruitment approach.
The programme will not be limited to graduates and will also not follow a CV submission process, attracting people who have followed a variety of educational paths.
Following a national shift in ways of working, these virtual experiences will continue to broaden the career options for those outside of the London and will help break down socio-economic barriers often associated with an internship in the city, such as short term London renting, travel costs or having to couch surf.
The third virtual internship will see an even wider range of opportunities following the feedback of last year’s recruits and a larger number of places.