By Kristine Lewis

Ever since Laura Ashby was admitted into the public relations program at BYU, she knew she wanted to do a summer internship in New York City.

However, she had to work extremely hard to get there. Aside from the extensive interviewing process, she had to appeal to take two of the most difficult and time-consuming prerequisite courses during the same semester, including writing for the Daily Universe and doing public relations work for Habitat for Humanity.

“Laura was a great student,” said Kaye Nelson, Ashby’s former editor at The Daily Universe. “We would have loved to keep her had she stayed around!”

Ashby worked as a healthcare intern at Fleishman-Hillard in New York during the summer of 2009.

“I feel like New York is a great place to get experience and launch a career, so I made it a goal of mine to do an internship out here,” said Ashby, a senior from Farmington, Utah.

Some of her daily responsibilities included monitoring reports for her clients, and research, including media, medical and competitive research. She also had the opportunity to pitch to the media, draft a strategic campaign and do a research project for the PRSA Foundation. Ashby credits her knowledge of these skills to her experiences at BYU.

“I really feel BYU’s PR program is one of the best preparations for an internship and a career,” she said. “At BYU, I was able to get real work experiences. Managing all of the PR work for a client gave me great experience in pitching, writing and strategic planning—skills I’ve been able to apply to my internship this summer.”

Ashby said she has learned a lot from her internship and has had great experiences learning from the seasoned practitioners at Fleishman-Hillard. She has also learned about teamwork, and how to provide value to a client—especially during the pandemic caused by swine flu.

Ashby has also enjoyed studying at BYU because of the unique environment it provides.

“Having the gospel in my life through the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has helped me have a solid foundation when entering a new culture such as New York,” she said. “I have been able to meet many diverse people in the city and share with them the beliefs I hold dear as they share theirs with me.”

Ashby will graduate in April 2010. She plans to work in public relations for a few years and then hopes to pursue an MBA in marketing someday.

*Photo courtesy of Laura Ashby