Intern of the Week: Anurag Varshney

Mon, 27 Nov 2023 18:31:30 -0500
engineering-management, intern, intern-of-the-week, internship, iotw, product-engineering

Name: Anurag Varshney

Pronouns: He/Him

Semester of Internship: Summer 2023

Major: Engineering Management

Current Class Level: Master's Student

This semester I completed a(n)...: Internship

Internship, Co-op, or Research Site (Company/Organization Name): Baltimore Aircoil Company

Location of the Organization (City, State): Jessup, Maryland

Title of position: Product Engineering Intern

Tell us about your internship, co-op, or research opportunity, including your day-to-day responsibilities:

The way of working defines the future of the organization and with the pace of change in technology, this has become an imperative part of any organization.

My role at BAC helped me deep dive into SharePoint document-sharing practices that can change the outlook of document-sharing practices across the organization. Collaborating with suppliers and protecting intellectual property is one of the major challenges organizations face. But, after a lot of user interviews and brainstorming, we focused on redefining the structure, refining the sharing practices, and preparing the work instructions. With 3 successful pilot sites and 3 additional sites, we ended the project with flying colors ahead of schedule. The name of the project, "Aurora," did justice to the dawn of a new way of working and collaboration amongst 14 engineering teams and 27 product teams.

Day to day activity: My usual day consisted of a lot of meetings to gather requirements and feedback from the users. Researching SharePoint best practices and prioritizing the needs and wants of the users following MoSCoW and other prioritization techniques comprised the rest of time.

Describe the process of obtaining your position. When did you hear of the position and submit your application?

I will break down the process of obtaining a position into 3 categories.

Resume Preparation:

I started applying for summer internships in September 2022 one month after landing in the US but I started updating my resume in the first week here in the US. I got my resume reviewed by the UMBC Career Center, professionals in the industry, peers, and professors to get a good amount of feedback.

Lead Generation:

Applied to 400+ roles and didn't hear back from any of the recruiters. No emails or interviews were bothering me a lot. I changed my strategy to mass applying to a focused approach by following a 5-step process:

1. Understanding the job requirements clearly (at least read it thrice)

2. Ensuring all the skills required are well catered in the resume

3. Tailoring the resume accordingly

4. Networking: This is the key. I connected with recruiters, employees, and alumni to understand more about the role, and culture and asked to connect with relevant stakeholders.

5. Consistent Follow-up: This is the difference between average and excellent candidates. They keep on following unless they get some kind of answer.

Cracking Interviews:

Keep your seat belt tightened because this is where the journey starts taking off. This is not something that could be learned in a single day or a week, this takes time. But two words that can make the difference are: environment and practice.

Stay connected with fellow colleagues who are applying for jobs and learn from each other. The tools, platforms, and opportunities keep on changing, but staying in the environment provides the motivation and guidance as and when required.

Last but not least, keep practicing; tools like Big Interview provided by UMBC for free were the game changer in this whole journey.

What resources did you use to find your current experience?

UMBC Career Center, Career Fairs, Networking events (UMBC Connects, Info Sessions, Arts With a Purpose, etc.), Alumni Networking, Student Organizations/Scholar Groups, Faculty Connections, Handshake, LinkedIn or other social media

What have you enjoyed the most about your position and organization?

Cross-functional collaboration

How do you believe you have made an impact through your work?

Three teams started using the templates I created for them, and there were three additional teams looking forward to it. In product management, we discuss customer satisfaction, repeat customers, and conversion rates. I served three customers (internal teams) and there were four other teams asking for it. This shows the impact that was created in just three months of time.

What advice would you give to another student who is seeking an internship or similar experience?

Research, practice, network. Just keep doing this and that's it.

Please provide a short reflection or quote about what you liked most about your position / earning internship credit / working with the Career Center.

Consistency differentiates the average from the excellent. Just do it and keep doing it, believe in the process and fantastic results will be waiting for you.

Do you want the chance to be the next Intern of the Week? Fill out this form to be considered!