Self-teaching is the faster way to start learning; a good internship is the faster way to learn how work is judged. Digital internships add briefs, deadlines, feedback, collaboration and a reference - experiences that tutorials cannot reproduce. The strongest route usually combines the two rather than treating them as rivals.
What self-teaching does well
You can begin today, choose a specialism and repeat lessons at your own pace. Official platform courses, public datasets and a small website let you practise analytics, SEO, content and campaign planning without waiting for permission. It is especially useful for testing whether you enjoy the work before paying for training or committing to a placement.
The limitation is that you control the problem. You know the answer the exercise expects, can change the brief when it becomes uncomfortable and rarely receive expert criticism. Self-assessment also creates blind spots: work can look polished while missing the commercial objective.
What an internship adds
An internship gives you someone else's customer, standards and constraints. You learn approval processes, brand rules, data protection, handovers and the difference between a good classroom idea and a workable business decision. A supervisor can correct errors you do not yet know how to see.
The limitation is quality. A vague placement can become repetitive administration with little learning. Evaluate the supervisor and work design, not the title; use our three-day internship offer scorecard.
A combined plan
Before the placement, self-teach enough to understand the vocabulary and complete basic tasks. During it, use real feedback to deepen three chosen skills. Afterwards, study the gaps the workplace exposed and turn approved work into case studies.
For example, learn campaign structure and analytics basics independently; then use the internship to write for a real audience, work through approvals and report a real outcome. That sequence makes both stages more productive.
How to choose if you can only do one
Choose self-teaching when you need flexibility, have no suitable offer or are still exploring. Choose an internship when it has a named supervisor, hands-on work and fair terms, and you can make the schedule work. Do not accept a poor internship simply because "experience" sounds valuable.
This is a different question from course vs self-teaching: the deciding value here is workplace evidence. Digital Marketing in Practice deliberately joins structured learning to a guaranteed 12-week placement so neither part has to substitute for the other.