1. Please provide a brief description of your STEP Signature Project. Describe the main activities your STEP Signature Project entailed.

My STEP Signature Project was a User Experience (UX) Research Internship with Nationwide Insurance. This entailed me working (remotely) about 15 hours a week, my main duties included taking notes during participant interviews, partaking in qualitative coding (inductive & deductive), participating in team meetings, and working with my mentor on career development.

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

Firstly, I did not expect myself to enjoy doing research- I had an assumption that research was dry and uninteresting, and that it was only for highly academic-minded people. However, after partaking in a research project during my STEP Signature project, I found it to be a very engaging and compelling area to potentially have a career in. Secondly, I did not expect to be as good at it as I was. I came in with zero research experience and zero experience working with qualitative data. That said, after my first few attempts at inductive coding, I found out that I was pretty good at it. This increased my level of confidence and allowed me to further expand my skill set- I have hard many times that research skills are always useful to have, regardless of the career field you go into. Having this internship experience as my STEP Signature Project helped me develop those skills and have something else to add to my resume. It also exposed me to the field I have been interested in for a while now- User Experience.

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? Describe the key aspects of your experiences completing your STEP Signature Project that led to this change/transformation.

One of the things that led to the change discussed above was my interactions with and relationship with my mentor/boss. Throughout the internship, I was able to build a relationship with him that helped me learn a lot of new things about research and the UX field more broadly. This included reading books, going through demonstrations, taking notes during presentations and interviews, and trying things independently. He has also helped me build connections with other people in the field and gave me tips/advice on how to carry myself in certain professional situations, what skills I should emphasize in my resume/portfolio, and how to talk about myself and my professional experience. He also helped me understand how and why research is such an important building block to the UX design process.

Another thing that led to the change above was the research project I worked on and the hands-on work that I had the opportunity to do on my own. I was given the opportunity to work on a small team and figure things out for myself, which helped boost my confidence and reassured me that I am fully capable of doing work independently, without needing like I need someone there to check on me every step of the way. Certain tasks and situations (for example, presentations) allowed me to hone my skills and show others what I can do and the kind of work ethic I have. Learning to navigate work-related tasks on my own has really allowed me to understand how real-world work environments operate, and has shown me what to expect as I head into that next chapter of my life.

Finally, one of the last things that led to the change above was meeting new people who are professionals in the field and having conversations with them. Had it not been for this internship, I would not have had the insight into the world of UX research and UX design as I do now. Being able to speak to experienced people in this area has helped me better understand what UX really is and why it’s important. It has also given me the answers to more practical questions I had, like what a UX researcher/designer’s salary is like, and what a regular work week in the life of a UX researcher/designer looks like. Overall, it’s been a really enlightening experience that I am grateful to have had.

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

This change was significant and valuable for my life because I am about to graduate, and I’m ready to go into the workforce. This opportunity was my very first time being in a professional company’s work environment and was also my very first internship experience. Since last year, I’ve wanted to pursue UX design as a career, and having this experience is invaluable because of the potential doors it can open for me. Getting this hands-on experience and having this accomplishment to add to my resume, along with an extra project to add to my portfolio, makes me a serious and competitive job candidate. However, beyond that, my internship has done a lot for me not only in terms of professional experience, but also in terms of an increase in self-esteem, self-confidence, and self-development.

My STEP signature project was completing a 6-month Co-op as a design engineer with Kaleidoscope Innovation, a medical device product consulting company in Cincinnati, OH. As a co-op in product design consulting, I was tasked with applying and growing my academic experiences in a professional environment. I played a role in designing, developing, and testing concepts for medical products and technologies.

Testing Prototypes in Wet Lab

My time as a co-op was a truly transformational experience for me, not only professionally, but also personally. Professionally, I had the opportunity to apply some of what I had learned in the classroom but within the reality of the medical device industry. I gained an appreciation and different perspective on my classroom experiences after applying them to client projects for medical markets. I realized that certain elements, especially the soft skills, the analytical problem-solving ability, and the MATLAB coding technical ability transferred far more effectively than some equation-heavy, theoretical courses. I found that the ability to learn quickly was the biggest skill I gained from my curriculum in college. I frequently had to pick up new techniques, skills, and background understanding. Being able to effectively learn quickly and apply that was so valuable. Coming back to school after this experience, my perspective on my coursework is far different. In class, I find myself using google, reading up, and being more curious to learn topics beyond the scope of the class. I find myself stressing less over memorizing equations and appreciating the underlying problem-solving concepts and applications. I hope this new perspective will allow me to turn my remaining classes into a more valuable experience for my post-grad career.

