Junior, Caleb Coelho (Political Science major) completed a Digital Marketing internship during the Summer 2023 semester with HomeGoods for TJX Companies Inc. Read on to learn about his experience!
What was your internship? The internship I participated in this summer was a digital marketing position for HomeGoods at TJX Companies Inc.
Why were you initially interested in this internship? My interest in working at TJX companies Inc. came from four years of prior experience at a Marshalls location near me. I really enjoyed the welcoming environment that Marshall’s provided and this gave me a great outlook on how the TJX corporate office would treat prospective employees.
How did you find your internship? My internship experience was very rewarding. I learned a lot about marketing, and about the corporate environment in general. I really got to exercise my ability to make connections and network with the people around me. I even left the internship with a couple new friends.
What did you do as part of your internship? For my internship, I worked with the HomeGoods brand marketing team. During this time, I helped create social media marketing campaigns centered around initiatives such as back to campus, upcoming holidays, and special events sponsored by HomeGoods. In the final weeks of my internship, I worked on a collaborative, final capstone project in which myself and the other interns created a gifting-giving holiday marketing campaign targeted at Gen Z.
Has this internship helped you work towards your future career goals? If so, how? This internship has helped me work towards future career goals. I really see myself working at TJX in the future because the company gave me a great outlook on how inclusive the corporate environment can be. Everyone I crossed paths with was so friendly, welcoming, and understanding.
What was your biggest lesson/takeaway from the internship? The biggest take away I got from my internship experience was the value of forming meaningful connections. I truly feel that my internship experience was as much, if not more, about networking and meeting new people as it was about marketing. I also learned to trust my own insights and to be confident in my contributions to team projects.
What advice would you give to someone interested in a similar internship opportunity? For somebody looking for a similar opportunity, I would say you should do as much research about the company as possible and never be afraid to ask questions, especially if you’re interested in a certain department or discipline. I learned a lot about TJX just from asking meaningful questions. I really wanted to know if the values of the company aligned with my interests… It truly makes all the difference. Beyond this, recruiters love to see that you have a genuine interest in specific aspects of companies. As such, I would recommend bringing meaningful and specific questions to events like information sessions or one-on-one meetings with recruiters. Asking good questions and showing a genuine interest is what truly gave me an edge up.
Want to share your experiences during an internship? Email Kevin (kdeeb@rwu.edu) in the CCPD to learn more about sharing with us!
