Internship Spotlight: Marie Jacobsen, BlackBox Research

Marie Jacobsen '23 BSBA (Management Information Systems & Global Business) was a Market Research Intern for Public Policy at BlackBox Research in Singapore.

If you worked on a big project during your internship, please describe what you did to help. 

Blackbox is a market research company, so we work with a lot of data from surveys; we then analyze it and make visuals that we present to the clients. One of the bigger projects I have been working on was creating the first draft of a PowerPoint that we later presented to the client. I had to look at the survey questions, then the data, and make visuals and commentary for each question. It was cool being the one that chose which charts and tables to use. 

What did you find most challenging about your internship?

I think for me, the most challenging thing was getting used to the different office cultures. Singaporeans are not always as direct with their feedback as I am used to in the US, so in the beginning, I was not 100% if I was doing a good job or not. Another challenge was getting used to Singlish (Singaporean English), since English already is my second language, this took me some time to get used to. Other than that, there hasn’t really been anything super challenging, as my managers are very helpful and show me how to do things if I’m ever unsure about anything. 

What advice do you have for other students that are also considering interning abroad?

Do it! It can seem scary, but it is definitely worth it. There are going to be a ton of other students in your program in the exact same position, and you will learn so much and make so many friends. Always make sure you tell your manager about what interests you have and what career path you want to pursue in the future. They are very helpful and have a lot of cool contacts that they can connect you with. 

How did Eller (or your previous coursework) prepare you for your internship? 

My classes have always focused a lot on Excel, and I completely understand why. I use this every day for my internship. I also feel confident in my skill level when it comes to using different programs such as Python and PowerBi. It is cool to see that the programs that Eller focuses on teaching us really are something companies all over the world use.