My STEP project was a creative marketing internship where I was responsible for content planning, creating, and scheduling internally and for our clients. I managed the email marketing campaigns for our company by creating and sending out emails. I worked on-site with clients independently to film and photograph content for their marketing strategy.

While working at EGC I gained an abundance of knowledge working with our multiple clients in various industries. The majority of our clients were small businesses similar to the one I was working at. Seeing how much these small businesses have to invest to keep their business going is eye opening. I’ve definitely realized that I no longer wish to work for such a small company as they tend to lack structure and stability that are often taken for granted when working for a larger company. Even though I love the creative freedom I was offered I realized it wasn’t worth the sacrifice of a larger, more established company’s structure. While I learned an immense amount working for a small company, I was faced with setbacks during this internship that I don’t believe would have happened if it wasn’t such a small company. Additionally, I realized I like being able to work on a team with other associates. At EGC, I was only able to sometimes collaborate with the boss, but a majority of my assignments and work were independent. Overall, I do feel like I have a changed perspective and understanding of myself, assumptions, and my views through my experiences at EGC.

From the very beginning of my STEP internship I learned a lot about working for such a small company. Facing many challenges, I learned how to become more in tune with myself and my goals for the future. One of my first challenges I faced was having my hours cut by the company, EGC. Due to unforeseen circumstances, they needed to reduce them. This left me with considerably less hours and income than I thought I would be receiving for the summer. However, I realized that stability is not guaranteed in smaller businesses. I didn’t let this stop me from pushing myself. I found that this experience was actually pivotal for my career as it finally allowed me to open myself up to getting a second job. As a result, I was able to earn a job in retail this summer which was something I’ve always wanted to do.

Aside from the challenging start, I was really able to see the creative side of marketing through this internship. Getting to create content and have my creative ideas encouraged was refreshing. When working in a small company I juggled many various tasks and had to be creative with coming up with solutions and suggestions. Brainstorming ways to generate more traffic for EGC and our clients was key. Creating and implementing creative ways to engage consumers to want to take part in EGC and the small businesses we worked with showed me how much I love having creative freedom. It also helps me as a person to become more decisive and a better creative director when planning and developing content. 

At EGC, I had the opportunity to work with multiple different companies that were from a  variety of industries and businesses, ranging from healthcare to retail. I learned that I love working within marketing, and more specifically, retail. Being able to market a tangible product and something that I myself am passionate about, plus, I love fashion so it only strengthened my desire to continue with fashion and retail in the future. All these experiences have helped shape me into who I am now and what I aspire to be and do in my future.

I think this experience was very important for my academic, personal and professional goals looking towards the future. Academically, I had the opportunity to use the knowledge I have gained in marketing classes in the real world. More importantly, I got to see how marketing interacts and performs in the real world. Seeing the behind the scenes of how EGC went about onboarding clients and the marketing strategy process the company used was very insightful. Personally, I think the challenges thrown at me helped prove to myself how strong, resilient, and dedicated I am to doing what’s best for me. This matters because in the future I am going to face even tougher challenges and setbacks, but having these experiences shows me I can do hard things and get through those difficult moments. Professionally I realized I don’t want to be an employee at such a small company because it’s not worth the instability and lack of structure. However, I do know that I need some creative freedom in my future career. I am truly grateful for my experience and hope to take everything I learned and use it to my advantage in the future.  

   Over this past summer I spent 10 weeks interning at Crowe LLP in Columbus which is an Accounting, Financial Technology firm working as an Information Technology Assurance position. I spent the summer building relationships with IT departments of our clients which were primarily banks throughout Ohio, Kentucky, and Pennsylvania. Earlier in July I was able to travel onsite to a healthcare payment processing client to conduct walkthroughs in-person firsthand.

   Throughout the past 10 weeks I felt that I grew exponentially into my professional career. Quickly I was thrown into a professional environment where I was collaborating with professionals that many times were twice my age. I came to the realization that the majority of the time I will not be the most experienced or knowledgeable person in a meeting. This is an intimidating idea, but it is valuable to sit back and open my ears to those senior staff and managers to absorb as much of their expertise as possible. Over time I also came to realize that I may not be as experienced as everybody else, but in the age of technology, I am a young mind that is up to date on new trends such as Machine learning or AI and I can provide valuable insight to new products or topics that can provide creative solutions to problems that impact the whole team. 

