Experiential Learning
Hands-On from Day One
At Emerson, you learn by doing the work. In the classroom, that means projects with real stakes, professional-grade tools and facilities, and faculty who bring their professional experience and industry relationships into the room. Beyond the classroom, it means internships, productions, student media, research, alumni connections, and career-building opportunities in Boston, Los Angeles, the Netherlands, and beyond.
Whether you’re filming on the Paramount Sound Stage, working side by side with industry leaders through our Master Classes program, or finding your people in our 120+ student organizations and co-curriculars, you’ll graduate with the tools, experience, and creative community to turn your passion into your profession.
Professional Spaces for Real Work
Step inside the studios, stages, editing suites, newsrooms, clinics, labs, and production spaces where Emerson students bring their ambitious work to life.
Built-In Connections
Emerson’s network is powerful because it’s personal. Alumni proudly reach back to open doors and help the next generation build their own careers.
Our legendary alumni—known affectionately as “The Emerson Mafia”—include award-winning artists, executives, journalists, performers, producers, writers, and leaders working all around the world. Many return to campus as mentors or guest speakers, and even more offer Emersonians internships and job opportunities.
And through Emerson’s Master Classes program, students learn directly from graduates like renowned makeup artist Bobbi Brown ’79 and Hollywood screenwriter Seth Grahame-Smith ’98—gaining insight, advice, and access from people shaping the fields.
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Miguel Cervantes ’99
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Taylor Jenkins Reid ’05
Author -
Seth Grahame-Smith ’98
Writer and Film Producer -
Will Dawkins ’08
General Manager, Washington Wizards
Not Your Typical Internships
At Emerson, internships give you a real role in the work. If you’re fetching coffee, it’s probably for yourself—because you’ll need the energy to contribute, keep up, and make the most of what’s happening around you.
Whether you intern at a major media company, production studio, nonprofit, agency, political organization, or sports brand, you’ll gain hands-on experience, build professional connections, and contribute meaningful work from day one. Students have interned with organizations ranging from A24 to HBO, The Boston Globe to The Los Angeles Times, CNN to ESPN, and The Boston Celtics to the Boston Ballet. Others have gained experience through congressional offices, political campaigns, schools, hospitals, and speech-language clinics.
And with opportunities in Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., the Netherlands, and destinations around the world, you’ll build connections far beyond Boston—and learn how to bring your skills into new rooms, new cities, and new creative communities. Below are just a few of the places our students and alumni have interned:
Find Your People. Do Your Thing.
With 120+ student organizations and co-curricular activities, you’ll never run out of opportunities to strengthen your craft outside of the classroom—and to find the people who make your work braver, weirder, sharper, and stronger.
Produce the EVVY Awards—the largest student run, multi-camera production in the nation. Publish stories in The Berkeley Beacon. Perform in a comedy troupe. Shoot films. Join a team with decades of history, or start something no one saw coming. However you jump in, you’ll explore new interests, take creative risks, build confidence, and create the kind of work that follows you beyond Emerson.
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120+Student clubs and co-curriculars—including 90+ for academic credit.
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150kListeners tune in to WERS, Emerson’s student-run radio station, every week.
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#2The Berkeley Beacon was ranked the No. 2 college newspaper by The Princeton Review.
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10+Student comedy groups perform, write, direct, and improvise throughout the year.
Conducting Research—the Emerson Way
At Emerson, you’re limited only by your imagination. Here, research takes many forms—from scientific inquiry to creative scholarship—and includes everything from conducting research in our Communication Sciences and Disorders labs to producing original films, performances, publications, and media. No matter how you ask questions and explore ideas, you’ll find the support to do it here.