Testing a 3D Printed Spring Loaded Needle on Porcine Eye

Beyond the professional growth, I matured personally in my time as an engineering co-op. I learned how to grow relationships, how to establish trust through my work, and how to effectively communicate in various professional situations. Forming relationships with people within the company allowed me to contribute and push myself in new opportunities. The people around me helped me succeed beyond work. I was able to pick up on life advice from those older and more experienced than me. I learned how to create a work-life balance in a 40-hour workweek. Personal growth in discipline, routine, and self-care helped me grow from a college student to a young professional.

My first couple of weeks at Kaleidoscope were spent getting acclimated to the systems and how things were done within the company and in various projects. The way in which my specific work was handled was an unexpected source of growth for me right off the bat. My workload was managed by me and my supervisor collaboratively. An excel sheet was made to track my weekly workload. Any of the project managers could enter or ‘reserve hours’ on the sheet under my name for various client projects. It was my responsibility to ultimately manage my hours. If the week looked like it would be light, I would have to communicate to my supervisor that I could use more hours. On the flipside, on weeks when my hours seemed heavy, I had to communicate that. Finding the balance, understanding how effectively I could work and produce quality work was a challenge. I learned a lot about myself in this process. Early on, I felt bad saying no when approached to work on a project, but by the end, I understood that by taking on everything, I would fail to meet deadlines, produce quality work, and ultimately hurt the teams involved. I also felt needy constantly asking my manager for work when the weeks were light. This communication was a period of growth for me where I learned how to communicate with honesty, transparency, and nuance, understanding that it was in the best interest of everyone to only take on the workload I could do efficiently. This process was also a period of self-discovery. I gained an intimate knowledge of my own productivity and how I best work. I found that tasks typically took 2-3 times longer than people had estimated after accounting for unforeseen challenges, working more than a few hours at my desk would not be productive, and not setting aside scheduled time for myself to eat and do my work outside of meetings would lead to that time getting swiped away by other things. Although an unexpected source, this was a huge source of personal growth for me throughout the semester in communication, work ethic, and time management.

Within my first few weeks, I was asked to design a part on CAD and have it 3D printed in an elastic material. Having not used the SOLIDWORKS software since a freshman year into course, I faced a learning curve, while knocking off some rust, on this project. I spent hours trying to get the part to look exactly how I wanted it to and struggled to create some complex features. One evening, as I was stuck on the design, one of the CAD specialists walked by, asked me how I was doing and gave me a quote that became a theme for the semester: “Don’t struggle in silence, ask for help when you’re stuck.” The next morning, I went up and asked if he could help me with my part. He was so willing to help, and within 15 minutes of working with him, I had learned more technical skills, tips, and tricks, than I had ever known I could. I continued to work through the part, taking far longer than what I had wanted for a simple part, but in the process, I learned so much that I could later apply it to other design projects. Reaching out and asking a fellow co-worker for help then lead to a relationship in which he helped me pursue professional certification in SolidWorks. If I had never asked for help and “suffered in silence,” I would never have grown the technical CAD skills that I now have to show to future employers.

Once I had completed the design of my first part on the job, I had it sent to the printer excited and happy with how it looked on the computer. The next morning, I came in and went straight to the printer to see my new part only to find that it had failed to print due to some technical geometry constraints with the elastic material I was printing with. After talking to others, I learned that my design would have to be modified to work with that material on that printer. I went back, made some edits, and eventually got the design that I had envisioned. I learned from this that the first iteration will never be as perfect as it may seem in theory. From this experience, I understood that when designing devices and components, it was best to send something, anything, to the printer early on, knowing it would not be perfect, and may not even work the first time. This way I could learn more, adjust quicker, and not invest all my time into a hypothetical solution that would fail in real life.

