This week our Featured BuckyNet Intern (FBI) is Carissa Levash. Carissa spent her summer working with Pioneer Hi-Bred as the KD Sales Representative Intern. In the fall Carissa will start her senior year and is majoring in Dairy Science. In addition, she is pursuing a Business Certificate to compliment her major.
Major: Dairy Science with a Business Certificate
Year In School: Senior
Internship Title: KD Sales Rep Intern
Company/Organization: Pioneer Hi-Bred
Q: What is a typical day like for you as an intern?
A: I did not have a routine that I did on a typical day because each day of my internship was something new for me. Most of my days involved traveling around the state of Wisconsin talking to a number of Pioneer Sales Reps that just started with the company in the past 3 years about their experience thus far and informing them about a new training program that would help them be successful. In addition, I also was able to meet with growers and gather testimonials that will be published in marketing tools this coming year.
Q: What is your favorite aspect of your internship?
A: I have enjoyed my internship so much and one of my favorite parts would be traveling around the whole state of Wisconsin meeting numerous Pioneer employees and talking with growers.
Q: How did you find your internship and what was the application process?
A: I found out about my internship through CALS Career Services and also heard about it from a past intern with Pioneer.
Q: Are there any skills you have learned in your internship that you haven’t learned in the classroom that have prepared you for the professional world? A: After my internship I can definitely say I learned a lot more skills in my internship then I would have in the classroom. I improved my overall communication skills by traveling around by myself and meeting with all different types of people. In addition, I have improved my overall agronomy knowledge by learning hands on from the agronomists, sales reps, and account managers. By not being out in the fields first hand, I would have never been able to see the different types of hybrids, diseases, and nutrient deficiencies that I have been able to see through my wonderful internship.
Q: Do you have any advice for students who are interested in finding a similar internship?
A: My advice would be to keep an open mind and be willing to branch out to try something new. I never thought I would have been an intern for an agronomy company after going to school for dairy science, but in the end I learned so much and was able to broaden my horizons. Pioneer is a very respectful company that treats its employees very well and if I could intern again, I would do it again in a heart-beat. Furthermore you are only in college once, so it is important when given an opportunity to take on an internship to go ahead and make the most of it, you never know what could happen in the end.
