Laura Loomis
MC seniors continue to look into the future by applying to colleges and looking for opportunities to get a jumpstart in their field of interest. For eight students, this life preparation was furthered with their selection for an internship at Northrop Grumman, a federal defense contracting agency. Seniors Steven Huynh-Tran, Kelley Broderick, Trevor Howat, Niha Bhaskar, Johny Tran, Lauren Monroe, Vincent Tran, Kaleb Sverdrup, and Garrett Swelgin were accepted from MC. Students from Westview, Del Norte, Poway, and Rancho Bernardo were also selected to constitute the 39 interns.
“My friend did [the internship] last year and she really enjoyed it,” Bhaskar said. “She came back one time with a printed slip of her name and it was really cool and it got me hooked on seeing what this internship is about. This year when I heard about it, I automatically applied, and I’m really excited to get started.”
The selective internship, slated to start up in the first week of February, entailed a lengthy application process rom interested students.
“We had to supply a packet of information which includes supplemental letters of recommendation and a resume,” Huynh-Tran said. “You also needed to provide your transcript, your attendance transcript, and your schedule.”
Exact details of job requirements are up in the air, but eager applicants hold similar hopes of furthering their pursuit of a career in a STEM field.
“I was interested in the business aspect and the computer science aspect, and I know other people were interested in other aspects,” Bhaskar said. “This is exactly the field I want to be in, exactly what I want to do when I get older, so it’s definitely exposing me to that sort of environment.”
Interning for a well known company will further students’ understanding of how their knowledge can be used in life.
“[The internship] will give me some experience in the workplace and it will help me get future internships at the company and potentially a job at the company,” Howat said. “It will give me some insight on how to apply my major in the real world.”
Having background with a business elevates the prospect of an individual when it comes to applying for a new job, and this internship will certainly be that extra aid for these students in the future.
“For a lot of jobs, they claim to be entry level, but it’s actually not,” Broderick said. “You need to have experience and this is good experience to have now instead of later.”
Students will be shadowing a mentor in their field of interest for ten hours a week from Monday to Thursday. They can look forward to this time in a workplace environment as a jumpstart for their future careers.
“Northrop Grumman is among the big names and working for the government would get me in the doorway for other government agencies such as NASA or the CIA,” Huynh-Tran said. “It also gives me a sense of accomplishment and confidence heading into college. An internship at Northrop Grumman will give me the necessary background to excel in my career.”
MC shines bright as these eight students put in the extra time to kickstart their future in a world of competitive opportunity.
