Recapping the 2022 Broad Spartan summer

Summer internships are a valuable part of the student experience at Michigan State University. They offer a chance for students to apply classroom concepts to real-world projects, expand their professional network and, ultimately, jump-start their career.

This year, Broad Spartans took on internships at companies big and small across the country. Some had the chance to meet one-on-one with senior leadership and broaden their professional networks while others soaked up every chance to sharpen their skills in leadership, communication and problem-solving.

As we begin another academic year, enjoy a recap of the 2022 Broad Spartan summer and see how today’s students are making a lasting, positive impact for business.

Dilavar Goyal, MBA student, interned for Amazon in Edison, New Jersey. His favorite experience was connecting with the people who help Amazon deliver the best every day. “I had an opportunity to visit five Amazon locations to collaborate with cross-functional teams and learn from them to conceptualize a solution for my project. Even though I was at a robotics location, I enjoyed the people’s part of Amazon.”

Guadalupe Huapilla-Perez, hospitality business junior, ventured to the Hyatt Regency Lake Washington in Seattle, Washington. She learned “what it is to manage and communicate with a team, especially at properties like the one I interned at, with 12 floors, over 300 rooms and 6 major departments. It was cool learning how our revenue team would sell out our rooms perfectly every night!”

Omar Syed, supply chain management senior, spent his summer with Rack Room Shoes in Charlotte, North Carolina. He noted enjoying a high level of autonomy available through the experience. “I was given the unique opportunity to simultaneously research the industry and conduct a series of one-on-ones with various high-ranking officials across the cross-functioning supply chain structure, through which I discovered meaningful cost-saving prospects in visibility and optimization.”

Lauren Dowd, finance junior, spent her summer at Raymond James in St. Petersburg, Florida. “One thing I learned during my internship is the importance of being proficient in Excel to readably organize and interpret raw data, customize fields and functions, and forecast accurate predictions. Additionally, leveraging these skills with experience in PowerPoint and Word to visualize and present data is equally critical. The [Broad College’s] Financial Markets Institute helped me jump-start these skills with its weekly training sessions, provided mentorship of seasoned upperclassmen and extensive resources.”

Ava Senkowski, M.S. in Accounting student, interned at Cowen & Company in Birmingham, Michigan, and was able to put her learnings from MSU to work. “My internship at Cowen gave me the confidence to grow as a young professional. Taking responsibility and completing my tasks allowed me to see the importance of my decisions for the company.”

Braeden Furlow, marketing junior, worked for Techtronic Industries in Dearborn, Michigan, where he learned about the value of field sales and merchandisers. His favorite experience was “getting to work with [Techtronic] products in the stores and demo them for customers.”

Vivian Tran, supply chain management senior, ventured to Target in Minneapolis, Minnesota, where she was able to fully immerse herself into the company culture. “Being part of a team that embraces authenticity and celebrates differences allowed for a thriving learning environment where I felt confident to voice my insights, ask countless questions to aid in my professional development and make genuine, long-lasting connections with team members all throughout the summer.”

Joshua May, hospitality business junior, worked at the Country Club in Brookline, Massachusetts, supporting the hosting of the 122nd U.S. Open golf championship. “My favorite part of the job was bartending on the 18th green for the week of the Open. Working on the 18th green as the golfers came down the stretch was one of the most unique experiences. From the roars of the crowd as Matt Fitzpatrick finished on the 18th, the sounds were deafening and there was an energy that was indescribable.”

To explore more Broad Spartan summer stories, view our intern gallery.