   My view of the world has also narrowed to that of an Information Technology professional. Even after my internship, the client assurance model has altered my viewpoint to notice the details of IT and Cybersecurity of any vendor or establishment I walk into to this day. Continuously working on SOC reports for over 2 months, I feel that I have a stronger understanding on vulnerabilities of computer systems. When choosing which companies, I choose to utilize their products, I have a greater tool box of certificates or standards I look for in order to protect my own personal data and cyber safety.

   Interactions: One interaction that was especially meaningful occurred at a quarterly outing for our business unit. Several senior managers had a conversation with me explaining how the IT Assurance practice used to operate and report on paper before the advancement of technology. They continued to detail the transformation and adoption of technology. We continued to talk about how prevalent data breaches and cyber-attacks have become as technology continued to grow and how they have impacted other accounting firms in our market. Large data breaches such as the Solar Winds or MOVEit attacks came up in conversation and influenced me to conduct research and grew my interest and expertise on cybersecurity.

   Relationships: Over the past 10-weeks I was able to gather some valuable mentorship that has positively impacted my view on the professional business world. My first week I was paired with a peer liaison who sat next to me and was able to assist any immediate questions that arose. Every other week I was able to have a sit-down with the acting partner of our business unit. The partner has spent the past 15 years at Crowe and has valuable insight on the transformation of the firm and how he was able to adapt his job responsibilities in order to work his way up to upper management and beyond.

   Activities: As a part of this internship, there was a week segment dedicated toward a country wide intern/new hire case study competition. I was paired up with several other interns and new hires within the same Columbus office as myself. We collaborated to research and understood the implications of artificial intelligence and how it can influence fraud within the world of accounting. I was intimidated to be paired up with several other interns & new hires with different backgrounds as myself, many who had a more extensive accounting background than myself. Although I felt uncomfortable in this group work setting, I felt that I still had a valuable skillset to bring forward to help the team.

   I believe as I graduate from college and enter the working force within the Information Technology space these experiences, mentors and activities provide great value and influence on which sector I want to enter. I also believe they provide me some insight into the world of information that I may not learn from a textbook or from an introductory college course. Overall, I feel that an openness to sit back and listen to mentors and an open mind to learning is as valuable as ever when entering a new job working with coworkers of different ages and backgrounds. 

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

My STEP Signature Project was a summer internship experience with the United Parcel Service (UPS). I spent 12 weeks with UPS as an Industrial Engineering Intern located in the West Chester (PA) Customer Service Center.

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

Before starting my internship at UPS, my original thought of the company centered around individuals delivering packages in their famous ‘Browns’ out of a package car. As my internship progressed through the summer and my knowledge of UPS flourished, I found a greater sense of appreciation for the company as a singular unit. I learned about the importance of an industrial engineer in progressing and simplifying the systems within an operation. I was also able to acquire knowledge surrounding individuals in HR and sales at UPS, and how without them, there would be no customers to deliver to. Without one of these key pieces, a Fortune 500 Company like UPS would not be able to function.

In general, I gained a greater appreciation for those around me. I had a great team of industrial engineers at UPS, and I would not claim to say that I would consider them to be my friends! I also grasped the concept of the importance of teamwork and collaboration. This idea is one key takeaway from my summer that I will utilize in my final year at Ohio State.

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 summer experience and takeaways from my time at UPS exceeded my original expectations greatly. The team that I had surrounding me, specifically my manager and mentor, provided opportunities for me to learn more about UPS and myself as a young engineer. The experiences that I was able to take part in over the past 12 weeks included engineering projects, travel, and meeting lots of UPSers outside of the engineering department.

My favorite experience that I had this summer was participating in a ‘Ride Along’ with a package driver named Brian. I was able to get dressed in the world famous ‘Browns’ and help Brian in his day-to-day tasks. More importantly, I was able to learn more about Brian, his job as a delivery driver for UPS, and meet amazing customers in Norristown, Pennsylvania. One of my favorite aspects from my long day in a package car was that Brian and I did not stop chatting for the entire shift, which was nearly nine hours!

