Things You Should Know About the Internship
(Compiled by students who’ve been here and know the ropes.)
- This internship is awesome. Truly cultural immersion. You get completely transplanted into a great agency, with great people in a great country. Be open-minded. Get inspired. Try everything!
- The agency culture is great. An open work space. Your own computer. Connection to server and Ogilvy email address. The dress code and environment are both very casual. VERY casual. Positive morale. Strong work ethic alongside an appreciation for fun and joy!
- That being said, prepare to spend a lot of time at the agency – you are there from 9am-8pm. The good news is that it doesn’t feel like work at all. With footballs being thrown around and people playing the guitar, it feels a little more like a gymnasium than an agency sometimes. People are smart, creative and productive – but definitely more laid back than at American agencies.
- We live in an apartment that is about a 10-15 minute car ride away from the agency. It is a nice place to live with great amenities and in a safe neighborhood. Most of the time people at the agency pick us up or drop us off, but other times we have to take a taxi or the subway.
- This internship is good for both art directors and copywriters. You work on live briefs here. They have great clients and are willing to throw good creative opportunities your way. (Other clients include: Huggies, Burger King, Motorola, Hellmann’s, Dove, Kodak, and a bunch more – from vodka to computers, and chocolate to maxi pads – you never know what brief you’ll get!)
- Living here is pretty inexpensive. Food, cab rides, etc. are all much less than in the States. That being said, it’s not like CRAZY inexpensive, but substantially less than going to Europe or the States. Their currency is called reais. It’s about $2R to $1 American. A few cultural things. 1) You don’t tip taxi drivers or waiters at restaurants. 2) There is ALWAYS a cover at clubs – they have an interesting system though – they give you a card at the beginning of the night and they add on all the drinks you order – then at the end, you pay on your way out the total. 3) You only drink bottled water here. Even brush your teeth with bottled water. That’s really important to remember.
- The internship is NOT for people who are terrified of new things. Even though most people in the agency speak English, people who work at stores and restaurants in Sao Paolo usually don’t. You have to be willing to learn a little Portuguese and at least try to communicate.
- You’ll want to fly in through Guarulhos airport (Sao Paolo) – which is about a $50 cab ride to the agency. Sao Paolo is HUGE. You’ll have 19 million new neighbors.
- Sao Paolo is not a very “touristy” city. Most people you see here, live here. You won’t see tourist groups or people with big, clunky cameras – at least not in any of our neighborhoods. It’s really awesome. You feel like the only foreigner.
- We have been SO accepted here. People bend over backwards to invite us to parties and events. It’s amazing how nice they are here. Seriously, the agency people are so understanding and great – and so are the other Paulistanos too! They are a great group of people down here.
- To learn more, check out the ongoing MAS intern blog at: http://CreativeKidsTable.blogspot.com.
