My STEP Signature Project was a process/production engineering internship with major chemicals and plastics manufacturer LyondellBasell at its Channelview Complex in Houston, Texas. I worked on high-impact projects, the main ones being to optimize throughput within our liquid hydrocarbons reaction and separation unit and improve emissions and energy and cost efficiency of other related processes within the plant. Learning and refining various technical skills and navigating a layered and diverse company structure, I had a well-rounded internship experience and emerged with a much deeper and broader perspective into networking, engineering in industry, and my own career path.

This internship transformed my understanding of my professional and technical knowledge very significantly. Students form various pictures of industry and the professional world before they are able to work their first technical job through stories from their friends and family, lectures and talks with industry representatives, and even their textbooks. I learned upon working in the field during this internship, my own first experience in a technical engineering role, that my pre-conceived notions about chemical engineering and industry formed during my time in class were very different from what is really the case. I began to understand that at the level of education I want to complete in engineering, the average chemical engineer will not get much use out of a large portion of the curriculum we are taught in class. Much of modern industry has access to software that will complete many of the calculations we are taught in our core classes faster and more reliably than if they were done by hand, and that software can simulate systems that humans could never hope to match by hand. What is important is an understanding of the system and the knowledge to apply the correct ideology to each problem in the industry because that is the part of the battle that technology can’t figure out by itself just yet.

Working as a process/production engineer in the petrochemicals industry also brought my personal career aspirations into much closer focus. Process engineering is a shining example of what a chemical engineer can do in industry, and I very much enjoyed understanding and solving the problems associated with the hydrocarbons and other interrelated utilities and side streams that helped my unit produce a synthetic rubber for applications like car tires and helped the whole plant produce the building blocks for plastics and other products. I also learned that there are many ways to make a great impact on a company; I spoke and networked with people who worked in higher technical and managerial roles as well as business roles like finance, procurement, and operations and began to hear about the many opportunities for students with engineering degrees to branch out and explore other roles and career paths using an engineering mindset in a company. Working in industry and getting the opportunity to hear about these roles and paths, I was able to discover so much about my passion for my future and transform my view of industry.

A few of the many experiences I had during my internship stand out to me as very transformational to my professional and personal life. One of these was a tower “clean” inspection we did during a turnaround of one of Channelview’s units. A turnaround happens every few years when a unit which is usually running continuously shut down entirely in order to perform invasive maintenance that cannot be performed when the unit is running, and one of these maintenance items is to clean the towers on the line to rid the towers of debris and contaminants; my mentor and another production engineer were tasked with inspecting one cleaned tower to make sure everything was clean and there were no structural issues, and they invited me along to climb the tower with them. Climbing the tower involved entering the tower itself (a large metal tube with various stages to promote mixing as liquids inside move through) and climbing several stories upwards through a space that usually held dangerous chemicals. The operation took several stages of verification and several plant workers to oversee, and all of the confined space and fall hazard training we did in the beginning of the year was put to the test in order to complete this very important piece of the effort to get the tower back up and running. I came away from that climb with a great appreciation for those who do those climbs daily, and the safety measures required to make it all possible gained a new meaning to me. In an industry where process safety and personal safety mistakes could be harmful or fatal, it transformed my understanding of the importance of safety after practicing it firsthand in a dangerous situation.

One of my major projects reformed my vision of green engineering as well. The part of Channelview that my team oversaw was called East Plant and had four different units, all of which received their process feedstocks and some utilities from the olefins furnaces in a different part of Channelview. East Plant’s flare, where material not used by the plant is sent to combust and escape into the atmosphere, was having problems completely combusting that material and required more fuel gas to make the flame at the flare tip hotter so that the material would be fully converted into less harmful emissions. Methane was used before my term because it was on hand, but burning methane increased the carbon monoxide emissions from the plant, so the plant was looking for a different fuel source for the flare. My mentor and I came up with a plan to take product hydrogen from the olefins furnaces and send it to burn in the flare, which simultaneously served as an economical advantage from freeing up storage limitations from the furnaces and an environmental advantage from burning a cleaner fuel. This project really opened my eyes to the capability for manufacturing processes to improve their environmental footprint by taking advantage of energy, process, and utility integration. I never knew that making a large, sweeping impact could be relatively easy to enact given the right setup and knowledge of the system. I came to Ohio State passionate about using my chemical engineering knowledge to make a positive impact on the environment, and LyondellBasell gave me the capability to do that in Houston and will ensure that the changes I offered will be put into place and continue to make an impact for years to come. This internship strengthened my passion to use green/lean engineering methods to approach emissions reduction by putting me on the front lines of the issue in a manufacturing setting where I could make some of the highest impact on the issues facing the environment.

