Melville Business Strategy Internships
Osman Akkaşoğlu
Market Researcher at Advanced Intelligent Systems (A.I.S.); Osman recently earned a Graduate Diploma in Green Business Management and Sustainability, with distinction.
Osman was hired in a permanent position by the organization whom he worked with in the Business Strategy Internship program.
“During my internship at A.I.S., I focused on building a product concept and product marketing requirements document. Although I had previous experience with product marketing and sales, the product requirements document was something new that I had been introduced to at A.I.S. The Vice President of Product and Operations mentored me throughout all the exciting learning experiences. Acquiring new tools related to product development and marketing helped me grow my professional skills for undertaking more advanced tasks. In addition, seeking feedback and benefiting from my mentor’s insights at A.I.S. was critical to demonstrate that I am eager to develop and improve my skills."
How my internship brought me to a full-time opportunity at A.I.S.
"My initial assignments at the company were relatively smaller compared to the later ones, but as an intern, I approached those tasks with enthusiasm and completed them in a way that was up to A.I.S.’ quality standards. Problem-solving skills are essential to any employer, so I used this internship opportunity to showcase my academic skills and industry experience for proposing solutions to solving issues related to product management. My eagerness to learn and contribute to the company demonstrated that I was ready to be a permanent full-time employee at A.I.S.
Another aspect that brought me to a full-time job after the internship was my commitment to the role. I strived to keep my work ethic at the highest level during this internship by providing consistent quality work to my employers, by being punctual, and by organizing my tasks efficiently to focus better on my responsibilities.
All being said, it was important to express my interest to work as a full-time employee at the company after my internship, as a way to communicate my future career goals. As soon as I realized that I am a good fit to the culture and environment of the company, and that I could contribute to its growth, I asked the hiring manager about the possibility of having a full-time position within the company."
Emily Haugen
Communications and Strategies Project Coordinator at Fraser Northwest Division of Family Practices, & Co-founder of She Connects. Emily recently earned a Bachelor of Business Administration Degree in Marketing Management.
Emily was recruited to her non-profit organization by a Melville School of Business faculty member after a first year class.
"I think there is so much value in working while pursuing your business degree; whether it is through an internship like I did, or other applicable job experience, the ability to apply what we learn in the classroom to a real work environment solidifies the theoretical concepts in a way no classroom could replicate. I wanted to do the Business Strategy Internship because it was a unique challenge and an opportunity for me to explore other industries and work environments (I had already been working in marketing within the healthcare industry for a few years)."
How did the Business Strategy Internship help shape her future career?
"The internship was like nothing I could have expected: challenging, rewarding, sometimes ambiguous, and always interesting. I was able to take knowledge from so many of my classes and apply it - including human resources, organizational behaviour, accounting, and of course many of my marketing classes. Using the best practices and skills I learned in these courses allowed me to be a pivotal building block in the start-up environment at iGen Education Group - the organization I was interning at. It was also a learning experience for me to work in a start-up organization and see the organizational culture develop over the 6-month internship period. I was even asked to stay on as a full-time employee at the end of the internship, and for that reason, among many others, I would absolutely recommend the internship program to any Melville student who’s eligible, to apply and gain a professional work experience."