One of my final experiences during my time at Kaleidoscope was having the opportunity to present my work to both my internal team, the company, as well as clients. From this experience, I had to craft multiple presentations, each tailored to the audience I was speaking to. During review sessions, the visuals, delivery, and content were all critiqued, and I learned how to best brand and create a thorough and concise presentation. Through numerous presentations at the end of my term, my level of comfort in public speaking in a professional setting rose greatly. I created a confidential presentation to summarize data to a client, a summative presentation over all my semester’s work to illustrate to the company, and an educational presentation that I had the opportunity to present at a local high school for students interested in a STEM career. This was an extremely valuable experience for my professional career and the feedback I received was constructive and positive.

The transformation that this STEP signature project enabled was incredibly valuable for me professionally, personally, and academically. Professionally, it allowed me to jump-start my career with experiences and exposure to the industry that will open doors for me in the future. Personally, I built great relationships with everyone I worked with and grew my skills as a communicator and leader. Academically, my experience empowered me with a new view of my coursework and curriculum that put everything into perspective. In class, I now have a heightened curiosity to learn and understand why things happen and have a better understanding of the types of tools, skills, and concepts that will be most valuable to me in my career post-grad. Overall, my internship at Kaleidoscope was an excellent experience for me and my career, and I am extremely grateful that STEP allowed me such an experience.

Project Description:

My STEP project was an internship at the Franklin County Sheriff’s Department working as an IT Intern. My project responsibilities included troubleshooting software and hardware issues within the building as well as working on setting up and imaging new computers to the network. 

STEP Transformation:

The biggest change in my views of the world came from gaining more experience in a real workplace away from home. I have had internships before, but they were close to home and I was still living with my parents at the time. This opportunity came with the experience of working at a place away from my hometown where I would be on my own and that experience is valuable. I think I understand more about myself in how I want to live and what kinds of things I will look for when searching for a job and a place to live in the future. I also gained more experience working in a STEM-related field, which altered how I view what I want to work in post-graduation. I found that I enjoyed the variety of jobs I was doing and I think my career goals changed as a result. I hope to work in a job more focused on creativity and solving different types of problems rather than something with more repetition. Overall, I had a very positive experience that impacted how I view my future both professionally and personally.

What influenced me:

The biggest influence on me was the new job experience I got while at work. I got new experience working on software and hardware solutions for computers and my technical skills improved over time. I think the most important skill I gained while working was imaging computers to the company network, as this helped me understand how a network is set up at a typical company. Skills like this will transfer to any work environment I am put in during my career.

Another influence that influenced my viewpoint is the nature of working managing day-to-day problems in an IT office. Most of the issues are caused by different sources and being able to diagnose the problem is a more diverse job experience than I was expecting before starting. I think the experience of not knowing 100% what to expect each day kept the work interesting and made me feel like I could keep learning more for a long time. This influence led me to want to pursue a job with a relatively undefined daily schedule over time. Going forward, I believe I will hope to find a job specifically working on design, whether that be hardware or software, in Electrical or Computer Engineering.

A final influence this experience gave me was the professionalism and independence of the job. I felt this internship greatly increased how well I can mesh and succeed in an office environment. I was able to get along with my coworkers and superiors as they taught me the ins and outs of the job, as well as be able to manage other employees asking for assistance over the phone. This customer service taught me how to work through issues and help explain computer issues to someone with less knowledge than me. The experience will stick with me and will help me grow as a professional in future jobs. These skills can even help me in other scenarios such as job interviews or real-world communication.

Why is this valuable to my life?

The most important reason why this experience is valuable to me is the professional experience I gained from it, both to improve my work experience and work skills. I gained more professional experience which will help me find other jobs using this job as a base experience level. Secondly, I have learned new things that I can use at other jobs. These technical skills are important as they make me a more well-rounded candidate for future positions requiring IT skills. Finally, this job provided me with more knowledge of what kind of field I want to go into, specifically one in Electrical Engineering rather than IT or Software Development. All in all, this experience helped build my professional future and will be very valuable as I look for jobs after graduation.