My internship with LyondellBasell has influenced me to refocus my academic path for the rest of my time at OSU. I want to take classes that focus on green engineering, and the chemical engineering curriculum includes technical electives such as Principles of Sustainable Engineering and Air Pollution that would help me learn about the engineering methods that could make me a better candidate for positions in industry that are geared toward green engineering and environmental work. I also want to foray a bit into management or other business electives that could help me understand principles for better employee management. I really enjoyed experiencing that side of the business during my internship and believe I would like to make team management a part of my career. The internship also gave me unique management experience that I will be able to take back to my student organization in which I have been elected president for the upcoming year. I haven’t yet had the opportunity to have this much responsibility leading a team, and I think the internship experience I bring back to college will be very impactful in guiding my team of board and general body members through a simultaneously uncertain and busy time.

I feel that this STEP Signature Project internship is my crucial starting point into a bright career path. With my foot finally in the industry door, I can approach new professional opportunities with confidence and technical knowledge that will help me chase what’s best for my career moving forward. My transformed and reinvigorated passions can guide me onto a path I will be very happy with professionally and personally. The technical, professional, and personal experience I have gained will be invaluable in both my academic and my extracurricular future at college, and it will help shape my life well into the future. I’m excited to dive into this new chapter of college with what I’ve learned from my STEP Signature Project!

Matthew Greenwaldt

My STEP Signature Project was a 4-month internship at Woolpert, a national civil engineering firm. I worked with their transportation department assisting with roadway, bridge, and traffic design.

Since completing my internship, I have grown considerably more confident in my abilities as a future engineer. Coming into my junior year, I really felt inferior to the peers who obtained internships their freshman and sophomore years. I felt behind and less experienced despite great success in academia. In order to escape this mindset, I searched for opportunities with local companies. With determination – and a little luck – I found one with Woolpert.

By working with industry software and experts, I proved to myself I could excel in the workplace. This newfound confidence has already had positive impacts on my life and career. Despite the chaos COVID-19 has had on many careers, I feel confident I will be able to find opportunities as life returns to normal. Additionally, I have a second internship with Burgess and Niple beginning in a few days, partially due to my experience at Woolpert. On top of this confidence, I have a solid understanding of professional conduct in the workplace and great experience with industry software which will provide an easier transition to any firm I may find myself at in the future.

Navigating the workplace helped me develop professionally. While I have been a strong proponent of teamwork, I was somewhat shy to consult with my coworkers over questions I had. Seeing this effected my productivity greatly, I reached out more and more. Despite having stricter, busier schedules, everyone was available to help me in an understanding manner whenever it was required. I found it to be much more efficient and honorable to say you don’t understand a task when it’s given to you than struggle alone. This came evermore evident when I left the office to work remotely. Due to COVID-19, our office was closed, and all employees had to work remotely which presents its own challenges. With lost time from slower internet, IT issues, and only digital communication, it was even more important for me to be vocal about my knowledge and capabilities, so I could receive the proper training to complete a task. Ultimately, I found it was best to be open with my coworkers in order to receive the help I needed to succeed – an important lesson to learn in any professional environment.

The second and more significant result was the expansion of my technical capabilities, specifically with MicroStation – a 3D modeling software used widely in civil engineering. Looking at hundreds of job postings, nearly all of them preferred the same attributes – interest in civil engineering, an ability to work with a team, and experience with AutoCAD and MicroStation. Having the first two qualities, I wanted to gain meaningful experience with the last to set myself apart from other applicants. Thankfully, my internship has given me a few experiences with MicroStation.  While MicroStation and Autodesk Civil 3D fundamentally are the same thing, the two programs are quite different. Civil 3D is more user friendly, but some tools are cumbersome and require many manual tweaks. MicroStation has a tougher learning curve, but once one gets familiar with it and configure it to personal taste, it can be much more efficient and convenient. I find working with LIDAR and aerial imagery easier in MicroStation, but Civil 3D better for planimetric items. Ultimately, it depends on personal preference and client expectations. Yet, without this experience, I would have not been able to give that conclusion – showing my growth outside the classroom.

