Industrial & Systems Engineering Internship Story: Ernst and Young

Kylie Seferyn

Industrial & Systems Engineering

What company did you intern with and where are they located?

This past summer, I interned with Ernst and Young (EY) in Atlanta, Georgia. I was a Technology Consulting Intern in the Technology Solutions Delivery competency.

How did you identify and apply for your internship? Are there any specific resources you used to find the opportunity (i.e. Handshake, career fairs, other recruitment events)?

I found it helpful to attend career fairs and recruitment events in order to network and learn more about potential career paths. I was encouraged by some of my contacts to pursue opportunities in the consulting sector. The consultants I spoke with indicated that students with industrial engineering degrees excel in a consulting role due to their foundation of problem solving and analytical skills. I proactively reached out to consultants via LinkedIn as well as through my friends and family network. Ultimately, I identified five companies that I wanted to apply for intern positions.

What was the application process like?

The application process included a zoom call with a recruiter as well as an online application where I was able to share my experience and skills. I was invited to participate in the final round of interviews which included 2 traditional interview formats and a case study. The traditional interviews were conducted by people with various backgrounds and included both general resume and situational questions. The final interview was comprised of a case study that outlined a business problem with follow-up questions requiring me to demonstrate my analytical and reasoning skills.

Tell us about your internship experience. What types of tasks and projects did you engage in? Was there a particular project or part of the experience you learned the most from?

As a Technology Consultant intern, I was placed on a Technology Solutions Delivery team whose client was a cruise line. This cruise line wanted to redo their entire internal system including the organization of maintenance and inventory. During my internship, the team was in the testing phase of this new software, and I oversaw the managing, organizing, and fixing of bugs within the system. A large part of my internship was also focusing on networking within EY. I was able to meet with many people throughout the company to understand the wide range of consulting work, learn about different competencies, and make connections for the future.

In what ways did this internship help you prepare for your next destination after Auburn?

This internship allowed me to better understand how to problem solve on a bigger scale than I practiced in my classes. I was able to gain knowledge about the organization as well as gauge how my engineering skills could be used on a technology project. I learned about managing client relationships and expectations, cooperative project management, and how to effectively communicate across business lines. I will be working for EY as a Technology Consulting Associate starting in the fall, so my internship also allowed me to make connections within the company before starting full time.

In what ways did your coursework or other experiences at Auburn prepare you for your internships? Are there specific topics or skills you learned from classes that you put into practice on the job?

Many of my courses prepared me for my internship by teaching me how to problem solve. Some of the most impactful classes included Stochastic Operations Research, Deterministic Operations Research, and Manufacturing Systems. While the direct formulas taught in these classes did not translate to the work I was doing, the ability to deeply understand a problem and use different techniques to solve it was very beneficial. I also found that the leadership positions I held outside of engineering taught me how to effectively communicate, connect with others, and stay organized with many tasks at hand.

Do you have any advice for other students looking for internships like yours?

My biggest piece of advice when searching for internship positions is to be confident in your abilities and everything that Auburn engineering has taught you. I was worried that I may not be successful interviewing with large consulting companies who have very competitive hiring processes. However, throughout the interview process, I found that my experiences at Auburn had prepared me for what was ahead. Don’t be afraid to sell yourself and the skills you have worked so hard to develop. For consulting specifically, they are looking for good communicators who can apply their technical skills to big problems.