Northern Oklahoma College Business Administration Major Yenifer Perez recently completed a summer internship with Atwood’s Corporate Headquarters in Enid.
Perez’s primary duty was to edit a guidebook that was sent to 60 store managers. She translated store signs to Spanish, attended marketing meetings, and provided store support. Perez was also allowed to see future marketing projects.
Michael Noak, Atwood’s Marketing Director received credit for making Yenifer feel like she was part of the team. “Michael gave real insight on what to expect from my future career. He gets things done while managing to keep the work enjoyable,” she said.
Perez was surprised to learn all the work that goes into meeting deadlines. She commented, “Everyone must work together and communicate efficiently. It was interesting to see this interdependent relationship among coworkers.”
Perez, a native of Chicago, will be the first person in her family with a college degree when she receives her associate degree next semester. She said, “I’ve always worked as a waitress so it was a nice change to be in a business environment. I was able to see the connection between things I’ve learned in my classes and a real business.”
Perez is excited about the future. “I know it is very difficult to get a job after college without experience and this internship was a great opportunity to get experience in the world of business. I can see myself working for Atwood’s accounting department in the future.”
This fall will bring several changes in Perez’ life—a full-time job as the Atwood’s Human Resources Administrator, final NOC classes, and concurrent coursework as an NWOSU accounting student.
NOC President Cheryl Evans said, “Atwood’s was one of our first community partners in Enid to host our students as interns.” Dr. Evans continued, “We are pleased that great local companies like Atwood’s are providing these learning opportunities and in some cases the experiences can lead to job offers after students complete their internships. Internships are wonderful ways to help support our area workforce development.”