With this knowledge and experience, I can express my capabilities to future employers. This fact is incredibly important because having a great GPA and extracurriculars rarely trumps real-world, practical experience. Schooling gives the tools needed, but work experience provides the instruction booklet and practical applications for the tools given. Having this ability instills confidence in myself and makes myself a more competitive candidate.

Conclusively, I am thankful for my experience at Woolpert this semester. I have met incredibly talented and helpful people who are still passionate about their work after decades in the field – giving me a network of professionals I can rely on and get advice from. Through my hard work, I have gained a wealth of knowledge that I can apply to future applications. This gives me the real-world knowledge employers seek in new hires which will greatly aid my future career.  Most importantly with my experience, I have grown more passionate about transportation engineering and more confident of my own potential.

My Cubicle with a Small Welcome on my First Day

Myself on a Site Visit Photographing a Past Project

For my STEP project, I completed a Spring 2020 internship with the pipeline environmental team at Marathon Petroleum Company. During the past semester, I was able to learn about how the different companies at MPC run their portions of the business, what goes into making sure the company keeps the environment and community safe despite being in such a potentially dangerous and controversial field, and lend my time and knowledge to help complete tasks that were essential for the environmental team to continue growing. Throughout my time with Marathon, some of the main activities I assisted with were helping with the MPL East and West integration process after Marathon’s recent purchase of Andeavor, create a hands-on release volume estimation training for operations groups, and assist with writing and editing new Permit Review and Responsibility Sheets for all locations at MPL.

There were many transformations in my understanding of myself and view of the world that took place during my four-month internship. One of the most important transformations that I saw during my STEP project was understanding better how I work the best in the working world, including how I stay productive, how I best communicate with coworkers and how I can use my strengths to be the best worker possible. Early on in the project I was able to recognize my strengths, which included a strong drive for results, strong time management skills and strong presentation-making skills. I was also able to pinpoint my weaknesses, such as reaching out and communicating with new people and offering up my ideas and opinions when in a group project or setting, and I learned to use these weaknesses to my advantage. After I started to better understand the strengths and weaknesses that I possess in a corporate work setting, I found that I was changing the way that I work to best accommodate these newfound understandings about myself and therefore be the most productive and successful in my work. In addition to using my strengths to my advantage, I forced myself to transform my weaknesses into skills that I no longer have to be “afraid” to use like I was before I had the opportunity to co-op with Marathon.

There are a few interactions and activities during my internship that I believe led to the change in understanding of myself. One specific incident was when I had a trip planned to go present my initial ideas for my project to a group of people that I had never met before at a location that I had never been to before. Right before I left for my trip, my mentor that I was supposed to be travelling with informed me that he had something come up and would not be able to come on the trip with me anymore. At first, this made me very anxious to travel and present alone because I knew that presenting to new groups of people was not my strong suit and knowing that now I would not have anyone there with me for moral support made it much worse. This incident is when I realized that communicating with new people was going to be a very crucial part of working in industry and that I was going to have to get over my fear and be confident in my ability to present my ideas to a wide variety of people. After presenting alone to this new group of people and getting very positive feedback for my project, I knew that I had gotten over that stressful hump and would now be able to confidently reach out to people outside my group to share my ideas, ask questions and build a network of contacts at the company.

Another incident that lead to the transformation in my understanding of myself was during my midterm review with my supervisor and mentor. During the midterm review, the interns present all of the projects they have completed or are currently working on so the team can get a feel for what type of work they have been doing and what else they can do in the rest of the term. The supervisor and mentor also give feedback on what they are doing well so far and what they can improve on to make the most out of their co-op term. At my midterm review, my bosses gave me a plethora of things they thought I was doing well and very few that I needed to work on. One point they really emphasized that I was doing well on was having a very strong drive for results and was always turning my projects in ahead of time without them ever having to ask for an update on how they were coming along. Growing up, I always knew that I was a hard worker and if I said something would get done, it would get done and it would get done with good effort put into it. Hearing this feedback from my mentor and supervisor too made me realize that as long as I always keep my drive for results high, I can use that characteristic to my advantage throughout the rest of my working career because it is not something you can really teach someone to do, but it could be something that could dwindle down over the years. Thanks to this I now know that as long as I always put in my best effort, I will succeed in my career.

