How I Made the Most Out of My Summer Internship at Lowe's

When I received my offer for a summer internship with Lowe’s, I wasn’t sure what to expect. Sure, I knew what was in the job description and understood the objectives that came along with my offer, but when it came to working at a Fortune 50 company, I had no idea what a day-to-day workload would be like. 

My initial responsibilities were to serve as a liaison between the development team and anyone who had access to the online store, Lowes.com. When something did not seem to function as it should, my department had all hands on deck to solve the issue quickly. As a communications student, I didn’t initially think that I was a good fit for a customer-facing role, but I figured that if recruiter and manager saw potential in me, then I should see it within myself. 

I wanted to use this summer as an opportunity to learn more about how to communicate within a corporate environment. I aimed to accomplish this by expanding my network. While doing so, I was also able to explore departments outside of my own, allowing me to learn more about potential career paths and become a familiar face to leaders and team members throughout the headquarters.  Reflecting on my experience interning at Lowe’s, there are some specific choices I made in order to make the most of my internship. Below are a few tips on how I made the most out of my internship.

I expressed my goals and aspirations to my manager.

Letting my manager know what I want to do with my life helped me tremendously. By telling her that I was into social media marketing and graphic design, she connected me with many managers and directors within various departments who allowed me to shadow them and assist with a few projects. One of the projects that I am most proud of is being able to make graphics for Lowe’s Employee Relief Fund. The graphics that I made were distributed internally to all the employees at Lowe’s and were displayed on the jumbotron at the corporate office. While I wasn’t there for a graphic design internship, sharing my career interests and goals led to additional opportunities to hone my skills and make more connections at the company.  

I didn’t let my major limit my opportunities. 

As I said before, my position had nothing to do with my major! I was initially offered a Digital Communication internship, but about a week before the program began, the department was dissolved. I had two options: keep my offer and switch departments or decline and find a new internship. As a communications major, my area of study is much more focused on writing and design, and I didn’t know a thing about Online Support when I came into my position. From about a week of shadowing, I was able to grasp the concept and overall function of my department. Had I let my major restrict my abilities or keep me from applying, I wouldn’t have been able to make the most out of my internship.

I wasn’t shy.

From the day I stepped foot into the corporate office, I scheduled numerous 1:1s with other employees. Many of their roles had absolutely nothing to do with me, my position, or my studies, but I didn’t let that stop me. After expressing my interests and skillset to them, a lot of them gave me insight into potential career opportunities within their department. Getting to know all of these different people expanded my network and gave me a glimpse of the culture of Lowe’s. Let’s just say, I have a lot more LinkedIn connections than I did when I started!

I kept a balance.

I spent a lot of time doing work at Lowe’s, but I also spent time having fun. Hanging out with other interns, doing team activities, and taking daily walks around the lake helped me keep a great work-life balance. Our recruiters scheduled numerous activities like bowling, rock climbing, and ice cream socials to connect all the interns. Going to dinner with my coworkers after a stressful day of work helped me keep sane too.

Overall, my experience at my internship was one of the most memorable experiences. They say that life is what you make it, and I wanted to make this internship not only beneficial for me but beneficial to everyone I came in contact within the process. This mindset helped me be successful this summer, and will hopefully lead to a full-time offer when I graduate.