Eberhardt School of Business News

(February 19, 2008) -

by Breanne Macbeth

Employers rank internship experience as one of the most valued qualifications in the college graduates that they hire into entry-level careers. For business students who are focusing on arts and entertainment management, an internship is especially important – it is an essential foot in the door to an exclusive industry.

Tim Sartori, a senior business major with a concentration in music management, recognized the need to do an internship early. He is a great student and very involved on campus, but he knew he needed some practical experience to add to his resume.

Sartori’s first internship took place in the summer of 2005 with Maverick Media, a company that owns five radio stations in Sonoma County. He was a listener of their stations while at home, and often checked their Web sites to see what is going on. When he saw a news event for the rock radio station asking people to send in resumes for a summer internship in the promotions department, he applied.

While working in the promotions department, Sartori set up broadcasts and made sure live remotes went smoothly. He had a lot of contact with both the DJs and the listeners of the stations. He got to do some on-air work for the rock radio station under his own DJ name, “Tim The Ripper”.

The internship at Maverick Media (where Sartori works on every school break) has taught him to be very open and also the importance of networking.

“I still talk with the friends and colleagues I made at this internship,” he said.

In the spring semester of 2007, Sartori accepted his second internship with The Music Box, a retail instrument store in Stockton. During the fall semester of 2006, he was enrolled in MMGT 140 - the Music Products Management class with Professor Keith Hatschek and Bill Stevens, the manager of The Music Box. This class helped him to realize that he wanted to pursue a career in the music products industry, so he asked Stevens if he would consider having an intern in the following semester. Stevens enthusiastically agreed.

In the internship at the Music Box, Sartori’s projects included everything from customer service to creating merchandise displays. He was confident that this internship would help him in the music products arena because it has given him a background in retail experience that many music products manufacturers are looking for.

As the saying goes, third time’s the charm. Sartori’s third (and what he says was his most influential) internship, took place in the summer of 2007 with Ace Products Group of Petaluma, California - a company that manufactures and sells instrument cases and bags. Tim was introduced to the company and learned of the internship through his attendance at the National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM) conference. It was at NAMM, after an exhaustive number of company introductions and resume submissions, that Sartori got a call from Ace Products to interview and subsequently landed the marketing and promotions internship.

At Ace Products, Sartori was responsible for sales support, product development, and “trench warfare marketing” which he said has enabled him to gain access to an industry that is usually very difficult to get into. As a result, Ace Products has expressed interest in having Sartori come back to work with them after he graduates in May.

The Eberhardt Career Management Center offers their congratulations to Sartori and commends him for being a proactive internship participant. All business students are encouraged to pursue internships during their time at the Eberhardt School.

 Strictly Business Fall/Winter 2008 Issue