The Inside Scoop: Interning for Enterprise
“What is working for Enterprise like?” From October to May, we had seven exceptional Enterprise youth interning for us. We asked each of them this question. Keep reading to see what they said!
Enterprise for Youth is an organization dedicated to finding youth employment opportunities, whether that’s through summer internships with our partners, direct-to-hire programs that help transition youth into holding part-time or full-time jobs, networking events, and more. We also offer internship opportunities working internally!
To work internally, youth apply to be a departmental intern, after which they will interview with one or more Enterprise staff members. If they are hired, they will be assigned a supervisor and department that they will work with for the duration of their internships.
The 2022-23 departmental internships were eight months long, beginning in October and concluding in May. This year, the interns were given the opportunity to extend their time with Enterprise through the summer, and fortunately, many of our departmental interns chose to do just that. We spoke to each intern to learn more about their experiences interning, and what working for Enterprise is like.
Jennifer Tan
Jennifer Tan is a 21-year-old marketing and management major at New York University Stern School of Business. She will be graduating in 2025. Jennifer worked as a development intern with Bonnie Kramer. Working with brands to develop marketing strategies is something that interests her, and she hopes to find a job as a marketing director.
What are some of the most exciting projects you worked on and why?
“I contacted some of the donors for the Heroes at Work 2023 event and conducted corporate partner prospect contact research. Both of these projects gave me an opportunity to have hands-on experience working with fundraising, which was really fun”
What was it like working with Bonnie, your supervisor?
“Bonnie has been a great supervisor because she is supportive, caring, encouraging, and approachable. She ensures clarity in project instructions, taking the time to explain each task before I start. Bonnie also gave me a lot of insightful advice that is beneficial for my future career and academics.”
What are your plans after this internship is over?
“My plan after this internship is to stay at Enterprise, but transfer to Communications and become a communication intern for the summer.”
A word of advice from Jennifer’s supervisor Bonnie: “Be confident in yourself because you can figure anything out and do it well.”
Fiona Yim
Fiona Yim is a 20-year-old third-year urban studies major at UC Berkeley. She joined Enterprise in 2020 with our Climate Career Corps. She worked on developing our Career Experience Internship with Luz Aguirre Ramirez. She hopes to be a public sector city planner in the future with a focus on age-friendly cities, affordable housing, and multi-modal transportation.
What are some of the most exciting projects you worked on and why?
“One of my favorite projects was researching and connecting with potential host sites in the arts, government, and healthcare sectors. It was pretty nerve-wracking as it was one of my first times contacting professionals for non-academic reasons, but I really appreciated the opportunity to learn about different organizations and develop my email skills.”
What have you learned while working for Enterprise?
“Working for Enterprise has allowed me to appreciate the hours and hours of work that go into making the internship programs a success. I have developed invaluable communications and networking skills that I will undoubtedly take with me as my career progresses.”
What are your next plans after this internship is over?
“After this internship, I plan to intern for the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency in their Streets Division.”
Tiffany Liang
Tiffany Liang is an 18-year-old studio arts major at City College of San Francisco. She worked with Alex Berg as a communications intern. She joined Enterprise in 2019, after completing a Climate Career Corps internship at Sigmund Stern Recreation Grove. Currently, she is hoping to explore different professions in the design industry.
How has this internship helped you grow as a person or as a professional?
“Enterprise brands and presents themselves in a specific way, so I had to study the style guide and learn how to write copy for captions. That kind of experience is helpful because it’s similar to how other companies and organizations would want to organize their social media feeds. It really felt like I was advancing in my design goals because I was creating something that was representing a whole organization.”
What are some of the most exciting projects you worked on and why?
“The most exciting projects I worked on this year were the blogs for Jenny Lemons and Refuse Refuse SF. I enjoyed working on those because my supervisor, Alex, gave me a lot of creative freedom to explore how I would want the two blogs to be published. I got to create the social media graphics, photograph the interns, and design the email headers! Starting this project was the hardest part because I was given so many choices and possibilities with the project that I got overwhelmed. So I began arranging the pictures and colors in different ways to help me get going and I’m actually very happy with how they both turned out.”
What are your plans after this internship?
“After this internship is over, I plan on staying connected with Enterprise and interning with them again! Aside from that, I am continuing my college career and hopefully transferring to a four-year university.”
A word of advice from Tiffany’s supervisor Alex: “Keep trying new things! Don’t be afraid to advocate for yourself and start new projects if something piques your interest.”
Jialin Yu
Jialin Yu is a 21-year-old third-year, majoring in business administration at UC Riverside. She worked with Madisen Ellis as a job bank intern. Her current career goal is to gain as much experience as possible in all business fields that seem interesting, as well as networking and creating connections.
How has this internship helped you grow as a person or as a professional?
