This is part of Das Tor’s ongoing Internship Insights series, in which second-year students write about their summer internship experiences.
I am a Chinese-Peruvian born young woman who was raised in Lima, Peru. From a young age, my parents have been preparing me for a life abroad by encouraging me to learn different languages. I started learning English at four, French at ten, and Chinese at eleven. I got a bachelor’s degree in Architecture in a Peruvian university. I was part of the one percent of students in my class to finish the major without delays. Being a good student gave me the opportunity to be selected for a study abroad program in France. With these international experiences and other travels, I have been able to be a cultural ambassador for Peru around the world and fulfill my desire to live in a diversified environment.
After college, I got the opportunity to work in several industries. Hospitality was one of my favorites, so I dedicated 5 years of my professional career in it. The industry allowed me to understand the business of service and strategies to exceed client expectations. Likewise, I was able to travel for work and most importantly, learn the principles of project management and supply chain. My most recent projects in the industry have been two multimillion-dollar award winning renovation projects: one spa in Sedona and one in Peru for the Belmond Train.
My Thunderbird story started before taking my first class. I applied to Thunderbird and attended several regional nights and premiere days, where I got to meet T-birds who I now consider close friends. Later on, I was selected to be a 2020 SHARE Fellow, one of the most competitive and prestigious scholarships at Thunderbird. Through the fellowship training, I was able to define what distinguishes me from other candidates, develop my professional social presence, be true to my career goals, and gain self-confidence. In the end, even though I was an international student, I could be competitive in the American job market.
I believe that the SHARE Fellowship, CMC resources, and my first-year classes prepared me for several situations that I faced during my internship. My CMC coaching sessions helped me understand different platforms so that I could find positions tailored to my search. Though Handshake, an ASU job search engine, I was able to find my internship at Honeywell this summer.
I was an Integrated Supply Chain intern for the PACE Program. Getting this position was huge for me, as I was excited to work in a Fortune 100 company that creates all sorts of advanced engineering objects. Honeywell creates airplane engines, thermostats, and energy management systems. It also keeps buildings safe with fire and security hardware and software, among other products. Honeywell is in everything that we can imagine. My role this summer was to help the Health, Safety and Environment team to create a strategy to reach carbon neutrality in Honeywell Building Technologies industries. This position allowed me to expand my technical knowledge, develop leadership skills and contribute to making an impact in our fight towards more sustainable work. I can truthfully say that my experience exceeded my expectations. I not only got to talk to important VPs in the organization, but my job was a truly global position, since I had meetings with leaders in India, Malaysia, Dubai, the UK, etc.
At Honeywell, I gained a lot of experience with working with different people in the organization, which stimulated me to push my limits and be my best at all times. I also learned the 8 behaviors that all Honeywell employees act upon, putting an emphasis on successful execution with speed and precision. These behaviors are: Have a Passion for Winning, Be a Zealot for Growth; Think Big … Then Make It Happen, Act with Urgency, Be Courageous, Go Beyond, Inspire Greatness, and Become Your Best. These behaviors will follow me my whole life.
The greatest lesson I’ve learned from my time at Thunderbird is that dedicating myself to build my own future is paying off! I locked in weekly times on my calendar to research companies and build my network in order to find the perfect fit. My advice to all my T-bird peers is to keep following your dreams!
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