Summer is a time for students to relax, unwind, and take a break from the rigorous Diamond Bar High School curriculum. However, for Brahma Tech seniors, summer is an opportunity to explore professions through internships.

On Jan. 13 and 14, 25 seniors presented their experiences during the Brahma Tech annual Internship Fair after school in the Golden Horseshoe.

Each senior filled a tri-fold board with information regarding their internship and was expected to answer questions from the juniors who attended the fair and the Brahma Tech advisor, Alina Gallardo. This allowed juniors who are currently searching for internships to learn more about this requirement.

The students were able to work in fields ranging from marketing to developmental designing. The hands-on experience they gained working for companies allowed them to gain new skills and network with other interns.

However, finding and obtaining internships is no easy feat, as students must compete with others or have connections that will help improve their chances of making the cut. A handful of students applied for internships with Boeing, due to Brahma Tech’s affiliation with the company, but only six were able to fill those spots. Therefore, many other students sought out startup companies, which proved to have some challenges.

“I had college mentors. Through them, I made a lot of connections, and when it came time for my internship I emailed a lot of people,” senior Carol Lai said. “They generally don’t hire high schoolers unless you have a personal connection so I applied to a lot of private businesses.”

Lai, who worked at C3 Network Inc., filed and managed inventory that branched out through international servers, making sure that they were updated and maintained. On the other hand, Brian Ho, who interned at Boeing, worked with the company’s network security and simulated fiber optics.

“The challenge I faced is that normal high school students aren’t open to the wide variety of internships that are actually possible because of their lack of experience. You have to show them you are perfectly capable as an individual and you can overcome these obstacles,” Ho said.

Eric Hong

Danica Prather presents her experience as an intern at the Boeing company to juniors in the Brahma Tech Academy as part of the fair.