Alums give Princeterns a taste of the real world

Michael Chou ’10 only spent one day at his internship, but not because he was fired.

As part of the redesigned “Princeternship” program, Chou shadowed Hal Stern ’84, vice president of Sun Microsystems, on a typical workday. This year, 10 alumni hosted 15 students for one to three days over winter break, reading period and Intersession.

Aileen Kim, assistant director for internships at Career Services, said in an e-mail that the Princeternship program is designed to allow students to “explore a career field of interest by actually seeing what it’s like; and connect with alumni who have much experience and insight to share about their career fields and making the most of one’s time at Princeton.”

Unlike typical summer internships where interns contribute to a business or organization by working on long-term projects, Princeternships give students hands-on experience to see how a business in a given industry operates without committing to a long internship program.

The exposure is especially valuable given Princeton’s lack of pre-professional programs. Ting Bok ’11, who spent a day of Intersession at BusinessWeek headquarters in New York with Roben Farzad ’98, said she had never considered a career in journalism because Princeton does not offer a major in journalism.

“But seeing [the journalists’] work and seeing all of the opportunities to travel and meet all of these people really convinced me to start thinking about this path,” she said. “[The experience] really helped me in making a more informed decision about my future.”

Hicham Alaoui ’08 chose his Princeternship at Resound Marketing — a public relations and marketing firm on Nassau Street — with the same goal in mind. “I went in wanting to learn about marketing and sales from the perspective of someone who hasn’t really been able to study marketing [at Princeton],” he said.

Alaoui worked at the firm with fellow Princetern Caroline Shirk ’09 for three days during Intersession with Kevin McLaughlin ’97, sitting in on conference calls with clients, researching products and completing short-term projects that gave them insight into the fields of public relations and marketing.

Shirk said she felt the experience was valuable because, unlike long-term internships or jobs, Princeternships are “less about promoting yourself and more [about] promoting your interest and desire to learn.”

The ability to explore a field in such a context also allows students to judge their own goals, interests and skill sets in terms of their post-graduation plans. “[The Princeternships] not only get you really good industry insight, but you also can learn a little bit more about what the right fit is for you,” McLaughlin said.

“It was amazing to see students actually able to articulate very clearly what they learned and how they can see why a particular career field is or is not a good fit for them,” Kim agreed.

Integral to the program’s success has been the interaction between alumni and students. “Because these alumni have been at Princeton, they can understand perhaps more readily where the student is coming from, more so than another professional who is not a Princeton alum,” Kim said. “And of course, there is a ready-made connection — an easy way to begin a conversation and more reason for that working professional to make the time for the student,” she added.

Get the best of the ‘Prince’ delivered straight to your inbox. Subscribe now »

McLaughlin agreed, explaining that “alumni can give you a sense, from being in the trenches, of how to pursue a particular career path. There’s a good understanding [among alumni] about where you’re coming from.”

Princeternships have also created networking opportunities for students. “I learned a lot about the industry, and now I have that alum contact if I do want to go into PR or marketing,” Shirk said. Regardless of where she ends up after graduation, the alumni can be “a great resource” for future opportunities, she said.

Kim said she has been pleased with the response, not only from students but also from the employers. “I think overall the alumni were just pleased to have the chance to meet these students and share their worlds with them,” Kim said. “It was just something they found truly enjoyable.”

The success of the program has generated new Princeternships that are being offered over spring break. The application deadline is Friday, Feb. 15.