Social Media Internship: How to Get One and What You'll Do

Social media internships are competitive because so many applicants say they “love social media”. The ones who get picked show they’ve already done some of the work, and that part is more within reach than it sounds: one account you’ve run with care is enough to start.

What does a social media intern do?

A social media intern supports the social team with the daily work of running a brand’s channels: drafting and scheduling posts, helping make content, replying to comments and pulling numbers. A good internship also gives you one small project you own.

A typical week might include:

• Drafting captions and adapting posts for Instagram, TikTok, LinkedIn and other platforms.
• Scheduling posts in the team’s tool and checking they went out correctly.
• Filming and editing short videos on a phone, or helping on shoots.
• Replying to comments and DMs using the team’s guidelines, and flagging anything tricky.
• Researching trends, competitors and creators the brand could work with.
• Packing product send-outs to creators and tracking who posted.
• Pulling the weekly numbers and noting the top and bottom posts.
• Sitting in on content planning and brainstorms.

Where you intern changes the mix. At an agency you’ll touch several clients’ accounts at speed. At a large brand you’ll see how approvals, legal checks and creator programs work. At a startup or small business you may run a channel almost on your own, which makes for the strongest portfolio piece.

If you’re open to other kinds of marketing internship too, the marketing internship guide covers where to look and when to apply across all of them.

What do companies look for in a social media intern?

They look for proof you can make decent content, write clearly and be trusted with a brand’s account. Enthusiasm is assumed; evidence is what separates applicants.

• An account you’ve run. Your own, a club’s, a friend’s business, a nonprofit’s. Growth helps but consistency and good judgment matter as much.
• Platform fluency. You know how formats differ between TikTok, Reels, Stories, LinkedIn and YouTube Shorts.
• Writing. Short, clear captions with a sense of tone.
• Basic video skills. Shooting on a phone and editing in CapCut or similar.
• Reliability. Interns who hit deadlines and check their work get given more.
• Judgment. Knowing what a brand shouldn’t post, and when to ask before replying.

How do you get a social media internship with no experience?

Make your own experience before you apply. A few months of consistent posting on a real account is enough to give you something to show.

1. Pick one account and run it properly. A student club, a campus publication, a local business, a nonprofit or a niche account of your own. Post on a schedule for at least a couple of months.
2. Write down your starting numbers. Followers, average views and engagement. Check monthly. Screenshots are fine.
3. Try things on purpose. Test two kinds of hooks or two posting times and note what happened. That’s your interview story.
4. Learn the free tools. Canva, CapCut and a scheduler’s free plan. Free courses from HubSpot Academy or Meta Blueprint are fine to list, but they won’t replace an account you’ve run.
5. Make a one-page portfolio. A simple page or PDF with two or three short examples: the goal, what you made, what happened. The social media manager portfolio guide shows the format; a smaller version works for interns.
6. Clean up your own profiles. Hiring managers will look. Make sure what they find is either professional or private.

Step 2 takes five minutes and you can do it today: screenshot your account’s numbers now, so you have a “before” to compare against later.

Where do you find social media internships?

Look in several places at once and go direct to companies you like. The biggest job boards get the most applicants per posting.

• Your school’s career center and Handshake. Employers posting there want students.
• Company careers pages. Brands you already follow, especially ones whose social you admire.
• Agencies. Social and creative agencies often take several interns a year and give fast, varied experience.
• LinkedIn. Search “social media intern” and also look for posts from social media managers saying they’re hiring.
• Local businesses and nonprofits. If they don’t advertise, offer a short, specific idea for their accounts.

Before you accept an unpaid role, read the section on unpaid internships in the marketing internship guide.

What should a social media internship application include?

Send a short, tailored resume, a short cover letter that mentions something specific about the company’s social, and a link to your work. Keep all three easy to scan.

Your resume

Lead with the accounts you’ve run and what happened, even if they weren’t paid jobs. Put them in a “Social media experience” or “Projects” section above unrelated work.

Social Media Lead, [Club or organization], [Dates]
- Ran Instagram and TikTok for [club], posting [number] times a week.
- Grew followers from [starting number] to [ending number] in [time] by [what you changed].
- Made [number] short videos in CapCut; the best reached [number] views.
- Promoted [event]; [number] people signed up through the link in bio.

