Howdy, Roadrunners!
Help us spread some new year cheer by welcoming Jackson Dibble into the Internship Spotlight!
Jackson is from Victoria, Texas, and he is a sophomore at UTSA, majoring in business management. During his participation in the Citymester program in summer 2019, Jackson obtained a position with the San Antonio Hispanic Chamber of Commerce as their Accounting and Human Resources Intern. “I was one of 17 students who had the privilege of being a part of this prestigious program,” shared Jackson. “Citymester is a program coordinated by the University of Texas San Antonio Honors College and is available to all students. As a cohort of Citymester, students have the opportunity to work with community partners at an internship and service site. The San Antonio Hispanic Chamber of Commerce was my internship site, and I completed 184 hours and 30 minutes of work over a 10 week period as part of the program.” We asked Jackson to share more about his exciting experience and he gladly accepted. Let’s explore more of his journey!
Q: What did you do during your internship, and what were your responsibilities/duties?
A: The San Antonio Hispanic Chamber of Commerce is a 5 star accredited non-profit that services around 1,200 companies in the San Antonio community. The scope of work they do benefits the community through the education/leadership, small business, international trade, and other departments. Operationally, I worked with the Chief Financial Officer by helping him update accounts payable in QuickBooks as well as maintained a list of current and past employees using Atlas Staff Files Pro. I assisted the Assistant Vice President of Finance on accounts receivable as well by balancing debit and credit transactions on journal entries in QuickBooks. This internship also afforded me the opportunity to interface with other departments such as special events and communication by creating member highlights using Chamber Master and updating posts on WordPress.
Q: What was the most exciting aspect of your internship?
A: One of the exciting aspects of my internship was that I was able to interface with the chamber’s community partners through mixer events and networking opportunities. By having one-on-one interactions with community members, I was able to ensure that I assisted our community partners directly as well as through my duties in the office.
Q: What was the most challenging aspect of your internship?
A: The most challenging part of my internship was navigating the realm of non-profit work and learning how it differs from working for a for-profit company. As part of my internship, I had to perform multiple roles to ensure that the chamber was successful in its operations. Albeit difficult, this was beneficial for me as I was able to adapt to the needs of the chamber whenever new obstacles presented themselves.
Q: What recommendations do you have for other students about doing an internship?
A: I would recommend that students actively develop relationships with their coworkers by being willing to assist them on large projects or any other duties that they need help with. This shows employers that the intern is not only interested in the department they are working for, but rather in the performance of the business as a whole.
Q: What did you enjoy the most about this experience?
A: I enjoyed being able to work with a supportive cohort who mentored me throughout my internship experience. For instance, the Chief Financial Officer and Assistant to the Chief Financial Officer were more than willing to allow me to take on new tasks when I wanted to learn more.
Q: How has your internship prepared you for a career?
A: This internship has prepared me for careers beyond college by allowing me to become more adaptable when challenges present themselves in the workplace. Additionally, learning how to develop close knit relationships with my coworkers will suit me well when team projects are required in the workplace.
Q: What is your dream job?
A: My dream job is working for a company that is innovative, rooted in customer service, and encourages accountability in its employees and senior level management. Additionally, I want to be involved in companies who actively engage with the communities they exist in through service. Companies that are willing to better themselves and those in the community truly care about the cities they are located in.
Q: What is a quote that defines you?
A: “The impediment to action advances action. What stands in the way becomes the way.” -Ryan Holiday, Ego is the Enemy Book.
Outstanding work, Jackson! If you would like to learn more about how to get involved in UTSA’s Citymester program, visit http://honors.utsa.edu/students/programs/citymester or e-mail Elisa.Perkins@utsa.edu.
Go ‘Runners!
