Spanish-international trade student turns an idea into an internship

10/7/2020

Have you ever wondered how to transform your interests and passions into an internship?

Emma Graham, a senior studying Spanish-international trade and nursing, took advantage of CLA’s deep alumni network to create her perfect internship opportunity. The liberal arts course LBAR 2010: Career Preparation often hosts speaker panels that feature Auburn alumni who are successful in their chosen field. In Graham’s case, the panel included Stacy Brown, the founder of Chicken Salad Chick.

“While she was talking about her company and how she founded it, my very linguistic mind was asking how language has affected her company’s expansion into the Western and Southern parts of the United States,” Graham recalled.

Graham waited after class to ask the “original chick,” how they were incorporating language considerations into their expansions in places like Texas and Florida – both of which have huge Spanish-speaking populations. During the conversation, Graham offered to translate for them right then and there. After exchanging emails and an interview, Graham got a paid internship.

Using her skills and learning on the job allowed Graham to help translate production materials, corporate office dealings and even the title of the brand.

“I have learned not only more about Spanish, but also more about English, because there are so many different ways to say one thing that you never knew,” Graham said.

Graham is just one example of our students turning their passions into paid internships that jump start successful careers.

“I ended up doing a semester-long internship. I went in thinking it would be just part of my project for school and I got way more out of it than I could've ever expected. I have absolutely loved it.”

Tags: Students World Languages Literatures and Cultures