My summer with UPS allowed me to visit multiple different facilities and make greater connections outside of my immediate team. Within my 12 weeks with the company, I visited six different UPS facilities, with four being in Pennsylvania and two in my home state of Delaware. I had the privilege of stepping onto a Boeing 747 at the UPS Air Hub in Philadelphia that was bound for Germany! I was also able to interact with Autonomous Guided Vehicles (AGVs) that help UPS loaders in their daily tasks.

I also built great relationships with my fellow interns and IE team throughout the summer, which I believe contributed to my transformation discussed above. I had weekly meetings where I chatted with the interns about their projects and daily tasks. I was also able to create non-work bonds with the interns, and even spark some conversation about anything from our hometowns to the rivalries between our various colleges. On a global perspective within the company, I was able to participate in a ’12 Questions Video’ with an individual from UPS corporate. This about-me style video was sent in the Quarterly IE Newsletter to all UPS Industrial Engineers around the world!

In a larger picture, all these experiences together provided me with a great summer experience. I made new connections within my industry of choice, learned more about engineering practices in real-world scenarios, and observed various systems and operations. I plan to utilize each experience that I had this summer in my final year at Ohio State within social and school situations. I will use my newfound comfort in asking questions within my various classes. Having a successful summer with UPS allowed me to have the opportunity to go back as a full-time employee next summer, which is a great opportunity that I plan to evaluate over the coming weeks.

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

Through my summer with UPS, I experienced both career and personal development that I will cherish forever. A future academic goal of mine is to graduate and be able to attend graduate school to obtain a Master of Business Administration. I plan to fulfill this dream by using my hard-work ethic that was further developed over the summer. The connections I made this summer will further my personal goal of expanding my professional network. I met many kinds of people with different professions this summer, which I plan to stay in contact with throughout my career. In general, I learned about myself as a person in the workplace and was able to accomplish projects that I could have only dreamed about before the beginning of my rotation. I will take this newfound confidence in myself to Ohio State for my senior year.

STEP REFELCTION:

Question 1:

My STEP project was focused on my 12 week internship at Huntington National Bank. During my internship, I focused on analyzing deposit rate interest exceptions, where I evaluated customer accounts to identify potential pricing alternatives. I engaged in negotiations with bankers to secure favorable rates, authorized rate adjustments, and systematically implemented rate changes on customer accounts. Additionally, I played a key role in maintaining internal rate codes, collaborating with pricing managers to execute changes for various deposit products, including introductory rates, promotional offers, and special interest codes.

In a collaborative effort with a team of 6 interns, I contributed to the Huntington Innovation Project, addressing the challenge of striking a balance between innovation and risk management in response to competitive pressures from fintech and non-traditional banking. Within a 12-week timeframe, I successfully presented our project’s insights to the executive leadership, showcasing our solution for navigating these complex industry issues.

Question 2:

My internship completely changed how I saw things. Even though I was studying finance in college, I didn’t know much about the banking industry as a whole. It was really cool to learn about how many different roles in a bank work together to achieve the same goal. I loved being part of this real-world experience, contributing, and learning at the same time. It made me realize how interesting and interconnected the banking world is. Working at Huntington allowed me to see and experience first-hand what company culture and values truly mean. I was able to interact with many executive leaders and mentors throughout the process. By interacting with these mentors and leaders I was able to see a trickle down effect of the true value that Huntington embraces.

Question 3:

During my internship, one pivotal event that greatly impacted my transformation was the company-wide initiative known as the Pelotonia. From the moment I joined, I heard enthusiastic discussions about this annual event where all employees come together to ride bikes and contribute to fundraising for cancer research at The Ohio State University Wexner Hospital. Witnessing the passion and dedication of my colleagues towards a larger societal cause was truly inspiring. This event played a significant role in reshaping my perspective, emphasizing the importance of collective efforts and instilling a sense of purpose beyond individual roles.

Interactions within my team on the third floor also contributed to my growth. Our team was newly formed, bringing together individuals from various age groups. Engaging with colleagues of different generations taught me valuable lessons in respect, effective communication, and bridging large age gaps. This experience improved my networking skills, making it a lot easier me to connect and converse with people of diverse backgrounds and ages. I feel that this was one of the most beneficial takeaways as it has been super helpful as I am applying for full time jobs now.

