Intern Feature: Charlotte Hoff

I am interning for the American Council for International Studies (ACIS), and I am a Sales intern.

HOW DID YOU FIND THIS OPPORTUNITY?

I knew the Vice President of Sales at ACIS from my hometown. When I learned that she worked for an educational travel company, I expressed interest in working there because after studying abroad, I am extremely passionate about travel and all that it offers.

WHAT HAS YOUR EXPERIENCE BEEN LIKE AND WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNED?

My experience has been really great. It is such a positive work environment and the people I work with are so hardworking and clearly enjoy what they do. Being able to share my passion for travel with other people, particularly students, has been incredible. I also really enjoy the interactions with passengers, which include students, teachers, and parents, where I can tell at the end of the interaction that I've really helped to make their trip less stressful and more enjoyable. It's nice to see the positive impact of the work in doing. I have learned a lot about the sales side of a company and the skills and strategies to be most effective in generating business for a company. One main thing I have learned is what goes into sales and marketing campaigns and all the behind the scenes work that makes them effective. I have also become better versed in the use of databases as that is where all of the information I work with is stored.

WHAT ADVICE DO YOU HAVE FOR OTHER STUDENTS?

My internship at ACIS has allowed me to have a positive impact on people and the world, and I would encourage others to begin achieving their career goals through an internship. I think some of the best advice I can give is to do work that you enjoy and are passionate about because as I have seen this summer, the more a person enjoys their job, the better quality the work is and the better they fit in with their team.