First Gen Internship Spotlight: Nathalie Rodriguez ’24

First-Gen Internship Spotlights offer insights into the experiences of students at RWU as they navigate their unique industries and strive to achieve meaningful employment opportunities in their undergraduate experiences. Check out this First-Gen Internship Spotlight from Nathalie Rodriguez as she provides insights into her internship experience!

Question 1 – What is your name?

Nathalie Rodriguez

Question 2 – What is your major?

Business Management

Question 3 – What is your internship title and employer name?

Management Trainee Intern at Enterprise Holdings.

Question 4 – Why were you initially interested in this internship?

It was brought to my attention from the career center as being one of the best internship programs.

Question 5 – How did you find your internship?

Mary from the career center mentioned it to me and I later on seen a posting on Indeed and decided to apply.

Question 6 – What did you do in this internship? Provide examples of tasks, projects, etc. and feel free to brag about any accomplishments you are particularly proud of!

At Enterprise I learned how they successfully rent cars to customers. Along with renting cars, the employees had a friendly competition on the extra sales we’ve made. I am proud of my customer service because even as a new intern, I ranked number one for excelling in getting customer service surveys and having a positive attitude.

Question 7 – Has this internship helped you work toward your future career goals? If so, how?

This internship helped me figure out what work environment I thrive in which is an in-office, close knit environment, where I can create professional relationships with my coworkers.

Question 8 – What was your biggest lesson learned or takeaway from the internship? (Specifically, from a 1st Gen lens)

The biggest lesson I learned from my internship as someone wanting to start my own business is that customer service is everything. You don’t need much experience because you’ll learn along the way and if you focus on customer satisfaction the reputation your brand has will bring you a long way.

Question 10 – What advice would you give to someone interested in a similar internship opportunity?