Jessica Albright: From Intern to Full Time
Written by: Jessica Albright - PC12
A little over two years ago, I attended my first career fair
in search of an internship for the following summer. Most of the companies were
looking to hire juniors for internships and seniors for full-time positions
after graduation. I figured there was no harm in shaking a few hands and
passing out a few resumes to possibly get a foot in the door somewhere. Edward
Jones, a financial services firm headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri, caught
my eye and was one of the few companies I had an awesome conversation with.
Talking to the recruiter was fairly easy and effortless since I had met him the
night before at a recruiter happy hour put on by my business fraternity, Alpha
Kappa Psi. I was confident going to their booth and handing over my resume, and
hopeful it would be enough to land an interview.
After going through interviews, I got a call in November
from the recruiter offering me an internship in the Human Resources department.
I started in June 2014, where I was assigned a variety of projects throughout
the summer needed by the department. Additionally, the internship program at
Edward Jones requires the interns to participate in a variety of events such as
workshops, speakers, and breakfast with company leaders. We were also fortunate
enough to be treated with a Cardinals baseball game in the Edward Jones suite.
At the end of the summer, I was able to interview for
internships at the firm in different departments the following summer, and I
was offered a second internship in the Branch Development department. This past
summer, I participated in similar internship events with the company while
working in my new division. I served as recruiter scheduling and interviewing
candidates, worked on a project that decreased lead-time in the hiring process,
and conducted research to lower attrition rates for the firm’s branch office
administrators in the first year. Edward Jones cares about both employees and
clients, unlike most firms in the industry, which I most definitely value and
appreciate. The culture was enjoyable and the people incredible from whom I
learned a lot from. Both of these internships gave me phenomenal experiences
that I know will be utilized in the future no matter where my career may take
me.
