Tag: student success

ATHERTON, Calif. — From financial planning and artificial intelligence to accounting, sports marketing, public health, entrepreneurship, and luxury real estate, Menlo College students spent the summer putting their education into practice and gaining experience that will help shape their careers after graduation.

As Menlo College prepares to welcome students back for the fall semester, a sample of this year’s internship cohort returns to campus with new professional skills, expanded networks, and a clearer understanding of how their academic experiences translate to the workplace.

Menlo students have multiple pathways to incorporate internships into their degree programs. Business majors complete a required six-unit internship curriculum, while Psychology majors can apply six elective units toward an internship experience. The Office of Internships & Career Services (OICS) supports students throughout the process with career coaching, internship preparation, and professional development.

“At Menlo College, internships are where students translate their full experience—from academics, clubs, events, and athletics—into real professional impact,” said Elijah Valdeolivar, Senior Associate Director of Employer Relations & Career Services. “Every internship gives students the opportunity to empower themselves, build meaningful relationships, and create momentum in their chosen field. Watching students return to campus with a greater connection to themselves, the world around them, and their future is one of the most rewarding parts of our work.”

This summer’s experiences demonstrate just how many forms that professional preparation can take.

Building a Career in Accounting

Accounting student Ronielle Bico spent the summer in the Assurance Technology Practice at PwC in San Francisco, working alongside audit professionals supporting quarterly financial reporting.

Her responsibilities included reviewing SEC filings such as 10-K and 10-Q reports, verifying financial information, reconciling internal controls, assisting with revenue recognition processes, and maintaining key audit documents.

Bico credited Menlo’s accounting faculty—including Professors Du, Yeh, and Harsh—as well as the Accounting Club with helping prepare her for the fast-paced professional environment and giving her the foundational knowledge she needed to contribute from the start.

Turning Data Into Business Insights

As an Analyst Intern at TechEquity AI, Ananyaa Vengurlekar spent the summer transforming complex datasets into information that project managers could use.

She gathered, cleaned, and analyzed data while developing dashboards and reports using Tableau, Excel, and Google Sheets, helping make performance metrics more accessible while maintaining data integrity.

For Vengurlekar, the process of securing the internship proved valuable in its own right. Working firsthand in Menlo’s Internship and Career Services office gave her a different perspective on navigating a competitive internship search.

“By utilizing the career resources Menlo College provides, I learned how to bounce back from the ‘no’s,’ refine my approach, and build the professional confidence needed to secure this role,” she said.

Making an Impact Through Public Health

Martha Zurita-Ortez served as an intern with the Santa Cruz County Safe Drug Use and Overdose Prevention Program (SUOPP), supporting the county’s harm reduction and public health efforts.

Zurita-Ortez conducted community outreach, distributed lifesaving and essential resources including Narcan, wound care supplies, food, water, and tents, provided overdose safety and public health education, and connected participants with local healthcare, housing, and financial resources.

The experience reinforced a lesson she had already begun learning through her time at Menlo College.

“Being a student-athlete at Menlo showed me that not all things can be taught in a classroom, rather they must be experienced,” Zurita-Ortez said. “You can’t create an experience, you must undergo it.”

Bringing an International Perspective to Luxury Real Estate

For Juliette Chabrier, an internship in Paris connected experiences on both sides of the Atlantic.

Originally from France, Chabrier came to Menlo College for the opportunity to study International Business in Silicon Valley. After completing her first three years at Menlo, she returned to France for the summer and spent nearly three months interning with Coldwell Banker Paris in the city’s luxury real estate market.

Chabrier assisted with property valuations, administrative follow-up, property listings, and preparing apartments for client visits. Working with an international clientele also reinforced the importance of discretion and careful listening.

“Selling the Parisian dream takes more than a beautiful property. I learned that the real work is in the details, relationships, and trust behind it,” Chabrier said.

Returning home also allowed Chabrier to approach France from a new professional perspective, applying three years of International Business education and experiences in Silicon Valley to a French workplace serving clients from around the world.