The last event that led to a transformation in myself during my STEP Project was the overall connections that I made with people in my group and other interns. Going into the internship, I was nervous that I would be too shy to make friends or have good relationships at work. Once I realized that I needed to open up and find people who I can depend on at work, I ended up making really great contacts, specifically one with the intern in the group next to mine, and the other with our area’s field safety professional. Now that I have made solid contacts at the company, I am more confident that if I want to come back to Marathon, I have reliable acquaintances that I can contact with any questions or if I need help. Overall, these events, along with many others throughout the course of my internship, affected me greatly in only positive ways. Travelling to present at group meetings by myself taught me that communicating is never something to be afraid of and people are always willing to help when you have questions. Feedback from my mentor and supervisor taught me to use my strengths to my advantage and to never get lazy with my work. All in all, the affect that came from my personal transformations has made me more confident in my work and in how I communicate with coworkers in and even out of my group.

I think that all of the events and interactions that I experienced at my internship not only changed my understanding of myself in the workplace, but it also taught me valuable lessons that I can use in all aspects of my life. Now that I have a better understanding of what my strengths and weaknesses are, I think I will be able to be an even better worker at future jobs and therefore help bring success in my career. I now know what characteristics are valued in the workplace, which in turn taught me which traits about myself I need to work on and which ones I need to emphasize in order to be the most successful in my future jobs. In addition, the technical knowledge I learned about the petroleum industry will help me in my academic career as I finish off my last three semesters of college. I am very grateful for the opportunity to intern with Marathon and for the STEP Project funding to help make it possible because I know I have learned so much technical knowledge as well as life lessons about working in the real world which will help be get my dream job when I graduate from college.

During the Spring 2020 semester, I participated in a co-op rotation at the Sherwin Williams Company. I worked for a performance coating division within the company which specialized in powdered coatings in Grove City, Ohio.  Within the plant, I was part of the quality department working under the Quality Control Coordinator.

Throughout my experience, I got to see how a multi-billion-dollar company functions and succeeds. Going into this internship, I didn’t have any experience working for a manufacturing company or working in a plant setting.  One of the biggest things that I learned is how much of an impact a very small decision can have for a company.  One split-second choice can either make the company thousands of dollars or lose thousands of dollars.  I saw this first-hand nearly every day and by the end of my rotation, I was the one making some of these decisions which was exhilarating.  All in all, I am so glad to have had this experience because it really showed me what I want to do with my career post-graduation.

Another discovery that I made throughout my experience is that I really enjoyed working and being in such a fast-paced environment.  Being an engineering student, I’ve come to know the chaos that is earning that degree and the heftiness of the workload.  Through my internship, I was being constantly engaged just as I am during school.  But what I found was that my work-life balance became much, much better.  It made going to work fun because I could give all of my attention and effort on it while I was there, but still having a life outside of it once I got home.  Overall, I felt much better suited to work life than school which is promising post-graduation.

One of the activities that catapulted my interest for working for Sherwin Williams was the work that I did with the Quality Control Coordinator. Some of the projects that I worked on included preparing powder and panels for customers, reviewing upcoming products before they came up on line, and reworking scrapped or returned powder into upcoming products.  The latter was what really turned my head and directed me towards this new career path.  Being able to take a poor product and save them and as a consequence save the company money made me feel as if I was making an impact.  As an intern, I wasn’t expecting to have real responsibility, but what I found is that by having that responsibility, I was able to learn so much more.

A unique aspect of my internship was the fact that it took place during a global pandemic.  Throughout this time, so many people were either working remotely or losing their jobs entirely.  I was extremely lucky to continue working throughout the entire quarantine as Sherwin Williams was deemed an essential business.  This being the case, I was still going into the plant five days a week.  But, during my entire time, I did not once feel unsafe or that I shouldn’t be there.  There were many precautions taken to maintain social distancing and to sanitize surfaces.  This being said, my internship only solidified my respect for Sherwin Williams and my desire to continue working for them.

