This summer I worked in the lab of Dr. Ken Jacobson in the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland.
The lab studies the structure-activity relationship of G-protein coupled receptors and small molecules. In this, I was tasked with the synthesis of various new drugs to work as antagonists against a specific type of receptor. The receptor I worked on has been implicated in the inflammatory response in relation to asthma as well as certain types of liver diseases and cancers. Through my work, we were able to add to the library of known compounds that antagonize this receptor and help elucidate leads for better treatments of these diseases.
At this experience I was able to further develop my abilities as a chemist, learning new ways to troubleshoot and problem solve. I was able to experience the environment of a large academic lab as well as work alongside accomplished scientists and postdocs who were able to guide me through my project. In the future, I hope to continue as a professor of chemistry.
This summer, I had the opportunity to intern at the U.S. Department of State in Washington DC. I worked in the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, in the Office of East Asia and the Pacific.
I received a security clearance in order to perform my daily responsibilities in the office, which were primarily research-based and focused on China. I also got to participate in several State Department events on a variety of different topics, including working the State Departments first ever International Religious Freedom Ministerial. My favorite part of my internship was getting to know the other people in my office. This internship allowed me to get firsthand exposure to different career paths and observe government work from the inside. I learned more about what day-to-day life is like as part of the Civil Service as a Foreign Service Officer.
My time in DC not only helped me hone several skills such as writing, critical thinking, and analysis; but it also provided me with valuable experience as I continue to determine my career path. This internship will additionally help me determine how I want to engage with important human rights issues going forward.
Eleven undergraduate students traveled to New York City for a career immersion trip with Colgate Women in Business (CWiB) and Colgate Career Services, spending Friday, February 15 conducting site visits and learning from alumnae.
The students visited four companies and seven alumnae: Parity Partners (Sarah Kim ’87, New York Steering Committee member, Women’s Association of Venture & Equity), PricewaterhouseCoopers (Susie Becker Gould ’03, human capital director; Caroline Brainerd ’14, senior associate; Jackie Millstein ’12, manager), Havas Health and You (Sarah Burke Mullins ’96, senior manager, Sanofi), and Lerer Hippeau (Stephanie Manning ’13, director of platform; Natalie Sportelli ’15, content and brand manager).
These companies opened their doors to students so they could learn more about private equity, management consulting, health and wellness marketing, and venture capital. The students and alumnae met in conference rooms and the small group of eleven allowed for every student to ask questions and engage in conversation.
At Havas Health and You, students were given a company overview by Sarah Burke Mullins ’96 and her colleagues.
Students at PwC.
“I think our immersion trip to NYC was really impactful for everyone who participated. We made sure to focus not only on career advancement, but we learned from leading alumnae about overcoming gender barriers in the workplace. The combination of both of these aspects made the trip different from past years and a huge success,” president Anna Rummel ’19 said.
“It was great to host Colgate Women in Business at the Lerer Hippeau office. Our discussion really dug into what the future of work is going to look like,” said Natalie Sportelli ’15. “Many jobs, like Stephanie’s and mine, didn’t exist a couple years ago, and there are exciting new roles and industries emerging all the time. In talking with CWiB members, and taking their excellent questions, it became clear that these students are taking steps now to set themselves up for success later.”
Natalie Sportelli ’15 tweeted about the Colgate visit.
In the past, the group previously partnered with the finance, marketing, and consulting clubs for immersion trips. Since this trip only included CWiB members, a concerted effort was made to include conversations around gender and the workplace.
Colgate Women in Business educates undergrads about the business world and women’s issues in the workplace and offers programming and networking opportunities to learn from Colgate alumnae.
I worked for the Home Base Program which is through Massachusetts General Hospital and the Red Sox Foundation. Home Base provides clinical care and support services such as resiliency education to veterans of post-9/11 conflicts. In addition, Home Base conducts research centered on identifying and implementing new treatments for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), traumatic brain injury (TBI) and other invisible wounds of war.
In my role as a research intern this summer I did all of the following:
Aided in tailoring the “Resilient Family” stress management course to specifically cater to the needs of veteran caregivers
Transcribed focus groups
Entered intensive care program (ICP) patient data and other Home Base patient data
Attended research meetings and treatment rounds
Conducted literature reviews to aid in the writing of several studies.
As the social media intern at Revolve Impact I was in charge of the Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook accounts. I controlled what posts went out, what they said and how they looked. I would spend my days researching statistics, pulling graphics, and creating GIFs.
Every day was a new topic to research ranging from mass incarceration, effects of bullying, LGBTQ issues, police officers in school, success of after-school programs and so much more. I also had to stay up to date with the current news regarding the issues that the company was trying to combat so I could ensure all our platforms were updated with the most relevant information. It was a lot of pressure to maintain all of the social media platforms, but I now have such a deep understanding of not only the information I learned, but also the best ways in which to convey it to the public.
In addition to my role at Revolve Impact, I worked at Mayola Charles Shining Path Montessori School as a teacher’s assistant. I played with the children and helped them with basic reading, writing, and math skills.
For my summer internship, I worked for the Irish International Immigrant Center, which provides free legal, education, and counseling services to immigrants, both Irish and non-Irish.
I worked primarily in the Education Services department, however I also spent at least one day a week in Guest Services, which allowed me to interact with every client that came through our doors, connecting them with the right resources. This also allowed me to interact with and learn more about most other departments in the organization.
