“It’s okay, no freshmen get internships”.  That sentence has been said to me countless times over the course of my first year at Ohio State.  Despite my numerous attempts at furthering my professional career, I kept being shut down.  I have attended career fairs to network with people only to get my elevator pitch interrupted with them saying to come back when I am older.  As someone who strives to work hard in order to meet my goals, this did not satisfy me.

My second semester at Ohio State, I rushed a business frat for the second time.  I worked really hard to try and get in and it seemed to be going well.  Unfortunately, after the interview, I discovered that I was again not accepted.  It seemed as though I was just going to need to wait until next year to begin my professional journey, no matter how frustrated that made me.

When the odds seemed to be against me, however, I had the opportunity to network with a businessman at The Association for the Business of Sports.  He gave me insight on doing what I could to seek out opportunities in my major.  After talking with him, I set out to applying for several more internships and summer positions.  A couple days later, I received an email that I was selected for an interview with a company for a summer internship.  The interview went really well and afterwards, I was offered the position.

Through my setbacks, I grew a lot and learned a lot about perseverance.  This year taught me a lot and I’ve gained invaluable lessons on not accepting the “norm” as my reality.  In accepting my internship, I realized that I can achieve things that aren’t generally attainable for college freshmen.  All in all, I’m very thankful for all that this year has taught me.  I’m also immensely excited to begin my internship and learn more about the company in my endeavors.