Finally, all of my relationships with my coworkers made my experience very special.  I created real friendships and gained so much respect for the people behind the Sherwin Williams’ name.  Nearly every person I encountered put in 110% every single day which only pushed me to do the same and more.  They were examples to me for what my life could look like post-graduation.  The fast-paced nature of a manufacturing plant calls for quick decisions and hard work all of the time.  All in all, it gave me an outlook for a new direction for my life and that direction is fun and engaging.

This experience has truly changed my life. It has provided me with a path I didn’t consider until I was put into the position.  I had always thought I wanted to be in research and design or process engineering, but now that I have experienced quality control, I know that it is the right fit for me.  I feel so confident going into my last couple semesters knowing what direction I want to take my life.  Not only has my internship changed my professional plans, but it has changed my outlook on what my personal life will look like.  I so much enjoyed having the separation of work life and personal life and it makes the prospect of graduating a little less scary.  Overall, I feel secure with where I’m at and it all comes from the experiences my internship provided me.

Panels that have been powder coated

Product that went to a customer

1.      My STEP signature project was an internship with Plante Moran in their downtown Chicago office. Plante Moran is a public accounting firm that offers audit, accounting, tax, investment banking, wealth management, and business advisory consulting services. I worked in their Risk and Accounting Advisory Services (RAAS) department, which is a management consulting service offered to clients for their individual needs.

2.     As stated in my project proposal, the main reason I applied for this internship is because it was a perfect path to the career I wanted to purse. My goal in life was to become a Forensic Accountant, a specialty practice of accounting that utilizes accounting, auditing, and investigative skills to conduct an examination into the finances of an individual or a business. It is used in fraud and embezzlement cases to explain the nature of a financial crime in court. Originally, I was planning to use my internship experience in management consulting as a steppingstone to begin transitioning into the forensic accounting field.

However, my career path has completely altered because of my internship. I had an amazing experience working with the RAAS team, which changed my entire perspective of the accounting industry and the different services that are offered within it. I now plan to return to Plante Moran after graduation, working in consulting long-term with the RAAS team, instead of pursuing a career in forensic accounting.

3.     Being that I went into the internship not knowing what services RAAS provides, I was unsure if I was going to enjoy the work of a consultant. I had no idea what work I would specifically be doing, let alone if it was a career I could picture myself pursing. There was a chance that I could come out of the internship uninterested in pursuing a career in consulting, however, the exact opposite happened. I was extremely invested into my work and enjoyed every minute of it. I received lots of feedback from my team that I did a great job and was very helpful to them all. Being good at the work, and enjoying my time doing it, gave me the comfort to want to return to management consulting as a full-time staff member for Plante Moran.

Not only did I enjoy the work I was doing, but Plante Moran’s culture is the main reason I want to work for the firm after graduation. The culture was built around the saying, “We are a people business disguised as a public accounting firm.” Meaning, all staff at this firm truly cares about the mental and physical health of the team and clients. They are all the kindest, most helpful people I’ve ever had the pleasure of working with. My team was extremely welcoming toward me and the other intern, making us feel a part of the team and treated us like full-time staff.

Additionally, I was able to travel with the team, allowing me the chance to get to know them on a professional and personal level. I was able to discover that I fit in extremely well at Plante Moran and could not imagine me working for any other firm. Considering I came across numerous people who have been with Plante Moran for a long time, this shows in and of itself that the firm truly cares about its staff growing as people and not just employees. I want to be a part of a firm who is dedicated to putting its resourcing and time into its staff to keep retention rates high, while maintaining the culture the firm was built upon.

4.     Before my internship, I did not have plans as to which public accounting firm I wanted to work for full-time. I knew my first internship would determine whether or not I needed to look elsewhere for full-time opportunities. Fortunately, Plante Moran turned out to be a firm I want to work for a long time. Not only did I find an amazing place to work, but changing my intended career path is by far the most significant and valuable change to come out of this experience. Having a set plan of what I want to do and where I want to work after graduation has lifted an enormous weight off my shoulders. I can now enjoy the rest of my college career without the burden of not knowing if I will have a job after graduation. I am extremely grateful to have found Plante Moran and can’t wait to return to the firm in the future.

Plante Moran’s downtown Chicago office along the Chicago River.

The entry way to the downtown Chicago office.