For Education Services, I prepared class files and folders for our summer conversation classes and then again for the fall, cross-checking students on the online roster and our paper files, as well as making sure students were aware when their classes started. A large part of my role was also co-teaching several classes, including a six-week ESL class focused on art and history in Boston, a six-week conversation class focused on practicing basic conversation skills, and a ten-week citizenship class.
For the Art and History ESOL class, every Wednesday we would take a field trip into the city to see what we had discussed on Monday, and I led several different portions of the field trips.
For the citizenship class, I made class-specific Taboo games to review important figures, dates, and events in American history, and also planned a field trip around historic Boston, which helped to make more concrete some of the material covered in class. This manifested itself particularly well when we ended our field trip at the Old State House where, the students learned, the Declaration of Independence was first read to Bostonians.
The biggest thing I learned about myself is that I enjoy teaching ESL classes and that it might be something I wish to pursue after graduation, either as a career, or as a volunteer opportunity. I also learned to be more confident with my Spanish. I interacted with many clients who did not speak English and with whom I had to clearly express certain pieces of information.
Finally, I learned that it is ok (and even a good sign) to ask for more responsibility.
Fiona Adjei Boateng ’19 interned with Danielle Brown.
I spent my summer as an intern with Danielle Brown, a fashion household name in Ghana, that produces African-inspired contemporary pieces. It has been one of my most impactful summers so far. As someone very interested in fashion design, especially African fashion, this summer has become very vital in my career choices.
My job as an intern was not just to be an observer, taking everything in, but essentially to be everywhere at once. Over the course of the summer, I spent my hours at the workshop, learning the practical sides of fashion design: design critiquing, fabric selection, the pattern making, cutting, sewing, etc., and at the storefront, dipping my toes into the world of marketing, social media advertising, branding, accounting, customer services and many more.
My supervisor gave me the opportunity to be involved in their Fall Collection design process, and despite the whirlwind of everything happening so fast, I had a blast! I got to give my opinion on designs in the collection, help in fabric matching, and lead a project to design a window display for the collection. Luckily, I was there long enough to see the manifestation of our concepts and hard work, and everyone loved it.
I had always heard the saying “Do what you love and you’ll never work a day in your life,” but I had never given it much thought until my summer experience. There were times that I’d forget to have lunch, or to leave at closing, just because I was working on my designs or my projects, but that didn’t bother me because I loved what I was doing. From this summer, I learned that I loved to sew and design, I was good at it, and it was possible for me to make a career out of something I loved.
Luke Parauda ’15 ran the inquiries email box, receiving close to 80 emails a day.
I worked for Guinness World Records this summer. Although the company is based out of London, I worked at the Americas office which is located in New York. The office only had about 20 people, so it was easy to meet everyone and learn my responsibilities. The office is in midtown Manhattan in a nice location. I ran the inquiries email box all summer but also held many responsibilities in the form of projects. Projects were assigned to me by many different departments, but I mainly did research for marketing, providing market analysis and researching potential clients. Before my internship, I wasn’t sure exactly what I wanted to do although I was pretty confident I wanted to work in publishing. My internship gave me a taste of many different aspects of publishing, including, PR, HR, marketing, research, sales, and some editing. I know which of those I can do really well now am realizing which ones I would want to pursue in terms of a full-time job after Colgate. Read more
Jessica Ach ’15 learned about potential career paths in the worlds of finance, marketing and consulting.
This summer I was fortunate enough to participate in a mini-MBA program for liberal arts undergraduate students at Tuck Business School at Dartmouth. Over the course of 30 days, I took courses in accounting, economics, marketing, strategy and corporate finance. Throughout the program I worked closely with five other group members to complete course assignments and our final company valuation project. The program was not only about classroom learning however; I was able to learn invaluable networking skills, talk to hiring managers of various companies, go through mock interviews and work one-on-one with recent Tuck graduates. My peers and I thrived in this high-paced academic environment yet we also walked away with a many close friendships. Having completed the program, I am able to confidently discuss business operations, financial statements, and potential career paths in finance, marketing and consulting. Read more
Alexander Jurado ’15 Interned in San Juan Teotihuacan, Mexico
It is my first day in the field and I am feeling a mix of fatigue, excitement and nerves. Fatigue because a fever knocked me out of commission to miss the first three days of the season. Excitement because working on an archaeological excavation has always been a dream of mine. And nerves because I am about to enter a field of cactuses, brush and waste high grass, the prime environment for rattlesnakes. “Be careful and watch where you step, I’ve heard there is a rattlesnake nest around here,” says one of the locals. The archaeologists charge fearlessly into the field; the locals pick their way more cautiously through the grass; I pause to tell myself, This is what you always wanted, and if you want to be an archaeologist you better get used to it. I plunge into the grass. After about an hour of making artifact surface collections with no snake encounters, I am finally starting to relax; one might even say I am starting to feel right at home. Maximiliano is walking alongside me and we are talking as we go. Suddenly he yells, “SNAKE!” almost falling on his back as he stumbles backwards. I freeze immediately, not daring to move even an inch forward. He is pointing saying, “Right there,” but I still can’t see it anywhere. Finally I pick out the rattlesnake coiled on the ground just three feet in front of us. The grey scales and black diamond pattern allow it to blend in perfectly. At this point it’s my first day and I almost stepped on a rattlesnake–and I still got six more weeks to go. Read more
