Edited on Jun 23, 2026.
The strategic preparation for a PR internship — knowing the agency's work, developing technical fluency, building the right network — is covered in The PR Internship Playbook. This piece is the operational layer. What to actually wear. What to actually bring. What the first hour looks like, what the first day looks like, and what the practical signals are that most communications students do not know until they have been through their first internship.
What to Wear
The dress code question varies more by employer type than by city. Three categories, with the rule that overdressing for day one is the safer mistake than underdressing.
Major agencies in major markets (New York, San Francisco, LA). Business casual. For day one specifically: dress one level up from what you observe the team wearing. A blazer over a clean shirt for men; a structured top or blazer for women. Polished shoes. Once you have observed the actual office norm over the first week, calibrate. Many agencies are smart-casual day-to-day with selective business-formal moments (client meetings, new business pitches, executive presentations) — the practitioner who reads the room correctly looks appropriate every time.
In-house corporate communications at major brands. Varies by company culture. Technology in-house teams in San Francisco are typically more casual than financial services in-house teams in New York. Day one default: business casual, with the option to dial up or down after observing the norm. Healthcare and financial services in-house teams skew more formal; consumer brand and technology in-house teams skew more casual.
Government, advocacy, and trade associations. Business formal more often than not. The Washington D.C. convention is more formal than New York or San Francisco corporate environments. Day one: business formal default, with the option to dial down if the office norm permits.
What to Bring
A laptop, if the firm has not issued one. Most agencies and in-house teams issue laptops on day one or shortly after. If the offer letter or onboarding email does not specify, ask before day one: "Will I be issued a laptop, or should I bring a personal one for the first week?" Showing up without a laptop when one is expected wastes the first hours of day one.
A notebook and a pen. The single most useful item in a PR internship. Notes during onboarding, meetings, and shadowed client calls produce a reference document for the rest of the internship. Use it. Digital note-taking works too; the discipline matters more than the medium.
A water bottle and a snack. Day one often runs long with limited natural breaks. Lunch may be later than expected. Having water and a snack in your bag prevents the energy crash that most interns experience around 2 PM on day one.
The questions you want to ask. Day one usually includes time with HR, the direct supervisor, and possibly senior practitioners. The intern who arrives with five to ten specific questions written down — about the role, the firm, the practice group, the work — looks prepared and produces better orientations. The questions that work: "Who are the practitioners I should make sure to meet during my first two weeks?" "What is the most common mistake interns make in their first month?" "What does an exceptional internship look like to you?"
What the First Hour Looks Like
Most major agencies and in-house teams run a structured day-one onboarding. The first hour typically includes: signing employment paperwork (W-2, I-9, benefits enrollment if applicable, NDA), IT setup (laptop, email, building access, software accounts), and the initial supervisor conversation about the first week's expectations. Some firms compress this into the first two hours; some spread it across the first day. None of it is the work. The work starts in the second or third hour.
The administrative basics that distract from the work — laptop password resets, email signature setup, calendar app login, communication tool installations (Slack, Teams, Asana) — should be completed in the first hour wherever possible. Interns who are still configuring their email signature at 4 PM on day one have wasted hours that should have been spent learning the work.
What the First Day Looks Like
After onboarding completes, day one is usually low-stakes by design. The supervisor's goal is to give the intern context — what the team is working on, what the clients are, what is coming up that week — without overwhelming. The intern's goal is to absorb context and start building the mental map of who does what.
Three operational moves matter on day one. First, take notes on every name. Who is the supervisor's supervisor? Who are the practitioners working on the same client? Who is the office manager (the most important administrative relationship in any office)? Knowing names produces faster relationship-building.
Second, ask one good question. Not five questions. One specific question that signals you have been thinking about the work — about a recent client win, a campaign in market, a competitor's announcement. The intern who asks one substantive question on day one is remembered as engaged.
Third, when invited to lunch with the team — accept. Lunch on day one or in the first week is the relationship-building opportunity that does not get a second chance. Decline lunch on day one only for a genuine conflict; never to "get a head start on work."
The WFH Question
Most agencies and in-house communications teams have established WFH policies in 2026 — typically two to three days in office per week, with some fully remote and some fully in-office. The intern's discipline is to ask the policy directly during onboarding ("What's the in-office expectation for interns specifically?") rather than assume. Most firms expect interns in-office more often than full-time staff, particularly during the first four to six weeks while the intern is learning the operation. The intern who asks if she can work from home on day three signals incorrectly. The intern who is consistently in-office for the first four weeks and then asks about flexing one day after demonstrating reliability is read as professional and confident.
For day one specifically, dress one level up from what you expect the team to wear, then calibrate after observing the actual office norm during the first week. Major agencies in major markets typically run business casual day-to-day with selective business-formal moments. Technology in-house teams are typically more casual; financial services and Washington D.C. environments are typically more formal. Overdressing on day one is the safer mistake.
What should I bring to a PR internship on the first day?
A laptop (if the firm has not specified they will issue one), a notebook and pen, a water bottle and small snack, and a written list of five to ten specific questions about the role, the firm, and the work.
Can I work from home as a PR intern?
Most agencies and in-house teams in 2026 have established WFH policies — typically two to three days in office per week — but expect interns in-office more often than full-time staff during the first four to six weeks. Ask the policy directly during onboarding.
