Get your foot in the door means to get a first chance in a company or industry, even in a modest role, so that you can move up later. The image is simple: a foot in the doorway stops the door from closing. The idiom is common in conversations about careers and fits IELTS Speaking; in an essay, gain entry to a profession is more neutral.
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get your/a foot in the door (at + company / in + industry); have a foot in the door
- An unpaid internship helped me get my foot in the door at a design agency.
- Volunteering at festivals is a good way to get a foot in the door in the music industry.
- Offer a small free trial; once you have a foot in the door, the client may order more.
What changed
First versionThis internship helped me get my leg in the door at a law firm.
RevisionThis internship helped me get my foot in the door at a law firm.
Leg and foot are easy to mix up, but the idiom needs the part you put in a doorway, that is, the foot. With leg, the expression sounds strange and loses its meaning.
Getting your foot in the door is only the first step: you are inside. Next you need to learn the ropes, that is, settle in and find out how things work: First you get your foot in the door, then you learn the ropes.
Your turn
I took a junior job at the publishing house to ___, hoping to become an editor later.
Show the answer
get my foot in the door — The junior job here is a way to get into the publishing house and then move up, so get my foot in the door. Put my foot down means firmly insisting on something or forbidding it, and it has nothing to do with getting a job.
Write about how someone can get into a profession you find interesting. Name the profession and a first step that helps people get started.
If you want to become a translator, doing small freelance jobs is a good way to get your foot in the door.
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