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A Day in the Life of a WorldStrides Intern

After the first full week of the WorldStrides internship, many people are beginning to settle into their new roles and responsibilities. Finding a comfortable routine can be one of the most difficult parts of adjusting to a new environment, but it can also be one of the most rewarding. As I strive to learn and adapt, I am grateful for the quick follow-up meetings with my mentor to discuss our progress and for the invitations to tune into other relevant meetings. I have started to meet and familiarize myself with aspects of CSR, including meeting other team members and learning the overall objectives the company is striving for.

Throughout this past week, I have begun to work on a variety of projects. Besides this wonderful blog, I am currently collecting, compiling, and organizing different DEI resources. Additionally, I am creating social media content to be used in upcoming holidays.

At the conclusion of each week, interns get to take a few minutes of their day to reflect on the events of the past week. This week, the reflection topic was based on communication. There have been a variety of ways in which I have used the tools of communication. While crafting content for holidays, I have messaged a few friends who are impacted directly by certain days of remembrance in hopes that I could learn from their unique perspectives. A valuable part of understanding diversity is being an active listener to the perspectives and experiences of others and having a mindset of continual improvement. I think one of the great aspects of life available to us is the constant opportunity for growth. Recognizing communication is an effective tool in the objective of continual improvement, I decided to reach out to a few of the interns this week to hear their perspectives. Their responses are highlighted below.

Ruby Houchens

“Last week, I was doing a lot of research on other companies recruiting (career) pages and aspects that we could add to ours to encourage more people to apply through the website. I also have been researching other internship programs to see if there are any additions to our program that would be beneficial next year. This week, I am becoming familiar with LinkedIn Recruiter and the recruiting process in general.”

Nicole Varela Castillo

“So far, at my WorldStrides internship, I have met many amazing people and have been learning about global experiences. Tomorrow, I will meet up with a group in New York to experience what the global experience team has accomplished to set up for the group!”    

Nyamal Gatluak    

“My first week as a WorldStrides intern has been exciting! I have been drafting product prototypes for a new program and creating strategies to consolidate WorldStrides social media accounts. I’ve learned so much about the company this week and the impact it has on students worldwide. I’m thankful to be surrounded by such a supportive and welcoming community, and I’m confident that I will grow personally and professionally by the summer!”

Michael Hill

“The first week was very interesting as I learned more about the people within the office and what they did, along with what responsibilities I had as well. The task I was given was to create and categorize QR codes for the programs this summer, which was spread out between the members in our department. One interesting thing that happened this last week would be the first lunch where all the interns got to meet each other.”

Reading the perspectives of others can help us as we create our own experiences. It can be comforting to see in what ways our experiences are similar, even if the actual content of our work is different. As I reflect on this week, I have seen various ways in which I have grown as an employee and as a person. Week 2 has been a success through the internship program and in the spirit of continual improvement, we strive to improve each and every week.

Author: Jonathan Lingard

As an intern, I am looking forward to making new connections with current employees in the company and I am excited to learn from them about how to grow my skills in the professional world place. I am also looking forward explore potential career paths for my future.