1. My project consisted of interning at the Center for Design and Manufacturing Excellence during the fall semester. During this time, I worked with clients creating graphics, designing products, and 3D printing items. I researched, prototyped, and designed multiple different items for different companies throughout my internship.

2. Being able to take part in this internship, I learned a lot about the world outside of college. I learned how to be on time and to get things done, how to interact with other adults and what to do and not to do. I learned that you must be diligent and on top of things constantly. I also learned that I am ready for the real world. This internship showed me a glimpse of what is to come and what to expect.

3. One relationship that led to the transformation previously discussed was with the people from Muster. I helped them visualize a portable medical tent that they invented. They were extremely nice and it was one of my first experiences in the working world. It was very rewarding to bring their ideas into fruition. 

Some activities that led to these transformations were learning about different technologies that CDME has. I learned a lot about additive manufacturing as well as milling, and different ways of producing products. At CDME they have a lot of different machines that I had the opportunity to learn how to use. One that was particularly interesting was the Yaskawa robots, they are robot arms that can be programmed to do many different functions. I learned how to use them and I also created some diagrams and literature on how they are being used at CDME. 

Another activity that I partook in was getting my work published in a scientific journal, which was super cool. I helped create a graphic and write the process that CDME uses in conjunction with The James medical center. We get scanned files of patients’ mandibles, 3D print them, clean them up, then they are used to see what needs to be done in surgery. This allows for a much better chance of success and if hardware needs to be used, this allows for the hardware to fit perfectly into the patients mouth.

4. This change matters significantly because I am going to be going into the real world soon and too get this type of insight now was invaluable. I learned how to work with different clients, hit deadlines, and be courteous in a work enviroment. It matters because it was very eyeopening and allowed me to see what is to come and to learn a lot about how this type of business works.

 My STEP signature project was centered on my internship at Charter Communications as a data analyst. During my time at Charter, I constructed a model that investigated internet speeds across the company’s footprint and identified areas of concern. Additionally, I participated in an internship wide hackathon with a group of interns. The objective of the hackathon was to develop a new product for Charter to better serve underserved communities in the footprint.

Coming into my internship, I was already interested in the idea of working with data. However, I was not sure what that looked like or what I would want it to look like – the internship was eye opening in this regard. Throughout my college experience, I had always assumed that I would go into policy related fields as an economics and international studies double major. But as I took more and more classes, I grew unhappy with the future that awaited me in those roles. The politicking of all of it seemed exhausted, the give and the take, and small steps – I knew I would hate it. The issue was I couldn’t really see myself doing anything else, and honestly I still can’t. My internship, and a few other extra-curricular activities, I realized I could still be part of the policy processes through an avenue I had not considered before – data, specifically data science. 

In my internship I worked with data towards the end of the data cycle. This means light cleaning, visualization, and analysis. As a data analyst, my role was to be a medium between the data experts and the business experts. While I enjoyed this work, I wanted to be more part of the data process, I wanted to be the data expert who sourced the data and uncovered its patterns from the very beginning. This internship, the work and people it exposed me to, was instrumental to my decision to pursue a Masters of Science in  Data Science post graduation from tOSU.

At the start of my internship, my manager introduced me to the new project his team was developing. The premise was to examine latency across Charter’s network and develop a plan to target areas of concern, with higher latencies than expected. Latency is just a measure of how long it takes data to get from its source to its target. I was tasked with the development of a preliminary model to measure latency across the network, and have the model identify areas with higher latencies than expected/desired. 

In the development of the model I worked with SQL, R, and Excel using data analysis skills I had learned in my coursework and I was taught by my manager and mentor in my internship. I really enjoyed what I was learning through my internship and wanted to get more involved with more advanced statistical softwares. After a conversation with my mentor, he offered to show me some tools for analysis in Python, which was unfamiliar to me. This was my first exposure to programming, although very simple, I was really interested in the process and the application of coding in data. This experience drove me to take an introductory programming class this past fall, and the subsequent class this semester. 