“I developed an interest in marketing while interning for the job bank. I continue to improve my time management skills as well, as I take on more responsibilities while trying to balance academics and my mental health.”
What was it like working with Madisen, your supervisor?
“Madisen has been the best supervisor I could ask for. She not only acts as my supervisor, but also as a mentor to my professional growth. I truly cherish the relationship I have built with her and feel that beyond this internship, we will stay connected. One memorable moment that occurred during one of our weekly meetings was when she noticed I was a little down and asked about how I was feeling. That definitely helped me feel like I could communicate openly with her.”
What are your plans after this internship is over?
“I plan to continue working to get my Bachelor’s degree, and potentially look for another internship.”
A word of advice from Jialin’s supervisor Madisen: “Continue to treat all opportunities as a learning experience for your future goals.”
Minnie Yu
Minnie Yu is a 20-year-old third-year clinical nutrition major at UC Davis. She worked with Meghan Smith-Chang as a college programming intern. Her current career goal is to become a registered dietitian in a hospital setting so she can support people in maintaining healthy eating habits.
What have you enjoyed the most about working for Enterprise?
“I have enjoyed every moment working with Enterprise. I’ve especially enjoyed interacting with the people here, whether I’m reaching out to external organizations or communicating with internal employees. There are so many different perspectives and ideas. When I talked to the internal employees, I learned how to view complications from different angles, which is always important when solving a problem.”
What are some of the most exciting projects you worked on and why?
“Throughout the first half of my internship, I worked with Meghan to research and organize all the resources for our alumni who are in college. Communication was the most challenging part of this project. I learned a lot from Meghan on how to write a professional email and how to be responsive to the replies. I was glad that I was able to learn something new from this experience.”
What are your plans after this internship is over?
“My plan after this internship is to focus on academics. I am planning to apply for my Masters degree in nutrition.”
Kimberly Tamayo-Cortes
Kimberly Tamyo-Cortes is a 20-year-old second-year political science major at UC Davis with plans to minor in Chicanx Studies. Kimberly joined Enterprise for Youth in 2020 as a Career Experience intern and has been working with us since. She worked with Meghan Smith-Chang as an alumni intern. She hopes to build a career in law and policy, whether that’s as a paralegal, lawyer, or something else.
What are some of the most exciting projects you worked on and why?
“Helping start the Alumni Action Committee* was difficult but rewarding. Meghan and I worked together through all the scheduling, planning, communications, and brainstorming required to start the program. The turnout for the first meeting was great, but after that participation became inconsistent. So we had to rethink the structure of the program. Now, we’ve connected with over 60 Alumni, some of whom have even joined our Alumni Board.”
How has this internship helped you grow as a person or as a professional?
“Working with Enterprise for Youth has helped me develop communication skills, be more confident in myself, and be proactive. This internship was a chance to work on my time management, as I had to balance work, a full course load, and a second on-campus job at UC Davis.”
What are your plans after this internship is over?
“I plan to take the summer to relax and reconnect with my loved ones. I’m going to visit my sister in Texas, and then after that, I’ll be going to Mexico to see family.”
A word of advice from Kimberly and Minnie’s supervisor Meghan: “You can change your career path at any age. Find a job with a good work environment, learn it, love it, and continue exploring.”
Francis Orkin
Francis Orkin is a 19-year-old first-year English major at UC Santa Barbara. He joined Enterprise for Youth in 2020, when he did an internship at Stow Lake as part of the Climate Career Corps. During his departmental internship with Enterprise, he worked with Margan Mulvihill as a writing intern. He’s still exploring different careers, but hopes to have a job where he’s helping others.
How has this internship helped you grow as a person or as a professional?
“Since starting this internship, I’ve learned how to be a more assertive person when communicating with people, while still being respectful of who I’m communicating with. I’ve also learned the right kind of planning for me, which has not only helped me improve at this job, but it’s made it so I can manage all my other responsibilities much better.”
What are some of the most exciting projects you worked on and why?
“Currently, I’m working on writing a blog outlining the path youth can take to join Enterprise, and what they can do after completing Job Readiness Training. It’s an exciting project because it’s something that I feel could be helpful, and it’s a blog I’ve been wanting to write since my internship began.”
What are your plans after this internship is over?
“Chilling with my dogs, catching up with high school friends, sleeping in. And I’m continuing my internship with Enterprise into summer.”
A word of advice from Francis’ supervisor Margan: “Think one step ahead, so you can be prepared for whatever comes your way.”
*If you’re an Enterprise for Youth Alumni who’d like to give back to Enterprise, or reconnect with us, consider joining our Alumni Action Committee! You can visit this link to learn more, or email us at info@enterpriseforyouth.org
Thank you to all our departmental interns and their supervisors for taking the time to participate in this interview. We appreciate your feedback and your time.
Interview responses were edited for clarity.
By Francis Orkin, Blog Intern