The relationships I formed during my internship, particularly with mentors, were really important in changing how I saw things. One mentor that stood out was the CFO of the bank. Even though she held a top position, she was easy to talk to and really down-to-earth. Learning from her showed me how it’s essential to stay humble even when you’re successful. Her advice and friendly attitude stayed with me, reminding me that staying grounded is crucial, no matter how far you go in your career.

Question 4:

The changes I experienced during my internship matter a lot because they connect what I’m learning in finance to real-life banking. It really puts into perspective of what we learn in school truly is used within the real world. Personally, I’ve learned how teamwork can create a big impact, especially through things like the Pelotonia initiative where everyone comes together for much deeper and important cause. These changes will guide my future career too. The idea of staying humble even in important roles and being able to talk to people of different ages are lessons I’ll take with me. Learning from mentors, like the CFO, showed me how to be a good leader by being down-to-earth. These changes will help me make good connections in the finance industry.

This past summer, I had the opportunity to intern with UPMC in Pittsburgh, PA. My internship was within the HR Department, and I was specifically assigned to the HR Health Services Operations Division. Throughout the ten weeks, my main job was to create a Coffee Chat presentation from the ground up for HR Directors and Managers for all 40 of the hospitals at UPMC. I also complied reports for HR managers, shadowed HR departments at different hospitals, and advanced my skills in MS Excel, Word, and PowerBI.  

While completing my STEP Project, my understanding of Human Resources changed drastically. Most people when they hear HR think about employee drama that needs to be resolved, and I honestly thought that at first too, when coming into this internship. However, that opinion of mine quickly changed as I began my position with UPMC. I started to learn about all the different sectors of HR. For example, there is compensation, payroll, benefits, HRIS, employee relations, recruitment, talent management, learning and development, project management, data analysis, and many other divisions. I quickly realized that there was way more to HR than most people realize. This relieved my concerns because I did not want to solely focus on employee drama. The other nice thing was that at UPMC there are individual HR teams at all of the hospitals then there was an HR team at the corporate office that dealt with more project work and data analysis. I was assigned to the corporate office division. I was grateful that I was on this team because it introduced my interest in project work.  

I solely worked in the corporate office on the HR Health Services HR Team. My team was responsible for supporting the HR teams at the hospitals operationally. The HR teams at the hospitals are very busy supporting the leaders and employees that provide direct and indirect patient care, and we strived to make their jobs and work as smooth as we can, through various HR initiatives and projects. I was glad that I was assigned to this team because it allowed me to see a whole other side of Human Resources that I did not know existed.  

Another major assumption of mine that changed after completing my internship was that you must do one specific job with the major you have. Before my internship, I felt very lost on what I wanted to do with my career. In all of my psychology classes, everyone said they wanted to become a clinical psychologist. I said I wanted to do the same thing; however, I was not really interested in going to graduate school. I was also concerned if my psychology major would be beneficial or useful in this job field. After talking with various different employees in the HR department, I learned that the major you study in college is not the end all be all. Some people obviously studied Human Resources and planned on going into this field but not everyone wanted to. As I worked with various teams, I also was able to see how psychology was tied into some aspects of HR. For example, learning on how to manage employee interactions, gain a deeper understanding of prospective candidates, and improve employee well-being were just a few ways where I saw psychology tie in.  

Most people that I shadowed and met with at UPMC said that they started in a completely different field than what job they are in now. For example, my manager majored in journalism and is now a Senior HR Project Analyst. This was the case with the majority of people that I talked to. When I went to shadow the individual HR teams at the hospitals, they told me that they were able explore the different divisions of HR and jump around until they found one that they enjoyed the most.  

I am grateful to have completed this STEP Project and have had the opportunity to change my assumptions about Human Resources and what to do with your career. Learning about the different aspects of Human Resources has helped me discover that I would be interested in going into an HR role full-time after graduation. Since there are more divisions of HR other than employee relations, it has been more appealing for me to obtain an HR project management role post-graduation. I also realized that if I were to go into HR, that it would be in Health Services HR. Working at UPMC made me realize that I enjoy being in a clinical environment and that I still could still work corporately. Learning what to do with your major is always stressful, however this internship allowed me to get a better picture of all the possibilities there are.  

Pictured above is myself at the corporate office on my last day of my internship. The picture on the right is of me and another intern at the Ronald McDonald Charity House at Children’s Hospital in Pittsburgh, PA.

