Intern Feature: Olivia Newell

In the summer of 2014, I worked for a manufacturing company called Rogers Corporation in Rogers, CT.  I was hired as an Internal Audit Intern; internal audit department hires two interns.  Their department is very tiny, only two people, the Director of Internal Audit and a Senior Auditor.  I worked very closely with both to help write Design Walkthroughs, which illustrate the business processes.  I collected sample transactions for various departments and tested for material misstatements and even fraud (extremely rare). 

How did you get the position?

I got this position because after my divulging my interest in audit and operations to my family friend he mentioned this internship opportunity in his company.  Soon after I applied, I was interviewed and was offered the position.  Networking and merely explaining your interests goes a long way.

What was your experience like and what did you learn?

I had a wonderful experience at Rogers.  So much so, I am going back for the summer of 2015 and will get the opportunity to travel with the company to Arizona and Belgium and take on more responsibilities from my experience from the previous summer.  While working at Rogers, I was treated as a real employee, not just someone there for the summer and because of this, I was able to sit in on important meetings, given responsibility to contact other employees on my own, and grow meaningful relationships with my managers.  I also learned a lot of hard skills from getting an overview of how a business runs, having an eye for when something may not be right, and of course really enhancing my excel skills.

What advice do you have for other students?

I am an OIM major and this internship is theoretically for accounting majors.  My advice would be to really keep an open mind when it comes to internships and experience.  I find connections every day between operations and auditing.  It all falls under the ability to see how a business operates and making sure that everything is accurate and correct.  It truly goes hand in hand. So my advice would be to find connections and grow skills from all over the business arena.  You never know where you will end up.