Students Make the Most of Summer Internships
Oxy Interns
From the Left: James Paulsen (senior),Oscar Velasquez (senior), Alex Dixon (senior)
A typical college student’s summer is spent relaxing, recharging, and traveling. When Baylor ProSales students think summer, they think career development.
Over 20 ProSales students are currently engaged in full-time, paid sales internships in a variety of companies and industries, including IBM (#19, Fortune 500), Concentra (#79, Fortune 500), Oracle (#80, Fortune 500), 3M (#101, Fortune 500), and Occidental Chemical (#122, Fortune 500), among others. While some internships are Texas-based, many students accepted positions in locations across the country, including New York, Minnesota, California, Michigan, and Georgia.
Internships are a key component of the Professional Selling curriculum. Students are required to complete at least one sales internship prior to graduation, and many complete two or three internships by the end of their senior year. Internships give students an opportunity to experience the workforce, to learn about different types of sales roles, and to gain exposure to prospective employers.
3M Intern
“I am learning what it means to be a business professional,” said Chris Workman, a sales intern at 3M and a rising senior in the ProSales program. “I am taking an active role in my company and industry by managing projects and assignments with real-world business implications.”
Like Workman, ProSales students are given great responsibility in their internships. Through independent sales calls, project management, presentations to senior leadership, pre-call preparation, and business development, students gain experience and exposure to real-world sales roles.
“Each person on my team has been assigned a unique territory to cover and a product to promote during our internship,” said Brittany Verhulst, a sales intern at Oracle and a rising senior in the ProSales program. “This will be a challenge for us, but it has been a great opportunity to learn and grow, as well.” Going far beyond traditional course requirements, students are challenged to take initiative and leverage each experience as a key opportunity for career development.
Oracle Interns
From the Left: Taylor Dixon (senior), Brittany Verhulst (senior)
“I am trying to take advantage of every opportunity that comes at me,” said Oscar Velasquez, a sales intern at Occidental Chemical and a rising senior in the ProSales program. “Whether it is something small like introducing yourself to a colleague or something bigger like speaking to the CEO in the elevator, I understand that every opportunity not taken is an opportunity missed.”
Many ProSales students receive exciting job offers from their internship employers to consider upon graduation. Engaging in internships during college empowers students to solidify career plans well in advance of graduation and alleviates what has become an all-too-typical job scramble towards the end of senior year.
Students will conclude their internships later this summer and will return to campus for fall classes on August 26.
About the Center for Professional Selling
Dedicated to excellence in sales education and based in the university’s Hankamer School of Business, the Center for Professional Selling is recognized as one of the premier global information resources for the sales profession. For more information on the Center for Professional Selling, visit https://hankamer.baylor.edu/prosales.