Interning with Binghamton University’s Office of Communications and Marketing has been an incredible experience for me, giving me important takeaways about professional development and marketing careers. I am an adamant believer that these will strongly benefit my fellow students in their future career endeavors.
My internship helped me to hone in on some of my already developed professional skills, and drastically improve on them. For example, I have been able to work on my ability to communicate with people in an executive setting. This is incredibly helpful for my future as it is good to have a strong grasp on what dialogue is appropriate in the workplace. Meeting with my supervisor almost every day for the past semester has given me ample practice. We communicate in a business professional manner most of the time, though we also like to talk more socially and loosely when time permits. It is all about being able to balance professionalism and friendliness as you go about your daily tasks and meetings.
I am also grateful for the technical skills that I have learned in the past 11 weeks, particularly in programs such as Microsoft Excel, Canva, and GatherContent. It is very advantageous to be well-versed in a variety of applications. This shows that one can pick up on new things quickly and has a solid skillset to bring to the table.
A final big takeaway from this experience is my realization of the importance of deadlines. Consistently throughout the semester, I was expected to meet rigid deadlines for various ongoing projects. I realized that these time constraints are key because there are often many moving parts in an operation and if a deadline is missed, it can ruin the whole campaign, project, or presentation.
I am happy to be leaving my internship site with these three crucial lessons. I don’t think it could have come at a better time, as this internship has drastically impacted my career goals. After immersing myself in the marketing field, I have curtailed my job application process to match my newfound interest. I enjoy conveying passion about certain products or causes and communicating why others should feel the same. In fact, that’s the very reason why I pursued this internship: I have loved my last four years here at Binghamton. I wanted to showcase the benefits I’ve received as a Binghamton student and give high school students a better understanding of the Bearcat community.
Lastly, considering the NACE Career Competencies that I filled out at the beginning of my position, I am happy and proud to say that I have improved in all areas that I evaluated myself on. However, I experienced the most growth in digital technology. Thanks to the daily tasks I performed, I can successfully leverage multiple platforms to aid in my problem solving, completion of tasks, and overall adaptability to new and emerging technologies. Every day at my internship, I used a new program to complete my work, and though it was stressful at first, I now operate them with the utmost confidence.
I would advise all Binghamton students to take part in an internship during their academic careers here. It is highly beneficial to build your resumé and the exposure it gives you is unmatched. I feel more confident in who I am as a professional because of my internship and I know that makes all the difference.