1.      This semester, I participated in the Glenn College’s Washington Academic Internship Program (WAIP) as a John Glenn Fellow. I traveled to and lived in Washington D.C., where I worked as an intern in the United States Senate, took classes from Ohio State, and participated in study tours and professional development events. As an intern, I worked to provide great service for constituents, while also helping with legislative writing and special projects for the staff.

2.     My understanding of myself and my view of the world changed in many ways through my WAIP experience. As a person, I had a wholly new experience living outside of Ohio for the first time, and living in Washington D.C., which is such a center of history and culture. That experience really expanded my view of the world and effectively connected me even more to the largely historical political and world events that are happening all the time, and especially this semester. I had never been to D.C., and being in the Capitol every day was a massive learning experience for me, and it helped to imbue my work ethic with a new historical weight and responsibility.

I also think that I was able to live this semester in a much different way than I usually do, which taught me quite a lot in a day-to-day sense. Wearing professional clothing all the time, working 12 hour days, existing apart from my friends and family, living in a cohort of 20 new friends, exploring a city, and functioning in a much more public and social way than I had been used to were all major aspects of my experience this semester that made my time unique and full of personal growth.

3.     The WAIP program included weekly study tours during which our cohort explored various destinations in D.C., such as the Library of Congress, the National Archives, the National Museum of African American History and Culture, the White House, and many more. Having exploration of D.C. built into the program as a focus, and having the program encourage us to explore on our own, helped me to grow a lot personally, because it led me to take agency of my own presence in the city, and I sought out a lot of cultural experiences while I was there, including multiple life-changing trips to performances at the Kennedy Center. The program was also largely built on self-reflection and personal goals, which helped me to be a conscious participant in the experience and helped me to feel a lot more agency generally about my actions while there.

In describing how transformational WAIP was, it would be impossible for me not to mention the huge professional development segment: in addition to workshops on resumes, speaking, negotiating, branding, and more, we also got to meet many neat people with remarkable careers in Washington D.C., including an attorney who has argued in front of the Supreme Court, several of Senator Glenn’s staffers, Senator Sherrod Brown, Dr. Sheila Ronis, and Dr. Leon Fuerth, to name a few. Through the framing of WAIP around our proficiencies as young professionals, I was able to think much more critically about how I stack up in a professional setting, and I was able to identify and work on some of my weaker skills in those areas. In the past, my background has been focused almost entirely on academic work, so having such a thorough crash course in professionalism was really valuable.

One of the other most significant parts of WAIP for me was the social side of things. I got much more used to meeting and talking to new people than I had ever been before, both in a networking professional sense (as we were required to schedule coffees/informational interviews with other professionals during the semester), and in a more informal sense (as I got to know, befriended, and spent time with my peers in the WAIP program and at my internship). The teamwork aspect of WAIP was one of the best parts for me, and helped me gain a lot of practice being with and enjoying the presence of others, as our group camaraderie really pulled us through the long work days and grueling schedule.

4.      The changes and transformation that I experienced during WAIP matter immensely to my academic, personal, and professional goals in part because all of those goals are connected, but also because through WAIP, I experienced transformation in so many facets of my life. Careerwise, I gained a great deal of experience with communicating with others, both in writing and in speaking, and I learned a lot about the legislative process, about the political process, about finding a job, and about Capitol Hill. I had an incredible experience of working in government that will allow me to better decide in the future what I want most from a job in advocacy. Personally, I had my perspective continually broadened and enriched by historical and art museum trips, while I was moved by multiple concerts, odd experiences, and historical sites. I made some wonderful friends for life, and made ridiculous and beautiful memories. Finally, I was incredibly empowered and emboldened by the many challenges of the experience, and take with me into the future new confidence, skills, and pride in my efforts.

Library of Congress

Meeting Senator Brown

The main activities of my STEP Signature Project included a wide variety of skills used in digital, print and field marketing strategies for the Department of Recreational Sports at Ohio State. I was responsible for creating marketing plans for different Rec Sports program areas, aimed at increasing attendance and meeting goals set for each program. Additionally, I was responsible for developing new content for Rec Sports, creating customized newsletters, updating the website and maintaining the integrity of the Rec Sports brand.

