Bogdan, Bentley Share Their International Internship Experiences

Dukes LEAD partnered with the Center for Global Engagement on campus and were able to find virtual international internships for two student-athletes. Isabella Bogdan of Women's Cross Country/Outdoor Track & Field and Patrick Bentley from Football stepped up and added more to their plate this semester in order to still gain real-world experience even during strange CoVID times. These two student-athletes are continuously investing time and a strong commitment to their academic studies and future career success.

Read about the experiences Isabella Bogdan and Patrick Bentley gained from this opportunity!

Who is your internship with and what do they do?

IB: My internship is with Villarreal C.F, which is a professional soccer team in Villarreal, Spain. I am working with their International Department.

PB: My internship is with Management Around Sports (MAS) and they are a sports consultant firm with great knowledge in the Fitness, Wellness, and Sports Industry. They work with foreign sports mainly using rackets.

What was the process like to get this internship? Who was involved in making these connections?

IB: I got an email from Meredith Crawford letting me know about this opportunity. Shortly after, I had a meeting with the head of Study Abroad, Taryn Roberts, where she gave more information on the virtual internships. After that, I went on and applied and waited for my placement site. They both were very helpful, and it helped knowing that they are flexible with schedules since I am a student-athlete. It also helped knowing that another student-athlete was doing the internship as well.

PB: The process was very different from getting a normal internship. I had to reach out to a company and send my resume and cover letter, and then waited a week or so to hear back to proceed to the next steps.

Discuss your internship and the things that you are doing? What does a typical day look like?

IB: Because the internship is online, I don't really have what a typical day looks like. The first thing I did for the internship was get a deep understanding of the company, what it does, its competitors, social media, etc. The things I usually do is find ways to better the marketing in the U.S. I am currently working on a project where I am developing a marketing strategy with a low budget, while looking at its competitors and their marketing strategy.

PB: My internship is actually very interesting. I had no clue what I was going to be doing with Management Around Sports (MAS). I have done a few projects with research in expanding the health and fitness market into Mexico. A typical day for me is mainly doing research and discussing with my supervisors about how the research is going and where I can look for more helpful information.

What skills are you developing in this internship that you feel will help you in your future career?

IB: I am developing marketing skills. I am also learning how to create different reports for projects and go into depth on the information. Also, learning how to better look for research and where to look for specific research. This will help me in the future with any job opportunity.

PB: The skills I am developing in this internship that will benefit my future career are my relationship-building skills, communication skills, researching skills, and techniques. These skills will help me in my future career because being able to build a relationship with a potential business partner or coworker is key to success. Having good communication is key to life, and different research techniques can only help me better my findings when I have to do research for a project.

How does this internship coordinate with what you want to do in the future? What would you like to get out of this experience?

IB: I am working for a professional sports team where I am working on marketing strategies for the company and their international department. So, this internship coordinates with what I want to do in the future because my goal is to work in professional sports or in the NCAA. This gives me the opportunity to learn a different branch of sports and recreation. I don't want to do marketing, but it is nice to learn and gain some experience of it.

PB: At first, I had no clue how this internship would benefit me in the future. But in reality, it has really opened my eyes to what I would want my daily business life to be like. Having less stress because if employees are happy, then the production will be higher. Business in Spain is completely different from in the States. The way workers interact with each other, the way they don't take working lunches, and the way they leave work at work and don't bring it home are just a few ways Spain's business is different from the States.

How are you balancing your internship, schoolwork, and athletic schedule?

IB: It is all about time management and setting priorities. Some days I am not able to work on my internship project, which is completely okay because my advisor does know that I am a student-athlete. Every day I write a to do list and try my best to prioritize assignments due that day then work on everything else. After the to do list, I then look at my schedule to see when my classes, practice, or any meetings are and try to set times when I plan on working on certain assignments.

PB: Balancing my internship, school work, and athletic schedule isn't as difficult as I would expect it to have been if it was in person. I think the virtual part of this is what makes balancing it a little easier. My two supervisors know and understand that I am an athlete and that my athletic schedule is very time-consuming, but I also told them I am very determined to make sure I can help them as much as possible. I have asked to be given more work at times and they are willing to give me some and don't rush me for deadlines.

What has been the biggest change during CoVID from your season last year?

IB: The biggest change during CoVID-19 from my season last year was being able to hang out with my teammates and other friends. It is very hard not being able to do any team bonding. Also, online classes have been a huge challenge.
PB: The biggest change during CoVID-19 from last season is the zoom meetings. Also, not being able to be around my teammates.

What was the biggest change you experienced from high school sports to college sports?

IB: My biggest change I experienced from high school to college sports is my injury. I played three sports and always would go from practice to practice and compete with no injuries. So, coming to college and dealing with an injury early on and still dealing with it, over a year later, has been tough mentally and physically.

PB: The biggest change between high school and college sports was the time commitment. In high school, you really only had practice and lifting. In college, you have lifting, practice, film, meetings, and extra work.

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