By: Katherine Black, Communications Intern

 When I applied for my internship at Bellevue Communications Group, I had never worked in the field of public relations. It was unfamiliar territory that I was eager to explore, but I also wondered if I had the right skills as a non-PR communications major. In three months at Bellevue, I have learned that my nontraditional background connects to PR work in more ways than I thought. Here are four of the most prominent lessons I have applied and expanded on during my time at Bellevue:

#1: The power of influencing public opinion

The clearest lesson that has reappeared is the power of public opinion, and the channels we can use to influence it. As a 2024 Policy & Advocacy Intern with the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, my team focused on raising awareness around specific legislation that impacted our community. From drafting and pitching a Letter to the Editor, to advocating on Capitol Hill, I learned the importance of engaging with the public and building empathy for a specific cause. I developed a strong passion for mission-driven organizations.

At Bellevue, I’ve joined a team that helps mission-driven organizations build their capacity to do impactful work through public relations. Utilizing PR to influence public opinion can be accomplished through securing media placements for client events and/or increasing reach on social media content to spread awareness. Having a community buy into your message is essential to creating change and seeing results. As I witness the weight of public opinion in both industries, I have learned how politics and public relations connect and influence one another.

#2: Keeping your finger on the pulse

As a 2024 Policy & Advocacy Fellow with the Boomer Esiason Foundation, I drafted policy position papers on topics impacting patient experience and healthcare. My cohort and I quickly learned the importance of keeping our fingers on the pulse of news specific to the community we were advocating on behalf of to create relevant, newsworthy papers.

In my first week at Bellevue, I saw the importance of this skill for public relations professionals. Agency staff are constantly scanning different news outlets to keep up with a diverse portfolio of clients. Beyond the importance of reading and watching the news broadly, agency life has shown me the importance of tuning in to these specific client niches. Being immersed in the nuance of each client is key to creating successful results and being prepared to best support them.

#3: Embodying the client

When looking for internships and researching organizations throughout the city, Bellevue’s clients caught my attention. During my summer as a 2025 Constituent Engagement and Communications Intern at the Smithsonian Institution, my passion for museum work grew. Seeing Bellevue’s museum clients made the agency feel like a perfect match. During my time at the Smithsonian, I wrote a variety of pieces, from social media copy to donor acknowledgement letters. I learned the importance of not just understanding the target audience but also understanding voice, tone, and tenor. What channel is the content being distributed through? What tone does the speaker want to convey? What language is truest to their voice? Working at an agency, every client has a different mission, brand, and voice. Creating authentic social content or press materials for a variety of clients is essential.

#4: Creating your own newsroom

As Chapter President of Lambda Pi Eta, the National Communication Association Academic Honor Society, I began a volunteer project connecting student writers and photographers with positive programs happening at Temple University and the North Philadelphia community that were lacking media coverage. I learned as I went through the process of scheduling interviews, pitching stories, building a team, and publishing articles.

Throughout my time at Bellevue, I have seen how this project mirrors agency life as we gain media coverage for clients and deliver results. When a news station is unable to show up to a client event, I’ve watched the Bellevue team shoot their own footage for news stations and gain coverage. Lambda Pi Eta taught me to create coverage opportunities for the stories you find important, and Bellevue has shown me how that drive works in the real world to produce client wins.

Looking forward

As I reflect on my experiences at Bellevue, I have been able to appreciate the ways in which past experiences have informed my current work. I have learned the importance of not limiting yourself but rather finding the ways in which your background can apply to new opportunities. The world of communications is intertwined in everything we do. While you may not be able to become an expert on everything, immersing yourself in your clients’ worlds and continuing to be a lifelong learner allows you to enhance the skill set you are able to offer. The clear path to your future may seem most desirable, but the detours you take on the way may be what help you succeed most.

Stay connected

Like what you just read? Sign up for our LinkedIn newsletter and get these updates delivered straight to your inbox. 

About the author

Katherine Black is a summer 2026 intern at Bellevue Communications Group. She is a senior at Temple University, majoring in Communication Studies and minoring in Political Science. Katherine also serves as President of the Alpha Beta Upsilon Chapter of Lambda Pi Eta, the National Communication Association Academic Honor Society.