Meng took the chance to revisit his childhood dream.
“I’ve always wanted to be a designer. When I was little, I used to get praised a lot for my artwork. But as I went through my high school years, I realize there are many other people out there who are also talented. Seeing their artwork makes me jealous! Coming here, I can see myself improving. I’m starting to develop this skill of digital art—I might even be better at digital art compared to hand-drawn illustration.
STEP-UP had a list of questions to help place interns. There was one question: Do you have any experience with Adobe software programs? And I said, ‘A little experience’. So I got selected for this internship with very little experience. But hey, I learned a lot. If I were to go back to answering that question, now I could fill in the bubble that says ‘Experienced’.”
I am…
// 17
// Dedicated, risk taking, friendly
// A graduate of Patrick Henry High School
I dream of…
// Finding a career in computer engineering, music, or Asian languages
Collaborating to come up with new business ideas.
He embodied the value of Collaboration.
“Being put into teams at Rêve gave me the confidence to show my artwork. I kind of lose my confidence if I don’t have anyone to show my work to and get recommendations or help. So working in a team was very beneficial. That’s what really helped me grow. And especially having Avery as my senior intern. He’s probably the best team leader I’ve ever had. Even though work can be rough at times, he makes it fun. He does things like crack a joke or two, or share a fun fact of the day or word of the day. I think that really keeps the team motivated to work together and finish tasks for the client.
In high school, we were usually assigned work alone. Having to work in groups is a different experience, and I’ve learned a lot in collaborating with others. Two minds is better than one. Personally, I think I give really good feedback. One skill in giving feedback is not judging, and I think I developed that skill, too.”
Meng with his project team for the summer.
He learned how to be agile every day.
“The most challenging part of this internship was maneuvering from Plan A to Plan B. We got some really unexpected feedback from the client and were asked to move in a different direction. That was difficult, but it worked out perfectly fine. The client was happy and that’s what matters.
If I had a classmate who was interested in an internship here, I would tell them, ‘We’ll be put in groups so don’t be afraid.’ It’s not simple—it can be quite challenging depending on what the client wants. But it’s the best internship that I’ve had so far. Risk it…it will be worth it.”
See the difference that Rêve Academy makes.
Meng gained both technical and professional skills in his internship—and he didn’t have to pay a cent. In fact, we paid him a fair wage for his work each week, while he learned:
Professional skills
// Empathy
// Authenticity
// Collaboration
// Achievement
// Ingenuity
// Agility
Technical skills
// Illustrator
// Photoshop
// Project management
// Agile development
Rêve Academy’s student interns of summer 2018.
Help students along their path.
If you have a heart for students, we have a place for you.
Become a digital volunteer and help our interns as they work on real-world projects. Or show our kids what an ordinary day looks like for a working professional. There are lots of ways to get involved, so don’t be shy—we can’t wait to meet you!