This summer, students from the University of Delaware’s Alfred Lerner College of Business and Economics discovered new avenues for professional preparation and practical hands-on experience. Lerner College students pursued an array of internships, externships and other professional development opportunities. From MBA scholars to undergraduates entering their second year at UD, students across a spectrum of Lerner programs shared their experiences accomplishing an assortment of projects.
Each profile of our “My Summer Internship” series will provide a glimpse into one of these unique experiences and how students applied knowledge from their studies to be successful in the real-world.
Peyton Rautzhan, class of 2025 international business studies major with minors in French and economics, spent her summer as an intern for the Fulbright Commission of Belgium and Luxembourg.
Lerner: How did you find out about this internship? Why did you pursue it?
Rautzhan: For the past year, I have been working with faculty within Lerner to create a new study abroad program to Brussels, Belgium. I sought a partnership with the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB) to host our group of students. The program offered BUAD386 taught by Professor Ryan Sanders, and an internship for credit through VUB. While I was the teaching assistant, I still took the opportunity to pursue an internship in the city.
Lerner: What was the most exciting task or project that you completed?
Rautzhan: The Fulbright Program is an educational exchange program for students and scholars sponsored by the U.S. Department of State. Therefore, I got to help represent the Fulbright Commission, which manages grantees from the U.S., Belgium, Luxembourg, and the European Union, at events at the U.S. Mission to NATO and the U.S. Embassy to the Kingdom of Belgium. It was amazing to meet all the European grantees, learn more about their cultures and backgrounds, and share my perspective with them as an American student. I got to learn firsthand about multilateral and bilateral institutions alongside current and past grantees, and how they support interactions between diplomacy, education, and business.
Lerner: What did you learn from the internship that you think you would not have learned elsewhere?
Rautzhan: I learned how to be an ambassador for my own American culture. I collaborated with Commission staff in creating educational and preparatory material for European grantees preparing to come and study or teach in the U.S. I found out how curious and excited many Europeans are about the U.S. education system (or way of life in general), which was very surprising to me!
Lerner: What is an example of a time where you were able to apply what you’ve learned at Lerner to your role?
Rautzhan: I got to use a combination of soft and hard skills that I have developed throughout my time here at Lerner. During the day I helped organize Fulbright Commission databases dating all the way back to the creation of the program back in the 1950s, and at night I got to attend various networking events around Brussels. My Lerner experience has been essential in that it has provided me with a diversity of classes that reflect life in the workforce.
Lerner: Did you face any challenges during your internship? If so, what was the issue and how did you overcome it?
Rautzhan: Living and working in Belgium during its election time was very interesting! I had to quickly learn about the political system and stay up to date with current events happening in the city, and in the EU as a whole. I lived and worked at the heart of various European Institutions (about 15 minutes from the European Commission, Parliament, and Council buildings), so political talk was pervasive. It was so exciting to learn about the Belgian coalition government and European Parliament elections and watch political changes play out in real-time throughout the summer.
Lerner: What are your career plans, and how do you think the internship will push you closer to your professional goals?
Rautzhan: Living in Brussels for the past two summers has exposed me to the world of international relations. I am looking to pursue graduate studies in international development to continue to pursue my passions for business, diplomacy, and economics.