For many University students, the summer break is a time to catch up on sleep, visit with family and friends, or work to pick up some extra cash. Eller MBAs, however, spend the time between their first and second years taking on challenging and exciting professional internships with companies across the nation and sometimes the globe. This year, Brent Choquette spent his time in Seattle, Washington, working for a home-grown entrepreneurial venture, Mama LaCamera's Food Products which makes excellent all-natural spaghetti sauce among other food products.

Lisa McCue, Carolyn Johnson and Brent Choquette (left to right) were among the Eller MBA students who held internships this summer.

This unique opportunity to work with a startup company in the process of developing a brand image and strategy allowed Brent to gain a variety of experiences–identifying target stores for Mama LaCamera's products, helping develop financial proformas, and positioning the company's products based on an in-depth competitor analysis. In Brent's words, "The experience was extremely practical and exposed me to the broad range of tasks required in not only managing a brand, but also in the creation of a new venture."

In Eden Prairie, Minnesota, just outside of the Twin Cities, Lisa McCue interned as a marketing and business development analyst for CIMA LABS, INC., Lisa's self-described "well-rounded" internship provided her an exceptional introduction to the pharmaceutical industry, specifically the drug delivery sector. While she primarily worked for the director of business development, Lisa was fortunate to interact with all of the executive officers as well. Besides great projects and experience, they also had her try enough placebos to last a lifetime (luckily they were tasty).

Meanwhile, on the east coast, Carolyn Johnson had an internship at IBM in Durham, North Carolina, working in the Integrated Supply Chain Procurement organization. Obtaining this internship was a challenge for Carolyn because IBM currently does not recruit supply chain students from The University of Arizona. She was determined, however, and through networking and numerous cold calls, succeeded in obtaining the internship. Carolyn used her internship to promote the Eller MBA program: one of the hiring managers was an Arizona State University graduate, and Carolyn was able to impress her with information about the quality and variety of supply chain-related courses that are offered in the Eller program. The resources and training provided by the Eller School's Office of Career Development, combined with Carolyn's persistence, helped her to land the internship that she wanted, and gave her the opportunity to promote the Eller School as well.

Both the Undergraduate Programs and the Eller Graduate School of Management are always seeking internship opportunities for our students. If your company has opportunities available, please contact Lauren Oviatt at (520) 621-3932, or loviatt@eller.arizona.edu (Undergraduate Programs); or Trina Callie at (520) 621-4962, or tcallie@eller.arizona.edu (MBA Program).