“Menlo College has encouraged me to think globally while gaining the practical experience to turn my goals into a career,” she said. “I’m coming back for my final year with more experience, more confidence, and a clearer idea of where I want to go next. To me, that’s what being Future Ready Now is all about.”

Chabrier now returns to Menlo for her final year with plans to complete her International Business degree while working toward earning her California real estate license. Her goal is to combine her roots in France, education in Silicon Valley, and professional experience in Paris to pursue a career in California’s luxury real estate market.

Marketing a Growing Sports Organization

Kiana Lew spent the summer supporting Momentum Sports Facility in South San Francisco and its partnership with Kamikaze Volleyball Club, putting her marketing education to work in a growing sports organization.

While Momentum Sports Facility remained in the planning stages, Lew focused much of her work on marketing for Kamikaze Volleyball Club. She developed marketing strategies, created photos and videos, designed promotional materials, and managed content across Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and the club’s website.

She also helped develop website content, including the homepage, program descriptions, coach biographies, navigation structure, and other elements of the user experience.

Lew said Menlo’s marketing coursework gave her a foundation in communication and business strategy while teaching her how to understand audiences, tailor content for different platforms, and use constructive feedback to strengthen her work.

Entrepreneurship in Action

For Jessica Oseguera Santoyo, an internship with Northwestern Mutual expanded her understanding of what entrepreneurship can look like in practice.

As an Entrepreneurship major, Oseguera Santoyo initially associated professional opportunities in her field with startups or launching a company. At Northwestern Mutual, however, she had the opportunity to build her own client base, manage her schedule, and take ownership of growing her business within an established organization.

Her work included helping build flexible financial plans for clients with different personal, professional, and financial goals. While working alongside mentors and financial advisors, she also developed experience building client relationships and taking responsibility for her own professional success.

“My experience showed me that entrepreneurship can look different,” Oseguera Santoyo said. “Even though I worked with mentors and financial advisors, I also learned what it takes to build relationships with clients and be responsible for my own success. Those are valuable entrepreneurial skills that I can use in any career.”

Learning the Business of Financial Planning

Fellow Northwestern Mutual intern Andrue Perkins also gained hands-on experience in financial services, applying skills he developed through Menlo’s small classes and close faculty relationships.

His responsibilities included meeting with clients, conducting financial fact-finding conversations, learning about risk management and insurance solutions, and strengthening his professional networking and relationship-building skills.

“Menlo College has given me the confidence to step into a professional environment and apply what I’m learning in the classroom,” Perkins said. “The small class sizes and supportive professors have helped me strengthen my communication, critical thinking, and problem-solving skills, which I use every day during my internship.”

For Perkins, the summer provided more than exposure to an industry—it also offered an opportunity to see how those skills translate into serving clients.

“The internship has given me real-world exposure to financial planning and client service while helping me grow professionally,” he said.

Bringing Experience Back to Menlo

The industries, responsibilities, and locations varied, but each internship gave Menlo students something that cannot be replicated entirely in a classroom: the opportunity to put their skills to work in real professional environments.

They reviewed financial statements and analyzed datasets. They worked directly with clients and community members. They developed marketing campaigns, helped people navigate financial decisions, supported public health efforts, and learned the intricacies of luxury real estate halfway around the world.

Just as importantly, they discovered more about themselves—the kind of work they find meaningful, the skills they still want to develop, and the careers they hope to pursue.

Now, they bring those experiences back to Menlo College.

As the new academic year begins, the lessons students gained over the summer will become part of what they contribute to classrooms, clubs, teams, and the broader campus community. Their internships represent not only preparation for what comes after college, but another step in becoming Future Ready Now.

Media inquiries: pr@menlo.edu

About Menlo College

Located in the heart of Silicon Valley, Menlo College is a small, residential liberal arts and business college dedicated to preparing students to be Future Ready Now. Through a highly personalized educational experience that combines rigorous academics, applied learning, mentorship, and direct access to one of the world’s most innovative economies, Menlo College helps students convert education into measurable career and life outcomes. For more information, please visit our website or contact pr@menlo.edu