Internship Spotlight: Emily Paulin '15
Intern: Emily Paulin '15
Major: English
Internship: The Da Vinci Center
Working for a Purpose
College internships are a perfect way to experiment with potential career paths before becoming a graduate. This last spring Emily Paulin 16’ landed an internship at the Da Vinci Center in Allentown, where she realized she wanted to work with people and work towards a cause.
The Da Vinci Center is a science center that connects science to life through interactive exhibits, academic programs, and science shows. Paulin was specifically in change of running the Center’s Hall of Fame Gala event, “I was in charge of getting all of the auction items for the silent and live auction, creating the auction booklet, and wrote the student and teacher award winner biographies for the gala booklet,” said Paulin.
Towards the middle of last year, Dr. Joyce Hinnefeld of the English department sent an email to the English majors, regarding an opportunity at the Da Vinci Center. Paulin immediately applied for the position and ultimately became the Gala intern.
Working in a professional environment, Paulin quickly learned how to adjust to obstacles, ”My supervisor left in at the end of February, so I had to learn years of work in a limited amount of time. It was a difficult adjustment, however, I grew really close with the people I worked with and was able to form great relationships with them.”
Although working as an event planner or manager may not be Paulin’s dream she did take away a lot from the experience, “I loved coming in every Wednesday and Friday and hearing the kids screaming and laughing of happiness. I was also able to actually see the kids enjoying themselves and having a blast at the center, making me feel like I was working for a purpose. I know that no matter what I do post- ɫɫ, I want to be working with people who genuinely love what they do and want to help others.”