Another component of my STEP internship was an internship wide hackathon. We were broken up into groups of 6-7 interns and given three problem statements to choose from and address over the course of our internship. My group selected a problem statement that tasked us with developing a new product for the company that better served the underserved communities in the footprint. Pulling from internal data, we identified pockets of the network that featured lower internet speeds, which we defined as less than 200 Mbps. We developed on top of the existing idea of an internet cafe. These would be placed in areas that struggled with attaining higher internet speeds, and would have free top speeds internet, and feature other key Charter products. Additionally, for those visitors of the cafe who were already Charter customers would receive additional perks. Working with a group of other interns who I genuinely shared nothing in common with beyond working for the same company was a really enlightening experience. I learned how to communicate better in a group I did not personally connect to, and how to sustain my ideas throughout the development of a project. My hackathon experience helped me learn how to navigate in a professional setting and attain an idea of the types of teams I would want to be involved with in a career post-graduation.

At the start of my internship, my manager introduced me to the new project his team was developing. The premise was to examine latency across Charter’s network and develop a plan to target areas of concern, with higher latencies than expected. Latency is just a measure of how long it takes data to get from its source to its target. I was tasked with the development of a preliminary model to measure latency across the network, and have the model identify areas with higher latencies than expected/desired. 

In the development of the model I worked with SQL, R, and Excel using data analysis skills I had learned in my coursework and I was taught by my manager and mentor in my internship. I really enjoyed what I was learning through my internship and wanted to get more involved with more advanced statistical softwares. After a conversation with my mentor, he offered to show me some tools for analysis in Python, which was unfamiliar to me. This was my first exposure to programming, although very simple, I was really interested in the process and the application of coding in data. This experience drove me to take an introductory programming class this past fall, and the subsequent class this semester. 

Another component of my STEP internship was an internship wide hackathon. We were broken up into groups of 6-7 interns and given three problem statements to choose from and address over the course of our internship. My group selected a problem statement that tasked us with developing a new product for the company that better served the underserved communities in the footprint. Pulling from internal data, we identified pockets of the network that featured lower internet speeds, which we defined as less than 200 Mbps. We developed on top of the existing idea of an internet cafe. These would be placed in areas that struggled with attaining higher internet speeds, and would have free top speeds internet, and feature other key Charter products. Additionally, for those visitors of the cafe who were already Charter customers would receive additional perks. Working with a group of other interns who I genuinely shared nothing in common with beyond working for the same company was a really enlightening experience. I learned how to communicate better in a group I did not personally connect to, and how to sustain my ideas throughout the development of a project. My hackathon experience helped me learn how to navigate in a professional setting and attain an idea of the types of teams I would want to be involved with in a career post-graduation.

While I’m not on the exact same path and I am headed in a similar direction to what I originally planned, this internship really helped me further understand what I would like to spend my future doing. I know I am definitely interested in working in a data-centeric role, even in a professional environment. While I did enjoy my data-orinented classes in my coursework, I was never positive if I would like the professional translation and application of that knowledge. The internship cleared up my confusion about data in the professional world. The work I did, coupled with guidance from and conversations with my mentors and manager, was a strong factor in my decision to apply for a MS in Data Science.

I was a direct sales intern with the insurance company Anthem inc. My role there was to answer incoming potential client calls, then I took down their basic information and sent them to the correct department. 

Through this experience I learned what a remote position would entail and how inter departmental communication is key. I found that the team I had, allowed me to feel comfortable asking questions and being able to better communicate information to the potential client. I also learned that while insurance may not be for me career-wise I do want to continue working in sales because I enjoyed explaining information to clients and helping through a stressful process. I think that, that is a key aspect to sales that people can forget about; treating the client like a friend and teaching them while selling to them. 

While my job was a pretty basic internship; the training was extensive and allowed our group to be more cohesive. Throughout the experience my training supervisor remained in contact with us and set up group chats with people from different departments so that we could communicate questions and concerns. This not only led to it being easier to ask questions and communicate efficiently. But, it also allowed us to become closer by sharing funny interactions, asking about eachothers day, and sending nice messages- this was nice since we were not in-person it still made us feel like we knew each other. 

