2023 Intern
Alice Wu, BA English, French Studies, and Hispanic Studies
I graduated from Â鶹AV in 2023 with a B.A. in English Literature and minors in French and Hispanic Studies. An avid reader and writer from a young age, I haveÌýalwaysÌýlovedÌýwords, but most of all, I love connecting with people. I am fascinated with how the right turn of phrase can cause someone’s face to light up with understanding, and I wanted to find a way to channel this passion into a career.ÌýÌý
During my degree, one of the summer internships I completed was in the news department CKUT, Â鶹AV’s campus radio station. I was in charge of producing the weekly hour-long news show, which involved tasks like training new volunteers, leading team meetings, and editing the show. It was gratifying to be a leader at a small organization, but I knew I had much more to learn. When I found out about the Gzowski internship at CBC Montreal, I thought it was the perfect opportunity to take my journalism skills to the next level and hopefully tell stories that were meaningful to my community.ÌýÌý
As a Gzowski intern, I mostly worked on CBC Montreal’s radio shows. Every morning, I would join the team meeting for a particular show and pitch ideas for interviews to run in the next few days. After the show producer assigned pitches for the day, I would then spend the rest of my time contacting guests, conducting pre-interviews by phone to get a sense of what they could contribute to the show, and writing introductions and questions for the host.ÌýÌý
One of the highlights of my internship was that I got to experience many different sides of what the CBC has to offer. I had the chance to work on all five of the radio shows based at CBC Montreal, from the weekday call-in show Radio Noon to the weekend show All in a Weekend. My supervisor and I had weekly check-ins, and she was very open to changing my schedule to accommodate my interests. By request, I was also able to spend a week writing news articles with the CBC Montreal digital team and another working with CBC Books, whom I joined remotely since the team is based in Toronto.ÌýÌý
Throughout these experiences, I enjoyed a great deal of autonomy—which I know is not a given at other organizations. During daily pitch meetings, I got to bring my unique ideas to the table, tapping into various communities I am part of to figure out what other Montrealers would be interested in. Since I was interning during the summer, which is peak travel season, I was inspired to pitch and then produce an hour-long program on solo travel experiences for Radio Noon. As a music lover, I kept my eye on performances happening across the province and booked interviews with Peking opera performers and a Mongolian throat singer for All in a Weekend. In both cases, I asked the guests to share some of their singing on the radio, which was thrilling to hear because it added so much colour and dimension.ÌýÌý
That said, the autonomy I was given came with many challenges. Every morning, I had to come up with fresh ideas to bring to work, and that was scary because it felt like I was constantly starting from scratch. I also struggled with pacing myself, since I would work on up to three interview scripts a day. Over time, though, I discovered reliable sources for stories, like community newspapers or the events tab on Facebook. I learned that I would be sharper—and more enthusiastic—if I made sure to take short breaks throughout the day. Most of all, I tried not to lose sight of my end goal, which was about more than turning in a script, but about creating quality content that anyone could access for free.ÌýÌý
Although I ultimately decided to pursue other ambitions outside journalism, this internship was still an incredible experience. I got to meet and learn from seasoned professional storytellers. I spoke with Quebecers from all walks of life, from a law professor to an industrial painter to a fig farmer. I confronted my self-doubt and came out with newfound confidence in my writing skills and my ability to work under stress. These are gifts I will carry forward in all my endeavours. I would highly recommend other Â鶹AV students to apply to this program and remain open to all that it has to offer.ÌýÌý
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2022 Intern
Emmanuelle Hébert, BA Sociology and English
Emmanuelle Hébert is in their final year pursuing an Honours degree in Sociology, with a major in English Cultural Studies and a minor in History. This summer they will be working at CBC Radio Montreal as part of the Gzowski Internship program. They look forward to working with the CBC to highlight the stories that are most important to the Montreal community. Emmanuelle hopes to apply this experience going forward to a career in journalism.
We look forward to hearing about the great work Emmanuelle completes during their internship!
Click here to read Emma's article and learn more about their experience!
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2021 Intern
Ji Eun Lee, BCL/JD
Ji Eun graduated from the Â鶹AV Faculty of Law. She went to law school to learn to look at the world through multiple perspectives and to help people who are often unheard and ignored be heard and respected. During her time at Â鶹AV, she had the opportunity to achieve some of these goals by volunteering and working for organizations such as Innocence Canada, CRARR and Juristes à Domicile. She is extremely grateful to be selected as a Gzowski intern, as she hopes to continue learning about different worldviews to expand her own and to aid in making different voices be heard in a new and more creative manner.
We look forward to hearing about the great work Ji Eun completes during her internship!
2003-2020 Interns
Click here to read about Peter Gzowski Interns at CBC Radio in summers 2003 to 2020!