As the Spring semester comes to an end, so does my internship with Burkhart Marketing Partners. I am so grateful for Burkhart allowing me to be their Marketing Intern before graduation from Ball State. The overall experience has left me humbled and prepared for my professional career.

When a college student begins an internship, it will perhaps be their first glimpse of the business world. A professional environment likely will present challenges to any student. But with careful preparation and by employing good etiquette during my internship, I was able to build long-term professional relationships. 

My Internship At Burkhart

The people at Burkhart always treated me like I was part of the team. Being held accountable for my work and making sure everything I did was done on time is something that I will be taking with me for the rest of my professional career. Initially, my supervisors asked me what my goals were for this internship. One of the goals of my internship was to have better communication and learn more about office etiquette.

Seeing as this was my first ever professional job experience, I was nervous and did not know what to expect going into the office on my first day. Throughout my time here, I always made sure to keep my goals in mind before arriving at work every morning. Early attendance, along with displaying my enthusiasm, allowed me to show my appreciation for Burkhart and everyone I worked with. I strived to make the best out of my time at Burkhart. I took every day as a learning experience for my personal and professional growth for my future.

Lessons To Take With Me

During my internship at Burkhart, I learned more about the ability to handle constructive criticism. Naturally, no one likes to be criticized, and when you are evaluated on your work, it can be a little scary. Along the way, I made a few mistakes – from not tagging the right account on a social media post to forgetting to “reply all” in an important email chain to simple grammatical errors in my work. I received constructive criticism on situations like these from my supervisors and always reminded myself that it’s not personal. My supervisors did it for my own good and professional growth, and it did improve the quality of my work. I have taken these moments and learned from them.

One of my initial goals I told myself was that I wanted to learn and grow as a professional every single day when I arrive at work, and I truly believe with this wonderful opportunity, I have been able to.