I made a couple discoveries about myself and the world of marketing during my completion of my STEP Signature Project. One discovery I made about myself is I enjoy the working life. I’ve never been a very scholarly person, meaning studying has never come easy for me and I don’t like being measured by tests. Working at a job, however, measures success and productivity in different subjective ways while also teaching applicable skills that will benefit me in my future career. Having an internship also taught me extremely valuable life skills; how to work independently, collaborate with others, how to live independently, manage my finances and be responsible as well as maintain good time management. These are all things that, in my opinion, are hard to learn in the classroom.

Another discovery I made was about the world of marketing. Prior to this internship, I had not held a marketing job before. Obviously, working as a Marketing Intern taught me a lot that I didn’t know before about business, marketing, and everything that goes into maintaining a good brand image. I felt like I went into my STEP Signature Project with a good foundation of knowledge about marketing, but what surprised me was the attention to detail in everything, even down to the type of “language” they used. This only made love the world of marketing more, as I have always been a person who pays attention to even the smallest of details. Like I mentioned before, all of marketing focuses on supporting and up-keeping a positive brand image, and I learned to apply that across all of our campaigns and programs.

There are three key transformations I would like to highlight that that occurred during my STEP experience. The first transformation that occurred during my internship was working in a professional office setting. My STEP Project as a marketing intern involved working in the Office of Recreational Sports at Ohio State. Everyday I worked in a professional office setting where I had to interact with pro-staff and communicate effectively with everyone I was in contact with, including my boss. From working in a professional office setting, I learned proper netiquette for sending and replying to emails, and proper office communication as well as proper dress and how to carry myself appropriately as an intern.

The second transformation that occurred during my Marketing Internship was adjusting to living by myself in off-campus housing. Prior, I was used to either living at home in the summer or in a dorm room during the year with roommates. The summer I began my STEP Project, I had to make new living arrangements by finding a sublease and living independently. It was a dramatic change for me, but it taught me to manage my finances, manage my time and teach myself essentials for living on your own as an adult.

The last major transformation that occurred was due to the close relationship I formed with my marketing boss. When I first began the internship, like any normal person I was extremely intimidated by my boss, but as the weeks went by, she constantly treated me with respect and valued my opinions. She made the projects I completed feel important, instead of just being busy work. She always checked up on me to make sure projects worked with my class schedule, and always asked about my life outside work. We have formed such a great relationship, and I will actually be continuing the internship for another year which I am very excited about!

The transformations that occurred during/after my STEP Project experience all are so important to take with me into my future career. Most likely, I will begin my career working in a traditional office setting like most professionals, so spending time in the Rec Sports office as an intern allowed me understand how to properly interact with coworkers both in person and online. Additionally, adjusting to living on my own is a valuable life skill for any young adult. No one really wants to make this transition, but it is important to learn, especially when you are responsible for yourself solely. Like I said, living on my own helped me learn how to manage my finances, cook for myself, improve my time management and I learned even little skills, such as cleaning and figuring out how to use my free time efficiently. Lastly, the relationship I formed with my Marketing boss will be extremely valuable for me in the future. She already has and can continue to help me with job opportunities and network me with other marketing professionals. All these transformations are significant and valuable for my life, both career-wise and personally. I am extremely happy with the turnout of my STEP Project and extremely grateful for Ohio State’s STEP Program that allows students to explore opportunities outside of the classroom!

My STEP Signature Project was an internship through the Ohio State Athletic Training Division where I interned as an Athletic Training Student with the Ohio State Varsity Baseball Team from August 2019-May 2020. Throughout my internship I got to experience the every day life of a collegiate, Division I, athletic trainer. My responsibilities included: setting up for practices and games, assisting in medical screenings, developing injury reduction protocols, instructing proper form of rehabilitation and strengthening exercises, performing therapeutic treatments with modalities, and developing rehabilitation protocols for injured athletes.

My experience as an athletic training student with the Ohio State Baseball Team was easily the best, most transformational experience of my life. There were some days that I spent 8-9 hours in the athletic training room and baseball stadium, and still had to attend class and get my school work done. However, I loved absolutely every second of my experience, and it truly showed me that my dream job is to work as an athletic trainer for a collegiate baseball team. Beyond time management skills, this internship showed me why athletic training is the right career path for me. Every day that I entered the athletic training room I was able to deepen the connections that I had with the baseball players and develop relationships with each of them beyond just being their athletic trainer. I spent hours each day with the baseball players that allowed me to get to know about their families, struggles at college, favorite songs/tv shows/movies, and of course how they respond to injury and rehabilitation. I came to the realization that athletic trainers are really the only medical professionals that are fortunate enough to develop these relationships with their patients, all while providing the best quality of care.

