Internship Experience- Straight Ahead! (Jacki Guillemette- Junior in Mechanical Engineering)

When I first came to college, I thought that my four years up at school were going to be the single main place where I had my experiences until I graduated. But once I arrived on the University Park campus, I quickly realized how valuable an internship experience could be to my engineering career and how much Penn State encourages you to partake in that opportunity.

I had my first internship the summer after my sophomore year of college. I worked at a company called Hamilton Sundstrand, which is a United Technologies Company, headquartered in Windsor Locks, Connecticut. Hamilton provides different systems for aircraft- both commercial and military- such as the air management system, engine systems, etc. They also are the main contractor for NASA’s space suit, which was a really neat thing to see up close. As an intern, I had the chance to do some manufacturing work within the mechanical engine systems department and helped expedite the assembly of jet fuel controls and starters for airplanes.

But this coming summer, now that I have finished my junior year of school, I will be working at a company called ConocoPhillips in Old Ocean, Texas! I am super excited for this opportunity because I have never lived in the south before and I also get to learn all about the oil industry. I have always wanted to go to Texas because I thought it would be a neat place to visit, especially since it is so different from my home- Pennsylvania.

ConocoPhillips is an oil company responsible for providing energy at an international level. I will be working at a refinery helping improve refining and production technologies and efficiencies and learning about the how the refining process works at ConocoPhillips. This will be neat experience and a lot different from my last internship at an aerospace company. It is such a great opportunity and I couldn't be more excited to start it! Being able to live in different locations for a few months and get real engineering experience is such a great way to enhance your learning and your character so I am very happy that I chose Penn State which gives me tons of opportunities like this to choose from.