There was also an aspect where all our calls were audited throughout the experience. This is where a superior would randomly review our calls for the day and then grade us based on a rubric and would leave comments with constructive criticism. At first, I did not like this part of the internship because I was not doing very well on the grading even though I was doing what I learned during training. But it was a key aspect, since it forced me to reach out to my supervisor and ask for help and guidance. After doing so, my scores went up tremendously and I started getting perfect on almost all my calls. I learned that it is ok to reach out for help and not to feel embarrassed when struggling. 

This job allowed me to gain over the phone customer service experience. This internship took place as call levels rose for the open enrollment for the coming 2022 year. Our call levels rose from 15 calls per shift to 60 calls per shift and we had to be able to manage all these calls as the first point of contact. It could be stressful getting people to the right department because usually they did not know what they needed and we had to go quickly to get to all the calls and so that the people could meet their enrollment deadlines. I found this to be rewarding because I had to be personable and keep clients calm while also navigating calls. 

This transformation was significant to me because it taught me that while I do like helping people; I do not like insurance. My favorite part of the job was talking to the clients and getting to know them, and I loved being able to help them during a stressful time. But I did not like learning about insurance or the process of getting insurance. While I do think working an internship is beneficial to see if you like the career- it is helpful to learn what career path you do not want to go down. I plan to use the phone skills and data collection skills for future sales and employment opportunities. I may not have been able to find my future job in insurance but I do want to continue working in sales and helping clients find products that suit them and their lifestyle. 

CBJ STEP Pic 2

CBJ STEP Picture

STEP Post-Project Reflection

Allie Kenny

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.

I decided to use my STEP funds to help me be the Columbus Blue Jackets Marketing intern. My main responsibilities included assisting with gameday activations, develop and execute marketing plans that targeted different demographics including millennial- young professionals and college students, and research and implement ways to increase fan engagement on the concourse for special theme nights or recognitions.

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.

Something that I began understanding about myself because of this internship is that I must have confidence/believe in myself and my abilities. I think something that has held me back in the past is my lack of self confidence in the ideas I have. I began to realize that there is a reason I was chosen to be CBJ’s intern and as a part of my job I must share my opinions. Once I began to have confidence in the ideas I was sharing, it became much easier to excel in my position. Overall, I learned that having the confidence to speak up and share my ideas is what will make me successful in a marketing role.

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.

This internship has helped me realize that I need to be confident in my ideas and abilities as a marketer. In the beginning of this internship, I was very timid and afraid of sharing any ideas I had out of the fear of being wrong or having my superiors think I’m unqualified to be there. Shortly into the internship, I was given the opportunity to plan a potential ticket program for young professionals. I was told minimal information, such as the target age and told to research and develop a plan for these potential people. After lots of research I suggested the plan for a “CBJ YoPro” should be of a membership/subscription with additions such as the ability to received seat upgrades, drink vouchers, and special giveaways.

I presented my ideas and research findings to my boss to which he responded, “this is how I know I chose the right intern”. This was a huge confidence booster for me and made me realize that I need to be more confident in myself and my abilities moving forward. I don’t think I would have been able to change my outlook on this if it wasn’t for my mentor, Chris. He made it his mission to help me become the best intern I could possibly be. He constantly encouraged me and challenged me to think in a way I didn’t think I could.  He also made it very easy for me to ask for feedback/questions on things then receive positive constructive feedback. For example, after I was tasked with coming up with a “CBJ YoPro” plan, I laid it out in a word document and Chris and I went through it together so I could get feedback. In any situation where I was able to think creatively or take on a project as my own, I was able to ask any questions I needed and receive feedback at the end of it.

Being able to work on this project and then get feedback from it also showed me that I was on the right track and the ideas I had were very good ones. This whole process of him challenging me with a task, letting me work on it and take ownership of it, then giving me constructive feedback has made me able to be much more confident in all the work I do.

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.

I think this internship had taught me how valuable being confident in myself is. I truly believe you can’t accomplish much if you’re not confident in yourself. This experience solidified my desire to work in the marketing department of a professional sports team because I am more confident than ever in my ability to be successful in that role. I loved the pace of the environment I was in. I loved how team-oriented the marketing team was at CBJ and is something I’m looking forward to in a future employer.

