When seeking out potential interns for Bank of the West, Recruiting Manager Elijah Padua emphasized the mutually beneficial relationship with UC Berkeley noting the bank “provides summer internships to UC Berkeley students who in turn provide fresh perspectives and new ideas to the bank.” Of the 29 interns hosted this past summer, it comes as no surprise that 11 of these positions were secured by UC Berkeley students.
“Being English, I feel that my different cultural perspective brings a lot of new energy to the office and I often find myself thinking about problems in a different way [than] those around me,” said Max Brimelow, a 2017 marketing intern for the bank. Brimelow’s duties included promoting the UC Berkeley–Bank of the West partnership and creating and improving initiatives to engage the UC Berkeley community.
Even as a “mere intern,” as Brimelow titled himself, he said that being a UC Berkeley student provided the bank invaluable insight into the student community. As an international student, Brimelow explained that his opinions and suggestions regarding the International Student Orientation were “given particular attention.” Bank of the West participated in tabling opportunities this fall, and with Brimelow’s unique experiences and suggestions, was able to create a more meaningful and engaging experience than last semester.
Amy Pham, a 2017 commercial banking intern, mainly worked with clients outside of campus. By having both the relationship managers and credit analysts working together on the same floor, Pham was able to see all aspects of what goes into creating deals and loans with local businesses. “I’ve been given a lot of freedom in the sense that I am not working with any one singular team,” she explained, which allowed her greater exposure and thus, more experience within various sectors at the bank.
Mid-way through her internship, Pham expressed a goal to learn from her supervisors’ experiences, exclaiming, “The people at Bank of the West [have] so much industry experience. I hope to connect with as many as I can.” By the end of the summer, Pham continued on to say, “Bank of the West truly feels like family.”
When asked for their greatest takeaways, both interns revealed a sense of personal growth. For Brimelow, there was a sense of professionalism; something that doesn’t come naturally to him as he feels it doesn’t always allow him to show his full personality. For Pham, it was the opportunity to extend beyond her comfort zone and overcome the fear of reaching out to different people in order to get a job done. In both cases, the students expressed gratitude to the bank, UC Berkeley, and their internship experience in allowing them to realize their potential.