Q&A With Women's Soccer Caroline Altman On Summer Internship At Curtn

As part of Goucher's Landmark Conference Week, women's soccer junior Caroline Altman answers some questions on her summer internship at Curtn, a video date app.

1. Describe your overall internship/volunteer experience?
   My overall experience was positive and fun. My supervisors were very supportive and wanted me to learn as much as I could during my internship. They wanted to make sure I got as much out of the internship as possible instead of just doing busy work. They really allowed me to gain real world experience and expand my knowledge in the digital marketing field. I am extremely grateful that I got an opportunity this summer to grow my marketing knowledge and have this experience during a time when work opportunities are hard to obtain.

2. What have you learned from your experience?
   Through my tasks and assignments, I learned how to build out a marketing plan for a startup company. I also learned how marketing goes hand in hand with other areas of a business organization. Lastly, I learned how to use digital platforms and analytics to drive a new app. This internship taught me a lot work wise, but it also made me discover and learn a few things about myself personally. I discovered that I am actually very good at keeping a professional manner in the work environment. Every email or direction I got, I made sure I replied or acknowledged it as soon as possible. Even after I became more comfortable with my supervisors, I made sure I kept a professional tone in my responses. I learned that I can hold my own when it came to group assignments. I felt confident imputing my suggestions and using knowledge I had even though I was younger and did not have as much experience.

3. How will this internship help you in your career moving forward?
   I want to go into the field of marketing and this internship helped me expand my knowledge in this specific area of business. The internship gave me a very realistic picture of the type of work I will be doing after college. Having professional work experience is great in helping me in my professional career and opening many doors. It allowed my knowledge of marketing in a professional setting to grow. This internship will help me in my career because by having Curtn on my resume I will be able future employers that I have credible professional experience in the field of marketing.

4. What kind of networking have you done at your internship/volunteering?
   Even though my internship was done remotely, I still feel like I was able to network. I was able to connect with those I worked with on LinkedIn. Also, my supervisor is the head of marketing for Curtn so having a connection to her allowed me to meet others in the marketing field. Since, Curtn is a startup I was able to connect with the CEO. In making these connections and keeping in contact with them, I am building my network of people in the business industry that I might be able to turn to for advice or professional help in the future. 

5. Do you have a favorite experience or story? If so, what was it?
   My favorite experience was when I got to support creation of presentation decks and help manage creative updates with the creative team. I organized and worked on the video prompts on a google sheet that the tech team would need in order to then implement a new screen on the app which organizes all of the Curtn video prompts. By working on this assignment, it showed me that the creative side of marketing is just as important as the ad and outreach side. This assignment was my favorite because it was fun to do and was a great way for me to develop my professional relationships by engaging in a team project. I was able to participate in the creative side of marketing and have a lot of input. I was not in the background; I was a part of the team and the success of Curtn. That camaraderie and teamwork was what made working on this assignment my favorite experience.