Furthermore, this internship exponentially helped me develop my clinical skills and helped shape me into a more confident, knowledgeable clinician. Every day I was faced with scenarios that pushed me outside of my comfort zone, and forced me to think beyond what my classroom education had taught me. I worked alongside my preceptor, the certified athletic trainer with the Ohio State Baseball Team, to learn more about injury reduction, injury treatment, and rehabilitation protocols. My preceptor helped me sharpen the tools in my toolbox and add several more. I am now able to go into my senior year with way more confidence than I had a year ago, and lots of new knowledge to utilize.

Before participating in this internship experience I was unsure what career path I wanted to go down. I was deciding between Physician Assistant or Athletic Trainer. After this internship experience there is absolutely no doubt in my mind that I want to be an athletic trainer, and I want to be an athletic trainer for a collegiate baseball team. As mentioned before, I was shown that athletic trainers are able to develop extremely special relationships with their patients. This is the aspect of athletic training that I fell in love with. As an athletic trainer I will work with one team day-in and day-out. I will get to know that team extremely well, which in turn will help me individualize treatment and help my patients achieve their maximum potential on the field. Furthermore, my experience working as an athletic training student with the Ohio State Baseball Team showed me the intricacies of baseball from a sports medicine perspective that I fell in love with, and want to explore even deeper throughout my career.

My STEP signature project was an internship with an accounting firm in the Columbus/Cleveland area called HW&Co. I worked in the company’s Healthcare department, which made a majority of my clients Nursing Facilities or Assisted Living Homes.

The opportunity to work with this accounting firm led me to have a different view of the world around me. There is so much more to work than just a casual nine to five job that everyone talks about. Throughout my internship I learned more about being responsible than ever before. I had to make sure I woke up every morning bright and early, I had to dress appropriately, and do other things that normally would slide in a college environment. A unique aspect of my internship is right when things were starting to pick up, COVID-19 forced the firm to make everyone work remotely from home. This was a great experience to see how the firm was so willing to make everything work out in the long run and I am happy to see this firsthand.

The primary event that led me to see the world in a different way as mentioned before was the COVID-19 dilemma in the firm and how everyone worked together to overcome it. This event made me nervous as I was not sure how things would work out for me as an intern and working from home. The firm made sure that I was kept in the loop and I would have at least 2 daily update phone calls a day with my advisors. Throughout the process the firm itself worked hard to make sure everyone has the at home set up needed to work effectively from home, but to still feel connected with our coworkers.

Something else I mentioned was the responsibility and integrity it took to be up and ready to go bright and early. Traditionally throughout college I have made a serious effort to schedule my class around 11:30 am at the earliest in an effort to sleep in. This was not an option for work and because of this I had to make sure I had alarms set and I was in bed by a decent hour every night. Although this was tough at first, the interactions I had with coworkers at the office made me look forward to going into the office the next morning and helped me to feel not only more at home, but happier and excited to go to work. All of my coworkers went above and beyond to make me feel at home, and this helped me to not struggle with waking up earlier.

Lastly, I would like to talk about how my coworkers felt in the workspace. All of them truly helped me to not only see where I made a mistake, but rather to help me understand how to fix the mistake to ensure that I would not make it again. Being in a smaller firm allowed me to get to know my coworkers on more of a personal level and that is something I am extremely grateful for. These people helped me to realize that this is the career path I enjoy and want to take in my life. The idea of choosing a career to stick with is very hard to think about at such a young age, but thanks to the firm’s wonderful employees I was able to discover that this path is the right one for me.

I would say that this change is very valuable to my life as it has shown me the career path I am meant to take in the future. Often times you hear stories of people who did not enjoy their career after studying it through 4 years or more of college. This is something that has always weighed on my mind, and it was great to get a preview of my future through this internship and to be able to honestly say that I am looking forward to the opportunities and experience my job will bring me. Hopefully I will get an offer from the firm, but in the meantime, I will continue to do my best to stay in contact with them and use what I leanred.

*NOTE: unfortunately I did not have any photos of myself in the office, so I attached a photo of the company logo and my computer set up of while I worked from home due to corona.