Hometown: East Lansing

Major and Class Standing: Experience Architecture, Senior

Internship Company: Pivot Health

Location: Dublin, Ireland- Remote

What was your internship title and role/responsibilities?

My role was as a UX Designer and my responsibilities were to create mobile interface mock-ups for Pivot Health’s Questionnaire and other systems.

How did you obtain your internship? What resources did you utilize to secure your internship?

I obtained my internship through GRIP (Global Remote Internship Program) at MSU where I was paired with an internship that matched my qualifications and skills of interest. I utilized the program organizer Maggie Harris to procure the internship as she helped me through the process.

What did your daily routine include?

My daily routine included meeting with my team and discussing the work I would be accomplishing and then receiving relevant sitemaps that would aid me in creating effective and engaging mockups.

Your favorite experience from the internship ?

My favorite experience was definitely getting to speak with my team members Vera and Gemma. They were incredibly kind and always willing to help me out when I had questions.

What was your least favorite part of the internship?

My least favorite part was probably the disorganization of the company. At times it was difficult to tell exactly what I was supposed to be doing.

What skills did you learn and/or build upon during your internship?

I build my skills of UX Design a ton. I was able to grow my abilities in a variety of real-world ways that made me much more confident in my design abilities. I also Increased my communication abilities as I got the opportunity to communicate with individuals that came from a different culture than myself.

What did you learn about the industry or your career path as a result of the internship? What are your future plans?

I learned that in order to succeed as a UX designer, You need to be willing to communicate with your team and seek out criticism. Don’t take “it looks fine” as criticism, ask specifics on how you can improve. My future plans are to continue to grow this skill and and find other opportunities to exercise my UX design skills as well as seek out User Research opportunities as well.

What advice do you have for other students seeking out internship opportunities?

My advice is to keep an open mind and understand that it may not be exactly how you imagine it’s going to be. Also, take every opportunity to soak up as much knowledge as possible. You can learn from every experience, make it count. Lastly, have fun and don’t be afraid to be honest with yourself if you realize that you don’t actually love it the way you thought you would. These experiences are supposed to aid you in your professional journey and that can look a lot of different ways to different people.