Alexandria White talks about her internships with ClearVision Optical and CBS Local Digital Media, as well as her first job.
During my past three years at Adelphi, I have forged lifelong friendships, relationships with professors, and broadened my career development through several internships. I have benefited from the resources that Adelphi provides its’ students to broaden their horizons and achieve their goals. The Center for Career and Professional Development has been invaluable in assisting me to rework and format my resume. I enjoyed the Internship Preparation Seminar I took freshman year with Victoria Passarella, which exposed me to the PREP and Leadership Certificate programs, which have helped further my professional development.
I’ve been very fortunate to have held three internships within 18 months, and the ability to stay on for longer than the set time frame. My first internship was at ClearVision Optical, where I worked in business development and sales. Throughout this internship, I honed my Excel skills and learned pivot tables and numerous formulas; including the coveted vlookup (which is much simpler than you think). In addition, they had around 15 other interns that provided great socialization and introduced me to a dear friend.
After spending eight months at ClearVision, I transitioned to CBS Local Digital Media for a joint business development and commerce role. I worked in two departments with numerous coworkers that were not solely located in the New York office. Having prior experience working with remote coworkers at CBS would later help me at my current internship. Working in dual departments also allowed me to increase my personal time management skills as I received tasks and had to prioritize them. I had the privilege of completing semester-long research on the state of U.S. News Consumption, which I presented to several managers. This was an extremely rewarding process that allowed me to better my research, writing and presentation skills—all of which are necessary in the business world.
After CBS I applied for numerous positions in the media industry and had set up a meeting with Neil Halloran to review my resume. Unbeknownst to me, Neil already had a position in mind for me at a startup called MagnifyMoney. I’ll never forget how thorough Neil was in preparing me for the interview by printing out a stack of papers for me to read to familiarize myself with the company. Going into the interview I was confident, and afterwards I left with a positive feeling. I received the internship offer several hours after the interview and was ecstatic. I remember the eagerness I felt to begin the next chapter in my professional journey. Now at MagnifyMoney for two months, I am working in consumer personal finance as a researcher, writer, and more. I am forever grateful to Neil for presenting me with the opportunity to intern here.
In the near future I will be finishing up my final semester at Adelphi and graduating in December—a semester early! I look forward to ending on a high note as I finish my last five classes and continue my internship at MagnifyMoney.