Sonja Morgan's Internship Program: A Deep Dive into the World of a Real Housewife's Entourage
Sonja Morgan, a prominent figure on "The Real Housewives of New York City" (RHONY), has become as well-known for her revolving door of interns as she has for her toaster oven and townhouse. What exactly do these interns do? How does the program work? And what is it really like to work for Sonja with a Sexy J?
The Genesis of Sonja's Internship Program
Throughout her time on RHONY, Sonja Morgan has been a bit of a punching bag. Ramona Singer and Sonja tend to go back and forth every season, even though they’re besties. Luann de Lesseps and Sonja seem to have a competitive friendship that isn’t filled with a whole lot of support. Thankfully, we have Eboni K. Williams and Leah McSweeney supporting our girl this season as she clearly goes through a tough time. And one of Sonja’s most hilarious traits is her trove of interns that follow her around her never-ending (and seemingly never selling) townhouse. Why does Sonja need a million interns? Who knows. What exactly do they do? Who knows. Pickles is the most memorable of Sonja’s tribe that comes to mind, but she always has different ones.
As Sonja Morgan's journey has unfolded on The Real Housewives of New York City over the years, viewers have been left with a few lingering questions: Will her toaster oven ever come out? What's going on with the townhouse? And perhaps most notably, What exactly do her interns do?
Sonja's internship program has been a recurring subject on RHONY, sparking curiosity and debate among viewers. Andy Cohen attempted to unpack a day in the life of one of Sonja's elusive interns during the show's Season 6 reunion.
A Day in the Life of a Sonja Morgan Intern
As Sonja briefly explained at the time, "Some of them study fashion [so] they want to learn merchandising and about fashion… One semester they could be learning just to use the Mac and how to schedule. That is a challenge in itself."
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The tasks assigned to Sonja's interns appear to be quite diverse. In 2019, Sonja showed one of her interns organizing her eyelash sets. "This is what the interns do," she quipped at the time. "Match up my lashes so I have full sets."
On RHONY's May 4 episode, Sonja explained why she adds tasks around her home to the internship curriculum. As she showed her intern, Zoe, how to prepare her bubble bath, she declared, "You're getting a Master's [degree], so you need to know how to do real-life things.""There is something magical about my internship because you can't learn what I know in the classroom," she added in an interview. "How to load a dishwasher, how to garden, then there's the bubble bath. These are not things you're gonna learn at Wharton."
From sorting out eyelash sets to setting up bubble baths, the list of domestic duties is detailed and expansive. As "The Real Housewives of New York City" has sporadically followed Morgan's busy interns, fans have gotten a taste of what it's like to work for the reality TV star. According to Bravo, Morgan said in an interview, "There is something magical about my internship because you can't learn what I know in the classroom. How to load a dishwasher, how to garden, then there's the bubble bath.
Intern Perspectives: A Mixed Bag
While some fans may yearn for the opportunity to work for Sonja Morgan, the reality of interning sounds tedious at times. Former intern Meghan Hubert talked about her experience working for Morgan in an appearance on David Yontef's "Behind The Velvet Rope" podcast.
A 2021 piece by People profiled Sonja Morgan's former intern Gabrielle Guarnaccia, who helped curate Morgan's social media presence during her six-month internship.
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But not every intern has praised Morgan's leadership style. In fact, one description of Morgan couldn't be further from Guarnaccia's account. Rachel McMahon, who was employed by Morgan for three years, slammed the housewife in an online article in 2016 (via Page Six), calling her "the boss from hell." She wrote, "She reduced me to tears on more than one occasion, has been incredibly rude, selfish and insensitive - and I stayed quiet. She has bullied those who have been incredibly supportive to her, screaming, yelling. And she lies. She lied about me and revealed a very private element of my life on TV for no reason at all."
Sonja Responds
As far as I’ve seen, Sonja hasn’t responded. The back and forth sparks the idea for a Bravo spinoff that’s the battle of the interns - New York vs. Charleston. May the best (most productive) group win an actual permanent job for one of the Bravolebs. And the runner-ups will be awarded toaster ovens, Sonja by Sonja Morgan outfits and a grab bag of Patricia’s HSN goodies. TELL US - ARE YOU TEAM PATRICIA’S INTERNS OR TEAM SONJA’S INTERNS?
The Purpose of the Program
In 2015, she told SPLASH (via Bravo) about her current interns, saying, "[They're students who have a] 3.9, 4.0, and they're majoring in production at Tisch School at NYU." Speaking on their backgrounds, Morgan continued, "They're serious. So, what is it actually like working for Jennifer Lawrence's favorite housewife? Does Morgan have a rigid schedule or does she give her interns more free rein regarding their hours? Also, what do they actually do for her? And how do her interns feel about the reality star as a boss?
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