Student Spotlight – Radhika Bhaskar, ’21 Advice: Be persistent and be intentional when applying to jobs and internships
November 10, 2020
My name is Radhika and I landed an internship at Hive Media in the Revenue Department! I am an undergrad student graduating in 2021, with a double major, BA in Economics and BS in Business Administration and Management.
I am most excited to learn new computer programming skills and various software skills that will help jumpstart my career in Finance. Also, working with the revenue analytics team at the company is such a great learning experience for my future! My company is willing to train me in SQL, Python, and in Advanced Excel skills such as macros.
I strategized landing my internship through Handshake and the company portal. I applied soon after the job was posted with an applicable resume, but didn’t write a cover letter as this was a technical position. I reached out promptly to the Director of Revenue about my internship application and she told me she would confirm an interview with me, but she forgot. After not hearing back from her for a bit, I followed up with her and we got the interview scheduled.
My advice to students seeking a technical internship in analytics, even if they don’t come from an analytical major, is to revamp their resume with projects and courses that can be used as talking points during the interview. For example, my internship originally just wanted math or computer science majors, but I highlighted on my resume how my major in Economics was quantitative and how my classes would help me to in a role where I analyze and pull data all day.
The biggest advice I would give is to be completely honest during the interview process. Don’t exaggerate your skill-set. I personally was very upfront about my lack of technical knowledge going in, and the CEO found that refreshing as I didn’t lie about my strengths. It is okay to say, “I don’t know, but I am more than willing to learn if you will train me” during an interview.