Student Finds Career Path through Summer Internship
A summer stint as a talent development intern opened the door to a career choice that Joel Stephen, a Management major at St. John’s University, never before considered.
“Opportunity for student involvement on campus was a major criterion for my college selection—and St. John’s Queens campus has it in abundance! Also, Queens is such a melting pot of cultures and peoples. Because of this, I believed that St. John’s would be the perfect place for me as an international student to thrive and be successful.”
- BS in Management
- The Peter J. Tobin College of Business
“The insurance industry has many career paths—and I certainly plan to explore these going forward,” said Joel, who expects to earn his Bachelor of Science degree in May 2024 from The Peter J. Tobin College of Business on the Queens, NY, campus. “Thankfully, St. John’s has exciting graduate programs in risk management and actuarial science at its Maurice R. Greenberg School of Risk Management, Insurance and Actuarial Science, and I plan to inquire about them and potentially complete my master’s degree in one of these two fields,” the rising senior said.
Joel completed his two-month internship earlier in August at W.R. Berkley Corporation in Greenwich, CT. Through its more than 50 businesses, W.R. Berkley offers insurance solutions for niche markets that require specialized knowledge and deep expertise.
As an intern, Joel assisted the Vice President of Talent Development in major projects and daily tasks that were centered on the professional growth of employees at various levels within the company. “My job responsibilities included ensuring the smooth creation and execution of corporate training events, and assigning and keeping track of training materials distributed to developmental participants,” Joel explained. “I was also able to engage in learning development sessions with senior leaders at the company, who shared with me the details of their respective roles and responsibilities. This was most beneficial, as I was constantly learning new career paths and skills that I could add to my repertoire or potentially use in the future,” he said.
When he arrived on campus as an international student from Trinidad and Tobago, Joel was unsure of which direction he wanted to follow in his academic studies.
He eventually chose Management as his major, he said, “because it provided experience in multiple forms of business, such as marketing, economics, accounting, and risk management and analysis. I believe that this major will provide me with the perfect platform for my career as an upper-level manager within the business world.”
He also applied for internships “that focused on developing my knowledge of various industries.” “W. R. Berkley was the perfect place for this development to take place and I cannot speak highly enough of the company,” he said.
Joel feels he was well-prepared for his internship, in part, because of the skills and experiences he gained through his involvement in numerous extracurricular activities on campus. He was an orientation leader for incoming students during the Summer of 2022.
He is a Resident Assistant in O’Connor Hall and the Student Coordinator for Project AIM. Project AIM is a peer-mentoring program that promotes student success by supporting student engagement, community-building, personal development, and retention of first-year and second-year international students. He also participates in services and retreats through St. John’s Campus Ministry program.
“Opportunity for student involvement on campus was a major criterion for my college selection—and St. John’s Queens campus has it in abundance!” Joel said. “Also, Queens is such a melting pot of cultures and peoples. Because of this, I believed that St. John’s would be the perfect place for me as an international student to thrive and be successful.”
“St. John’s really does have something for everyone,” Joel added. “The resources are all there, and students just need to go out and get them and enjoy what the University has to offer.”
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