STEP Post-Project Reflection Prompts As you may recall from your STEP Signature Project Proposal, your project was designed to foster transformational learning—that is, learning that challenged you personally and helped you gain broader and deeper understandings of yourself, others, and the world around you. Please address the following prompts to help you reflect on your experiences following the completion of your STEP Signature Project; please give careful and critical thought to your responses.

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.

              My step project was an internship through the CPR Wexner Medical Center internship program. I was one of the coordinators for the program this year and helped lead the new interns. I coordinated and lead the meetings while also doing other duties to help the program. Overall the programs goal is to teach people hand only CPR and we do this by going around to clubs, schools and other events and give demonstrations on CPR.

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.

              My step signature project helped me be more comfortable being in a leading role. I was a coordinator for the internship and had to teach the new interns how the program worked. I have never been a natural leader but through this program I have been able to practice being one. I have also been able to gain valuable social and organization skills. Having to coordinate a whole program gave me the challenge of doing many tasks at once while also making sure everyone else in the program was doing their job. Overall this program has helped me grow as a person in many ways and helped show me what I am capable of.

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.

              One event in this program that lead to the change in my leadership skills is having to lead the meetings for the program. I had to plan what each meeting was going to be about, as well as coordinate with speakers to come to the meetings to educate the interns on various topics pertaining to medicine. During the meetings or events I had to speak in front of a lot of people about CRP and other topics about medicine. This took me out of my comfort zone since I am not a naturally good at public speaking. Now that I have had a lot of practice at it I am more comfortable speaking in front of a crowd.

Another experience I have gained through this internship is working with a team. I am one of four coordinators in the program and we worked as a team to lead the program. We were advised by Dr. Panchal and worked with him to lead the program. Through this I learned to get better at working with a team and this quality will help me in my future. Not only did I learned teamwork skills but also made connections with the people I worked with the will help me in my professional career.

Overall, many events and relationships in this program helped better me as a person. It not only will help in my future professional endeavors but my personal ones as well. I believe this program was the best fit for me to do my STEP project one and went very well.

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 change was definitely valuable to my life in both the personal and professional aspects. I want to become a physician’s assistant in the future and will need valuable skills this program gave me. This program gave me the social skills I will need to talk to and care for patients. It also gave me great leadership and time management skills I will need work in the hospital setting. I also got the chance to work in a team during this program which is a skill I will need in the real world. When I eventually work in the hospital setting I will have to work with many people like nurses and doctors to help patients. Overall, this program gave me valuable experiences that helped me grow as a person.

1. Please provide a brief description of your STEP Signature Project.

My project was an internship with the Ohio State Men’s Basketball team as a student manager. This involved me in nearly all facets of the program’s day-to-day operations, working alongside our coaches, players, and other managers.

2. What about your understanding of yourself, your assumptions, or your view of the world changed/transformed while completing your STEP Signature Project?

I have experienced so much professional and personal growth through my time with the program. I’ve also come to better understand many of the challenges that are present for college athletes, and that it’s not all glitz and glamour like some outsiders expect. The experience has given me more confidence in my abilities to lead and communicate. The ability to recognize the humanity in others – no matter how famous or happy they seem – is something else that I’ve developed through this time.

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? 

My experiences through this STEP Signature Project have been exceptional.

One experience that took place through the fall was getting to help with recruiting visits. Welcoming high schoolers and their families onto our campus for weekends was an extravagantly planned event. Everything is so well-thought out and intentional, from what snacks are in hotel rooms to each individual PowerPoint presentation. A coach asked me to assist him with one important recruit’s presentations – our afternoon of planning together was memorable, especially since he committed to Ohio State only days later. These visits also allowed me the opportunity to interact with strangers, grow in my social skills, and learn to sell what competitive advantages we have here. This will be applicable if I decide to pursue a career in business.

Another experience that was beneficial was all the travel I was able to do with the internship. Being on team travel to Nashville, Cincinnati, Fort Myers, State College, Lincoln, and Bloomington through the course of the semester was a blast. Again, the extensive planning stands out to me. I was involved in orchestrating the logistics and travel of 30+ people on each trip and did what I could to allow them to be successful. These trips forced me to grow in adaptability and composure, as sometimes plans went awry, but I needed to be ready to respond.

