Jessica Wong

Major: Industrial Design
Minor: Design & Innovation

Product Concept & Design Intern at BraunAbility

How did you learn about this internship opportunity?

Via email from industrial design faculty.

What is a piece of advice you would give someone in your major looking for an internship?

I would suggest looking for a design internship in places where there might not be a design role offered. I think there is a lot of emphasis with finding an internship with a well known company with a solid design team, but there is something very organic and valuable with finding a company that might not have a specific design brand and taking on the role to start developing that for them. Design is so versatile that it shows up everywhere so it's a great learning experience for not only you but a company when you can show them a world of design.

What key responsibilities or projects have you taken on during your internship?

• Brainstorm and develop new product concepts with Product Managers and UI/UX Designers. • Create visualizations and prototypes with user research and feedback to refine concepts. • Support documentation and presentations for cross-functional reviews. • Developed a product portfolio concept on lighting in commercial vehicle settings

How has your internship helped build your skills and clarify your career goals? How did being a Liberal Arts student at Purdue apply to your internship?

I've always been inclined to design products that recognize and assist people in their daily lives and that is everything that BraunAbility is about so one of the things working this internship has really shown me is what a positive experience it is when you work at a company that aligns with your values. It's something that I want to seek for in a company as I advance in my career and goals. Being a CLA student at Purdue has supported me in my interpersonal skills in working at a company like BraunAbility. CLA has given me the opportunities to practice my skills in the classroom through classes like EDPS 315 so that I can use them in the real world and in a company setting.

In what ways has the College of Liberal Arts at Purdue University supported your internship journey? How has your participation in our Job-Ready program specifically aided your professional development?

CLA but specifically my major program really supported me in my internship search journey. I was truly struggling with interviews never really getting anywhere with other companies but the industrial design faculty at Purdue sent out many different internship opportunities which eased the stress of finding roles. Receiving the Job-Ready Award has truly supported me financially in my professional development. Without the award, I would not have been able to easily afford housing for the duration of my internship. The award truly relieved that financial burden and allowed me to put all my focus in producing quality work at my internship.

Could you highlight a standout aspect of your experience in the Job-Ready program that you find particularly noteworthy?

I do appreciate that the Job-Ready program offers a lot of opportunities to get involved, and that the program values and publicly recognizes each and every student involved. Going to a large school like Purdue, sometimes it feels like you can achieve so much but still get lost in the crowd and there aren't many opportunities to stand out so I appreciate that the Job-Ready program helps put students out there for their achievements.