This past summer I completed my STEP Signature Project as a Content Development Intern at the Milken Center for Advancing the American Dream (MCAAD) in Washington, D.C. MCAAD is a museum opening its doors in the Spring of 2025, and I was part of the Content Development Team, which consists of those creating and curating the content as well as collections and digital projects, as this museum will greatly utilize interactive technology. While at MCAAD, I worked with various members of the Content Team to produce content that will used throughout the museum, especially on the lower and entrance levels.

Before this summer in D.C., I had never lived outside of Ohio for any extended period of time. I was born and raised in Stow, Ohio, just north of Akron, and then came to Columbus to attend Ohio State. My world view was greatly shaped by my life in Ohio. In D.C., I was exposed to an entire new city, lifestyle, and population of people. I learned what it was like to work and live in a big city. This internship was set up as a nine to five job five days a week, which was something entirely new. This was the first time that I felt like I was really exposed to what life in my career field would look like after college, and I am grateful that I got to use this small window of eight week to learn how to adjust, live, and work in a new place.

I also learned a lot about myself this summer in D.C. I moved to a place where I knew no one and had signed up to live with roommates I had never met or had the chance to interact with before we all arrive at our apartment. I learned to be independent, and I grew much more comfortable with my own presence. I did many things with my new roommates, who I got along with quite well, but I also explored the city alone. I visited many museums and memorials, the Library of Congress, and the Capitol on my own, and I greatly enjoyed these experiences even though I was doing them alone. This summer was a huge time for my own personal growth as well as professional growth.

My interactions with both the Content Team at MCAAD and my roommates were the most influential during my STEP Signature Project this summer. At MCAAD, I was welcomed into a small group of people with various backgrounds all coming together to produce content for an exciting new museum. I got to know some amazing people at MCAAD, and I hope to keep these connections for a long time. I learned very much about my desired career path and my view of the museum world expanded greatly though my exposure to the work of the Content Team at MCAAD. Additionally, my roommates this summer all came from different backgrounds. One of the girls was from Cape Cod, Massachusetts, another from Oxford, Mississippi, and the third form Seattle, Washington. I really enjoyed getting to know them, and this was the first time that I lived with people from places so different from where I am from. I will definitely keep in touch with them.

This summer at MCAAD in Washington D.C. was very helpful for my personal and professional development. I hope to move to a city after college, so this was a great experience for me to learn to adjust to living and working in a city. I got to explore Washington D.C. by myself, with my roommates, and with my friends who came to visit while I was living there. As I come closer to the end of my time in college, it is necessary for me to grow and experience the real world in a new city on my own. Professionally, this summer at MCAAD was my first paid museum internship experience. The past two summers, I had unpaid museum internships that I had close to home, and I learned a great deal from these places, but this summer in D.C., I was able to spend all my time dedicated to the work I was doing at MCAAD. I got to see much of the behind the scenes and story building process of the museum content. I was a part of collections and gained experience working on the collections database. I learned and got to meet various companies who work with museums focusing on digital projects. The technology that MCAAD will use is very modern and will be highly interactive. I am very grateful for the projects and work that I got to be a part of this summer, and I cannot wait to visit MCAAD when they finally open their doors to see the final project. My experience in D.C. this summer is something that I will value because it laid the foundation for me to live and work in a new city. I am now much more confident in my professional and personal abilities that will be necessary for me to succeed after graduating from college.

My STEP Signature Project was a finance internship for Johnson & Johnson’s Medtech business, DePuy Synthes.  In this role, I supported senior financial analysts in sales reporting and gross profit analysis for J&J orthopedic products.  One of my projects during the internship was compiling a document that maps the different SKU numbers for each orthopedic product and variation that DePuy Synthes sells.  Another project was compiling a travel and entertainment expense report model for our NA sales team.

While completing my signature project, a view of the world that changed would have to be the importance of communication in the workplace.  Prior to this internship, my previous internship had been fully remote with the only connections developed were the three within my department.  After accepting my role at J&J, it was stressful to imagine whether my technical skills aligned with what talent they were looking to hire.  I did not want to be demanded to do a job that I did not possess the skill set for.  However, I found that through communication and relationship building, that is how one develops both their business acumen but also their technical skillset.  In other words, by creating relationships with employees at J&J, I was able to grow both my knowledge of the business and the financial knowhow to accomplish what is asked of me.

