Becoming a space dog—a two-week educational stint

Hi everyone,

I’m Marlene—the first-ever high school space cadet to intern on the Laika spaceship (aka the 2-week intern).             

I'm 15 years old and attend the John Lennon High School in Berlin’s Mitte. I learned about Laika from a teacher. I told her I would like to do something in public relations or marketing career-wise, and she told me about Laika. That very same day, I went to the agency mothership and rang the bell. I wanted to introduce myself in person (my new colleagues would later tell me that this was a very bold move, which immediately impressed them). As you can imagine, I was pretty nervous when the door opened and the office dogs, Taco and Zelda, welcomed me. 

So there I was... standing in the middle of the room, telling the pack about myself and the internship I desired. I have to admit, they all looked a little shocked. They just didn't expect me at all (I guess these isolating times of Covid does not prepare one for unexpected visitors). They probably noticed how nervous I was and offered me a refreshment and a seat on the couch.

From those very first moments, I felt very welcomed. Everyone on the team is open-minded and really nice, and after only two weeks I felt like a member of the crew. I can tell you—the team spirit at Laika is simply amazing. They all stay connected, no matter where in the universe the space dogs (that’s what they call themselves) are located, and every morning we had a virtual team stand-up where we talked about our achievements and our plans and tasks for the day ahead. 

Now that my short but sweet journey has ended, I didn't only learn how much I look forward to graduate school, I also learned about pitching stories and had the chance to connect with clients and journalists alike. One of my tasks involved finding creators on Instagram, Twitch and TikTok who can represent and talk about a specific set of clients. That was a lot of fun, because social media is a daily companion of mine, and I am influenced by influencers myself. Therefore, to switch things up, and to be the one finding and selecting potential influencers by myself was pretty cool. Sometimes, I had to speak English in online meetings, which was a bit scary, because I don’t think I'm particularly good at English, but afterwards I was always really proud of myself and I think this boost in confidence might help me with my English lessons back in school. 

In the end, I just want to say how happy and thankful I am that I was allowed to explore the Laika spaceship and that I was able to meet the nice two and four-legged space crew. And who knows? Maybe in the future I will once again bump into all the Laika stars in this vast cosmos of comms.