A Narangba USC student keen for a career in social media is gaining valuable industry experience at a business founded by a USC graduate who forged the same path and has already employed a fellow graduate.

Third-year USC Communication student Janisha Chaudhary, 19, was snapped up for an internship this semester by Dash of Milk, a Maroochydore-based agency owned by 2017 Public Relations graduate Bronte Cresswell.

Janisha finished Year 12 at Narangba Valley State High School in 2016, the same year that Bronte completed her USC degree and launched her career.

Both women were taught at USC by Lecturer in Public Relations Dr Karen Sutherland, who this year brought them together for a new Social Media Internship course, part of USC’s Social Media major.

Janisha said it was a great opportunity to “soak up as much knowledge as possible” while gaining more skills in content creation and social media strategies.

“The internship involves 208 hours of work-integrated learning, mentored by a social media/digital marketing specialist, along with real-world assessments,” she said.

“Bronte is a USC graduate who made her dreams a reality, starting a boutique social media agency in 2018. She’s so passionate, I feel like I’m getting a foot in the industry door.”

Bronte said she was delighted to stay connected to USC, including the employment of her social media manager Stephanie Kaye, a 2018 USC Business (Marketing) graduate.

“It’s exciting to support the University’s new internship course because I know what it’s like to be really motivated and want to get out in the workforce and see what you’ve learned translate into real projects,” said Bronte, of Wurtulla.

“I was surprised by how much Janisha knew when she started here, so moving her on to project work happened quite quickly and she is building a portfolio.

Dr Sutherland also leads USC’s new Bachelor of Communication (Social Media), aiming to empower the next generation of social media specialists.

“This degree will give students the knowledge and skills for strategic content curation and creation across various platforms and teach them how to tell compelling brand stories for both social and traditional media.”