This importance in communication and relationship building was bred from the culture that J&J cultivates in all of their offices.  Despite being broken up into the MedTech and Pharmaceutical sectors with multiple offices representing each sector, Johnson & Johnson is a big proponent for having their employees develop both their business acumen as well as their network.  Immediately after starting my internship, I was able to set up one on one meetings with each member of the finance department at the Warsaw location.  I was able to learn much about the different aspects of finance at Warsaw that occur for DePuy Synthes.  Leveraging these relationships, I was able to develop the more technical skills required of me in this position that these employees had all used at one point in their careers.

As my internship progressed, I was reaching out to more employees outside of the Warsaw office as well as outside the MedTech sector.  This allowed me to grow my business acumen for J&J as a whole and how the company operates.  In order to turn my internship into a full-time role, it requires knowledge of the general business and displaying the capability to grow and continue one’s curiosity.  An employee is stagnant in their learning when they reduce themselves solely to the projects they’ve been assigned.  It is doubtful to think these relationships would’ve been built if J&J did not promote the importance of opening lines of communication outside of direct projects for interns.  It is also worth noting that this importance stretches to full-time analysts as well.  Even seasoned employees at the company are urged to continue networking with their business partners and younger analysts.  

Being able to communicate with employees my age as well as older analysts proved to be beneficial in mapping out the level of knowledge I should have as an intern.  Many were able to provide advice on career progression within J&J and useful opportunities to look out for both as an intern and full-time employee.  As a result, I could adjust my learning accordingly and tackle side projects as well as educational sessions that could develop me into a more valuable asset to the company.  Without the advice of my colleagues, my internship would not have been as fruitful and I would not have been able to create good corporate habits for life after college.

This change is valuable to my life as it is the crux of career progression.  As a corporate finance employee, I can no longer look at the position as one solely crunching numbers and independent work.  Even if I am not communicating with colleagues on a project, there is still much that they can provide as far as learning goes.  Even developing a relationship with a manager at a different office location could prove to be a good reference when I am looking to switch locations myself.  The learning I can seek out on my own will only help me grow so far, however by having those lines of dialogue with employees it can assist me with one of two avenues.  One of which is personal development, in which learning the aspect of a colleagues life will help me understand what opportunities and ambitions lie outside the workplace.  The other avenue is professional development which can be simplified as skill improvement and career progression.  Learning from my employees will craft the technical skills I need to master the role I’m currently in and starting building a foundation for my next role.  I am also able to learn what opportunities lie at my place of work and can map out chances for promotion or lateral movements.  Whichever the case may be, being educated by co-workers will ultimately provide some level of development in the overall goal to achieve a fulfilling career balanced with an active life outside the workplace.

The summer marketing and sales internship I was able to take part in in Barcelona provided me and a couple other students with an exciting chance to get fully immersed in the business development industry. I worked on a variety of projects as an intern, such as helping to create effective marketing campaigns, conducting market research to find possible clients, and assisting the sales staff in honing pitch techniques. I learned so much from this experience about the importance of marketing and sales collaboration and how they work together to propel business expansion. 

My perceptions have changed dramatically as a result of my summer internship in Barcelona, both personally and in the professional world. I was exposed to a wide range of business procedures and cultural differences while immersed in a lively multinational setting, which deepened my understanding of international trade. Working with coworkers from various backgrounds not only made me more adaptive, but it also demonstrated how cross-cultural collaboration can spur innovation.  

Personally, I felt forced to step beyond of my comfort zone, an experience that gave my love of discovery and adventure new life. I had to navigate a variety of unfamiliar streets, enjoy regional food, and establish connections with people from a variety of cultural backgrounds when I uprooted myself and traveled to a new location. This intense interaction with the unknown helped me develop a strong sense of independence as well as a great spirit of tolerance. A growing sense of confidence helped me get through this transformational time and served as a continual reminder of the wonderful rewards that await those who welcome change with open arms and actively seek out new experiences. 

After my trip to Barcelona, I came home with a deeper understanding of the complex interactions between business dynamics and cultural quirks. The city’s bustling streets served as a living classroom, teaching important lessons on how business and culture interact to form societies and economies. I was inspired by my newfound knowledge to embrace the undiscovered waters of my personal endeavors as well as to progress my career destiny. I am motivated to move forward with a renewed drive to take advantage of every opportunity for advancement, whether it is in the context of my career or the fabric of my own objectives, by the echoes of my Spanish adventure. 

