Name:   Brianna Rost

Type of Project:   Internship

1. Please provide a brief description of your STEP Signature Project.  Write two or three sentences describing the main activities your STEP Signature Project entailed.

For my STEP Signature Project, I chose to work as a Marketing/Communications Intern for the Ohio Machine, a Major League Lacrosse Team in Columbus, Ohio. I worked on press releases, sent newsletters, made graphics, and worked on our social media platforms. On game days, I worked on the sidelines where I assisted partners, posted on social media, and helped with the daily operations of making a game run smoothly.

2. What about your understanding of yourself, your assumptions, or your view of the world changed/transformed while completing your STEP Signature Project?  Write one or two paragraphs to describe the change or transformation that took place.

I believe that having the opportunity to work for a major league team has provided me with an insight into what I want to do after I graduate. Going into the summer, I was extremely set on working in athletics in the future. After this summer, I am starting to think that athletics is not the path for me. I still have a passion for professional teams, but I think I would be better off in the stands than on the sidelines. I realized that I would be working every single home game. For some sports, that could mean up to three games a week. Down the road, in a couple of years I hope to have a family. Working several nights in a week would not be ideal. Another aspect of athletics that I am not set on is the pay. Obviously, money isn’t everything in the end, but I need to be making a stable salary that I can use to pay off my student loans. After I talked to some of the full-time staff at the Machine, I have determined that their salaries are not livable for me.

I have also determined that I do not want to work for a small team/company. I know that I like to have a lot of people to bounce ideas off and work with. Working in a small atmosphere gives every employee a lot to do in a short amount of time. There isn’t as much time to try new things and branch out. I am hoping that by working for a larger corporation there will be more of a safety net to fall back on when I need help.

3. What events, interactions, relationships, or activities during your STEP Signature Project led to the change/transformation that you discussed in #2, and how did those affect you?  Write three or four paragraphs describing the key aspects of your experiences completing your STEP Signature Project that led to this change/transformation.  

I think that there were several events that led me have a transformational experience. I think that one of the biggest experiences in my project was being able to sit down and meet with some of the full-time employees. I had the chance to talk with our team president, vice president, business development managers, ticketing director, marketing manager, operations coordinator, and the corporate partnership coordinator. They all gave me great advice, that seemed to overlap and was very similar. It requires a certain type of dedication to persevere in the athletics field. It takes a long time to work your way up the pyramid

Another aspect of my internship that helped transform me was working on game days. Before working for the Ohio Machine, I was pretty convinced that I would be okay with working regular business hours plus game days outside of the office. I thought I would be content with this, but I didn’t realize what that actually meant. After putting in 50-60-hour work weeks, I’m starting to rethink my decision. At my age I think that I wouldn’t be upset working overtime, but I plan on having a family and children someday. This wouldn’t be so convenient when my children have conflicts and I would be forced to miss their activities. This is definitely something that I am going to have to think more about in my future.

As I mentioned before, I thought that I was fully prepared and understood everything that was going to happen while working for a professional team. I am so grateful to have the opportunity to actually be getting my hands dirty before graduation. Now I get to rethink what I want to do before graduation. Do I want to work weekends? Do I want to deal with overly excited fans? Do I like working with the athletes? Now I have a better idea that working in athletics truly is challenging, but it can be all worth it because it keeps me entertained and on my toes daily. The only real problem that I have come across is game days, but I understand that every company/organization has out of the office activities that I would be required to attend. Maybe there would be less, but I have no way of guaranteeing this.

4. Why is this change/transformation significant or valuable for your life?  Write one or two paragraphs discussing why this change or development matters and/or relates to your academic, personal, and/or professional goals and future plans. 

This transformation was extremely importable for my life. Without receiving the STEP funding, I would not have been able to afford to work this internship. It was unpaid, as most athletic internships are, but it was crucial for me to determine how I want to proceed with my future. I have now realized that I want to pursue internships that are outside of the athletic field. I have only worked internships in the athletic field, and I now think that it is time to work outside of one field and explore my options. This internship has reaffirmed that I want to be working in the marketing field, but it really clarified to me that I need to explore all sorts of companies before settling in with one.