This blog series offers a glimpse of reSET’s summer internship program in entrepreneurship. The series will aim to capture interns’ experiences, both with reSET’s curriculum and the startups that they are working alongside. Our first blogger, Andrew Kachmar, is a rising junior at Trinity College.

Even before I started looking at colleges, I knew I wanted to start my own business. The idea of getting to work creatively, and on my own schedule, really appealed to me. I started to base my options on those principles. The only issue…I didn’t even know what sort of things interested me. I needed more exposure. So I decided to pursue a liberal arts degree at Trinity College, where I am majoring in Political Science with a minor in Entrepreneurial Studies.

I learned about reSET through one of my professors/mentors at school who mentioned it was a great opportunity for anyone looking to get involved in entrepreneurship. I signed up that day. Since then, I have had the privilege of working with two incredible companies: C3 Medical Device Consulting and Real Impact. Before the internship program started, I wasn’t sure what I could contribute. But I have thoroughly enjoyed helping them with their marketing/finance work and believe my passion for the “startup life” has been confirmed.

Another aspect of the internship that I have enjoyed is working on my own business ideas. Before reSET, I would occasionally write down some concepts in a notebook and then stop because I wouldn’t know where to go from there. The professional development training that we are receiving gives me confidence in my ability to analyze the demand for a product/service and then take the necessary actions to make the idea a reality. For example, I have been working on a mobile application to help improve community involvement through the reSET Innovation Challenge, the internship’s culminating event that’s attended by New England entrepreneurs and investors. The other eight interns and I have been tasked with conceiving a startup that solves a problem or serves a market that’s not being adequately addressed. I am encouraged by the progress we’ve been able to make so far and look forward to our launch date.

For me, this summer is all about personal growth. Prior to being here, I had no real-world experience and very raw skills. However, I have been able to strengthen many of these abilities, such as digital marketing, financial analysis, writing, product and customer analysis, and many more. I am most excited that I have finally found a career path that interests me and I look forward to continuing such work in future jobs to come.