Lastly, the day-to-day experience of being around high-level athletics each day has been memorable. Life isn’t all the media makes it out to be. While the travel accommodations are luxurious and the free clothes plentiful, this doesn’t protect famous athletes from the same struggles everyone else faces. I was around guys for relationship breakups, illnesses, deaths in the family, and everyday stress. While you may see them making highlight plays on ESPN, they have personal lives that have their own challenges. It’s certainly enforced the idea of recognizing everyone’s humanity no matter who they are or what they do.

4. Why is this change/transformation significant or valuable for your life?

These transformations are useful on a personal level and will transcend also to my professional workplace. My interpersonal skills have certainly grown extensively. The internship, which at moments felt like an apprenticeship, has given me access and experience in the professional realm I have interest in. I’ve been able to network and grow in connections if I decide to pursue a career in collegiate athletics. Even if I end up working in a different field, the environment I’ve been exposed to has grown my professional skillset and ability to perform.

I was lucky enough to have gotten the opportunity to intern with the Columbus Blue Jackets. I was a community relations intern, and some of the main projects that I worked on included coordinating pick up and mailing of signed auction items that were won at our home games, sending out donations to organizations that have reached out to us, taking inventory of signed items we have, holding jersey raffles, and sending out prizes to classrooms who utilize our Book Jackets program to encourage their students to read more. This internship was unlike any position I have held before, and I was able to learn a lot about what style of leadership I work well under. My boss is fairly young so she did not have much experience leading others, so it was a learning process for the both of us. I found that I work best by first seeing what needs to be done and how to do it, and then I am much more confident and able to do it on my own. In my past jobs, I have had experiences where bosses will just tell me how to do something rather than show me, and this method did not work as well for my style of learning. I also realized how much working with others around you who are positive and excited to be at work can have an impact on how you feel, and I could genuinely tell that everyone seemed happy to be working there and it made me more excited to go into work and excited to continue learning.

When considering what style of leadership I perform best under, having my boss show me step by step how to do the tasks needed was very helpful to me. She showed me how to use our mail machine and how our auction site works, and these are just a few examples of when I realized that I learn best by physically being there and being shown what to do as opposed to just being told. These may seem like simple tasks but when working in a new setting it is comforting to be confident in my skills, and learning by walking through how to do these things helps with that. It is obviously different for some people during this time because of COVID-19, so I am grateful to have the opportunity to go into the office and learn this way because I would not have had the same experience and have had these realizations if that were not the case. 

Events like our equipment sales, jersey raffles, and a pen-pal program with a local elementary school definitely led to my recognition of how much of a positive influence a work environment can have on my personal life. As I mentioned, going to and hosting these events with my coworkers has been a great way to get to know them more and made me excited to go into work. It gave me a chance to get to know some of my coworkers better because I had more interactions with them through these events than I would have otherwise. Dreading going into the office can definitely take a toll on one’s personal mental health, so it was nice to be able to look forward to going to work and look forward to events like these. I liked going in to work on the regular days for this internship, but these events made it even more enjoyable. 

Aside from the events, the people around me affected me in a positive way as well. People like my supervisor Ivy and the other employees in our department, Joe, Jason, Andrew, and Katie, were very approachable and I never felt afraid to ask them a question or ask them for help. Having these people in my corner as I continue to learn and grow in the professional world is definitely something I am grateful for, and they show me how I can have fun at work while also being productive. They are all good friends and watching their interactions made me consider how a company is represented by their people, so when I am interviewing and applying to jobs for my future I should see what the dynamic of the people are and see if it is a friendly environment like this one was. 

These changes are valuable to me when I consider the fact that I am only 21 years old and I still have so much left to learn. They help me realize what situations will provide the best outcome for myself in a professional work setting, and because I have a full career ahead of me I can use this knowledge to my advantage. In the future, I want to work for a professional sports team full time and this internship experience has helped me identify the type of company and people that I want to work for and the type of leaders that I will work well under. It has also helped me determine what type of leader I would like to be, because I want to be one similar to my boss. She always expresses how much she appreciates my time and effort and encourages me to ask questions, both things I am going to do when I become a leader because I know how meaningful and helpful they can be.