If you have no numbers, describe scope and output instead: platforms, how often you posted, what you made. Never guess a number. Our resume objective examples can help with the line at the top if you have little experience.

Your cover letter

Keep it to three short paragraphs: why this company’s social, what you’ve done, and what you’d bring.

Dear [Name, or "Hiring Team"],

I'm applying for the Social Media Intern role at [Company]. I've been following your [platform] since [moment or campaign], and I noticed [one specific observation: e.g. your Reels that answer customer questions get far more comments than product shots].

For the past [time], I've run [platform] for [club / business / my own account], posting [frequency]. I [one result or thing you learned: e.g. grew it from [starting number] to [ending number] followers by switching to short behind-the-scenes videos]. Examples are here: [link].

I'd love to help with [something from the posting: e.g. TikTok content and community replies]. I'm available [dates] and can be in [city / remote].

Thank you,
[Name]
[Phone] | [Portfolio link]

Swap the example in brackets for your own, and rewrite the sentences so they sound like you. A social team is hiring someone with a voice, so a bit of your personality in the letter is a plus, not a risk. The entry-level marketing cover letter page has more examples and structure.

Your portfolio link

A simple page or shared PDF with two or three examples is enough. Include screenshots of posts, the numbers, and one sentence on what you were trying to do.

What do social media internship interviews ask?

Interviews for social internships check whether you understand platforms as a marketer and whether you’ll be reliable with a brand’s account. Expect questions like:

• “Which brand does social well, and why?” Name a specific format or decision.
• “Walk me through an account you’ve run.”
• “How would you adapt this post for TikTok and LinkedIn?”
• “What would you do if someone posted a rude comment on our account?”
• “What would you change about our Instagram?” Have one idea ready.
• “What platforms do you use yourself, and how?”

Some teams ask for a small task: three post ideas or captions for a product. Treat it like real work and keep it on brand. The social media manager interview questions page has longer example answers.

How do you turn a social media internship into a job?

Ask early what the path to a full-time role looks like, then make your manager’s job easier every week. Interns who own something and report on it are the ones who get offers.

• Ask for one small project you can own: a series, a platform, a weekly report.
• Keep a running list of what you did and the results. It becomes your resume and portfolio.
• Bring one idea a week, briefly, with a reason.
• Near the end, ask directly about openings for a social media coordinator or similar role, and who else you should talk to.

The social media jobs overview shows the roles you can aim for next.

Writing the cover letter

Recon can draft a cover letter for a specific posting from your resume and the company’s own social, using only facts you’ve given it, so you start from a specific observation rather than a blank page.

FAQ

Do social media internships pay?

Many do, and many large companies and agencies pay interns. Some small businesses and nonprofits offer unpaid roles. The US Department of Labor’s Fact Sheet #71 sets out the test it uses for unpaid internships at for-profit companies, so read the posting carefully and ask about pay if it isn’t clear.

Can you do a social media internship remotely?

Yes, many are remote or hybrid because the work happens on a laptop and phone. In-person roles give you more time on shoots and in meetings, which helps you learn faster.

Do you need to be a marketing major?

No. Communications, journalism, design, business and many other majors get social internships. What matters is showing accounts you’ve run and clear writing.

How many followers do you need to get a social media internship?

There’s no number. Companies care more about how you run an account, how consistently you post and whether you understand why posts work than about your personal follower count.

Are there sports social media internships?

Yes. Pro teams, college athletic departments, leagues, sports media companies and sports brands hire social media interns, often for the season. They’re competitive, so start with your school’s athletic department or a local minor league or college team, where you’ll get hands-on game-day experience. Our sports marketing jobs guide covers who hires and how to stand out.

What should you write in a resume objective for a social media internship?

Keep it to one or two sentences that say what you can do for the team and what you want to learn, such as “Student who runs [club or project] accounts and grew [account] to [number] followers, looking for a summer social media internship to learn paid social and community management.” Make it sound like you, not a template. Our resume objective examples have more to adapt.