A number of east coast-based universities and colleges are offering study abroad-style programs in which students spend time studying and interning in the entertainment industry in Los Angeles. According to the Los Angeles Times, such programs are closer to home for many students than an exchange year in Florence or Paris and could help them to establish a career in Hollywood. Students from the University of Texas at Austin, Ithaca College in New York, Emerson College in Boston, Chicago's Columbia College, Temple University in Philadelphia and Boston University can study a range of entertainment-related subjects during their time in California. Students can enroll in courses such as acting, agentry and screenwriting, or choose to take an unpaid apprenticeship in music, advertising, film or television. "It really does immerse you immediately into what's going on here and gives you a real sense of how to break into the industry," said Ithaca College student Jeff Bibeau. "It would be silly of me to study four years of communications in upstate New York, cut off from the rest of the world," he told the newspaper. According to recruiter Joe Grimm, writing for Poynter Online, people who plan to apply for internships should apply mid-way through the decision period, rather than when applications open or right at the deadline.  |