Being of Spanish descent, this STEP signature project allowed me to get more in touch with my heritage. Without the program’s financial support, this would not have been possible. The life lessons I learned while on the journey were innumerable, and I will always treasure the moments I experienced. 

This part of my life serves as an example of the transforming potential of embracing change and walking into the unknown. The journey reignited my enthusiasm for adventure, expanded my horizons, and established an enduring appreciation for the beauty that arises when one accepts the unscripted essence of existence, from the cobblestone alleys of Barcelona to the larger canvas of life itself. As I continue my road, I do it with a heart filled with excitement for the upcoming adventure and an unwavering drive to fully embrace the uncharted contours of the always changing world around me. 

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.

This summer, I was able to participate in a chemical engineering internship in Minneapolis, Mn working for HB Fuller. My main project was classifying new, clean raw materials. My days at work consisted of making batches where I would tweak the batch each day by adding in a different raw material and then would QC each batch to see how they compared to each other.

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.

Going into my summer internship I thought that I wanted to work in R&D when I graduated from college. Doing my internship made me realize that I want to go into another specialization of chemical engineering when I graduate. I did not fully realize all that R&D entailed and it was a little too repetitive for me everyday which I did not enjoy. I am so thankful I completed this internship though as it has helped me narrow down what I want to do after I graduate. I have been transformed in the way that I finally feel like I have a clear path of what I want to do upon completion of my degree in December of 2024.

My internship also helped me realize what kind of work environment I want to be in once I graduate. My company was mid-sized which I think was a great fit for me. My coworkers were also fantastic and that helped shape my view of the workplace in that I understand that your coworkers can make or break a job.

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.

The events and activities that led to the change of me wanting to pursue a different career path post grad was my daily schedule. I would go to work each day and print out a new batch ticket and then spend the next 8 hours making a QCing a batch. I realized this was difficult for me because I discovered I need to be constantly mentally stimulated with new things to do to keep me interested. I found what I was doing was very beneficial to the company, but I need something different when I graduate so I can stay engaged in my work and keep my interest peaked.

Another thing that helped me change my mind about what I want to work in post grad was shadowing people in other positions at my job. I got the amazing opportunity to shadow 3 people in other positions at my job and seeing what their day-to-day life looked like made me realize there are job options out there that would be a better fit for me. There are plenty of positions where each day you are engaging in something new, and it is not repetitive. This was one of the main transforming things I did over the summer as I was able to see first-hand what other positions look like and what kind of work they entail.

The relationships that helped me transform my mind about the kind of work environment I want are the ones I had with my coworkers. My coworkers were so helpful, and I knew I could always go to them if I ever needed help and they would answer my questions without making me feel stupid. They were the most amazing coworkers I could’ve ever asked for. I now know how important enjoying my work environment is because my coworkers made it a great place to go every week for 40 hours.

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 is significant and valuable for my life because I feel more at ease and prepared for the future. By ruling out R&D as something I want to do, I am now able to see myself in other positions in the professional work world and I know what jobs I want to apply for. This change matters and relates to my professional goals as I now have a clear goal of where I want to end up when I graduate. I would like to be a process engineer and solve multiple problems every day. Working in a process engineering role would be a much better fit for me and make me not burn out so easily.

Over the summer, I completed Ohio State’s Washington Academic Internship Program (WAIP). I interned four days a week with the nonprofit organization, the Partnership for Public Service, and took classes both asynchronously and in-person. Finally, I participated in weekly professional development activities as part of the program’s requirements.

Washington DC is a diverse city full of different socioeconomic, racial, age, political and social identities. Individuals come to the area from all over the country and the world, and they all are seeking different opportunities and experiences there. This is especially true in the summer term, where students specifically are looking for internship and academic programs. I had always thought of Washington DC from a political perspective, seeing it only as the nation’s capital. I gained an incredible appreciation for the cultural, historic, and artistic side of the city. Since I spent an entire summer in the city (as opposed to past weekend trips), I was able to fully immerse myself in everything the area has to offer, like museums, local businesses, the professional world, restaurants, festivals, markets, and more. After a summer that truly flew by, I left Washington with a deeper understanding that expanded far beyond just the political side of it.

