Welcome to our 5 Things I Learned blog series, where UNH students from all colleges and majors share the UNH experience that changed everything for them and what they learned from it. From studying abroad and summer internships, to research and leadership in student organizations, follow along to see what you can learn by stepping out of your comfort zone and saying "yes" to that new opportunity on our campus.
Today, Laura talks about how taking an internship in an industry you might not expect to work in can result in stronger communication skills and experience that translates to future internships, student organizations and jobs. Read on to learn about getting a paid summer internship through the UNH ECenter.
Laura Holmansky
During the summer of 2023, I completed an internship through the ECenter’s Paid Summer Internship at a Start-Up program. I worked remotely as a marketing and advertising intern for Canopus Water Technologies, a UV water filtration company based out of Windham, NH. These are the five most important things that I learned through my experience.
1. The benefits and drawbacks of remote work
I worked remotely for the entire summer and had full control of my schedule. My manager told me that as long as I got 40 hours of work in a week, he didn’t care when that work got done. This gave me a ton of flexibility with my schedule, which allowed me to build in time for fun as well as to work my second job as a martial arts instructor. The only thing that I struggled with during my remote work was not having people around me and available for questions or discussion at all times. I feel like I could’ve used more guidance throughout the process and that would’ve been easier to get at an in-person internship.
2. Implementing AI into marketing
One of the things that my manager really wanted me to do was to implement AI into my work to streamline everything and make it easier. After doing some research on available tools, I started using AI to help me with my work. I used it to set up and outline an email marketing campaign, outline blog posts and outline LinkedIn posts. AI was extremely useful to jumpstart my work throughout the summer.
3. Communication is key to success
Working remotely really challenged my communication skills. I had to make sure I was clear and concise with every email I sent to my manager in order to get my questions answered properly. While this was a big challenge and very different from in-person communication in a workplace, I feel that this experience improved my communication skills.
4. Industries don't matter as much as you think
I’ve always been interested in working in the fashion or beauty industry, so taking an internship in water filtration wasn’t something that excited me initially. Throughout my experience, I found that the industry I was working in didn’t matter nearly as much as I thought it would to me. I still really enjoyed doing all of the marketing work I was doing, even though it wasn’t in an industry that I thought I would be working in.
5. Take every opportunity that comes your way
You never know what you’ll get out of it. Going off of my previous point, taking opportunities that you wouldn’t typically take is crucial to your growth. If I had said no to this internship because it wasn’t in an industry that I was interested in, I wouldn’t have the experience that I have today. This experience has helped me get interviews for internships this coming summer. It has also helped me be able to do well in interviews for student orgs, such as Voice Z Digital Marketing, which I am happy to say that I will be joining this spring. Any opportunity to gain experience is a good opportunity. Take anything that comes to you and make the most of it.
learn more about paid summer internships
sign up for Admitted Student Visit Days
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