I learned not only about other people and their backgrounds, but I also learned a lot about myself from both a professional and personal perspective. Since I started realistically thinking about my future educational and career path in high school (and continuing through college), my interests have always aligned with helping people. Originally, I thought this passion would manifest most with running for and/or working within an elected office. After completing my STEP project, I have found this is no longer the case. I still want to be in a career field that directly works with and helps others, but I have a different idea of how this can look in an actual job. I found that I am most interested in helping others identify and develop their passions and connecting them with the necessary resources to act on those passions. From a personal side, I became significantly more confident in myself and my post-graduation plans. This past summer was the first time I have been completely on my own and responsible for my own professional, personal, and social responsibilities and aside from moving to campus, this was the first time I was in as large and as new of an environment as Washington DC. There were several overall experiences that helped lead to these transformations.

First, my internship played a significant role in facilitating the transformation I described above. This position was my first time both working full time and working at a nonprofit organization. I now have a more in depth understanding of how a nonprofit operates internally, receives funding, decides what opportunities to pursue, and interacts with external stakeholders. I have seen firsthand how a nonprofit organization works with both the public and for-profit sectors. Seeing this interaction, I have learned how interconnected and interdependent the world of public service is. As a public policy and business student, I was also able to make real-life connections with and practice concepts and ideas that have been part of my education for the past three years. Although I originally assumed most of public service work and social advocacy was facilitated through government roles, I now have a better understanding of all the different actors that are involved with them. I also have expanded my view of different career paths that may not be directly government related but still have a public service goal.

Additionally, Washington DC has a huge professional culture of what are called “coffee chats”. These are short, informal meetings where you have a conversation about things like someone’s background, their work experiences, education paths, and similar topics. The end goal is to learn more about a position you may want to hold and to facilitate a connection that you can utilize in the future. These coffee chats were another significant factor in my professional growth during the summer. I now have a more realistic view of the variability of career and graduate school paths. Although it seems like common sense, it can be hard to internalize the idea that everyone follows a unique path when people are always asking college students what their post-graduation plans are and judging their responses. It was incredibly helpful to speak with individuals, both at my office and Ohio State alumni that I met through WAIP, who were able to find an outlet for their passions even though they all had different educational and careers paths. The coffee chats that stand out the most to me are the ones I had with my organization’s federal workforce team. This team focuses on career services, and they work with college students and young professionals to help them understand the benefits of working in public service positions and then connect them with the necessary resources to be successful. Speaking with these individuals is what initially sparked my interest in pursuing this type of work after graduation. In general, I also have a significantly more broad of a view of what it means for someone to be in a position that is public service oriented.

Finally, I would not have had as transformative of an experience throughout my STEP project without the other members of my cohort. We immediately created a sense of community because of our shared identities as Ohio State students and young professionals trying to break into the fast-paced environment of Washington DC. This community helped ease a very difficult transition at the beginning of the summer. Although I was still challenged throughout my internship and academic responsibilities, I knew I had a group of other people that were facing similar challenges. I relied heavily on my cohort, and vice versa, when I felt overwhelmed or a sense of imposter syndrome. We also shared different professional development, cultural, and social events happening throughout the summer. People were always throwing invitations to go to museums, bookstores, and festivals in our group chat. DC is a huge city with countless events happening, and there is no way for one person to keep track of everything happening. I owe countless experiences to my cohort members, and these invites helped me learn more about the city as well as their interests and backgrounds.

The changes I have described are significant to my life because they have guided how I now plan my short- and long-term future from an academic, personal, and professional perspective. Academically, my long-term goals still include attending law school, and hopefully practicing in the constitutional and defense fields of law. However, I am now planning to take several “gap” years before starting my legal education to pursue more community-oriented work. From a personal standpoint, I learned the importance of balancing my time and finding creative outlets to de-stress and relax after work and school commitments. I also plan to use the time away from school to explore this side of my life more, something I have done inconsistently in the past, but that I would like to dedicate more time to. Finally, from a professional point of view, I now have a better understanding of the different career paths, aside from elected office, that are still public service oriented and work with individuals directly. I can use this understanding to help guide my thinking around potential career opportunities in the future.