3M

Research and Development Intern

May - August 2019 • Minneapolis, MN

What I liked

I like the opportunity to be in a completely new city, surrounded by completely new people, while doing a job that was completely new to me. This summer forced me to grow because I was constantly being pushed out of my comfort zone. I learned more than I thought was possible in just 12 weeks.

What I wish was different

I wish I would have interacted more with other interns in the program. I was very close to my coworkers that worked in the same department. With such a large company, interns were scattered throughout the company and there weren't many opportunities to collaborate. I wish I had taken more initiative to interact to interns in completely different areas.

Advice

While summer internships are about building a connection, gaining experience, and setting up your future, we young, aspiring professionals need to also have fun. I chose an internship that was so foreign to me, not because I knew I would succeed, but because I knew that I would learn and hopefully enjoy myself along the way. I do not think that opportunities to travel to new and different places for a few weeks, while being paid are going to come by frequently in my line of work, so I am so glad that I took advantage this summer.

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Full-Stack Software Engineer

May - August 2019 • Taylorsville, UT

What I liked

I was able to experience the entire life cycle of a web application, and had that as my internship project. It has become a highlight in my resume and something I can always point to during interviews.

What I wish was different

Advice

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Stockroom Intern

May - August 2019 • Alexandria, MN

What I liked

What I wish was different

Advice

Be prepared for anything. Don't assume that you will only be doing a certain task because those who are willing to step out of the box have a better experience.

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Marketing Intern

May - August 2019 • Maplewood, MN

What I liked

I really enjoyed getting to know all of the other interns and 3Mers and build my professional network. There were so many opportunities to connect with other employees regardless of my position as an intern in the Automotive and Aerospace Division. This allowed me to learn more about the company from various perspectives and learn about other positions within 3M.

What I wish was different

I wish I had 1 or 2 extended projects to work on throughout the entire summer. I was given 8 smaller projects that had a great deal of impact within my division, but I was not able to focus on one larger area and do a deep dive into any market research. However, many of my peers were able to do this in their internship positions in another division.

Advice

Don't be afraid to ask senior leadership for advice! Lean on the more experienced employees around you - they are more than willing to help guide you in the right direction, and have so much knowledge to provide!

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Environmental Health & Safety Intern

May - August 2019 • Nevada, MO

What I liked

The engineers I worked with were extremely personable, and I learned so much within a matter of three months.

What I wish was different

My housing was not compensated, so I paid for an apartment in both Warrensburg and Nevada. I wish there would’ve been a stipend.

Advice

It’s okay if you aren’t experienced with your major before going into an internship because you will learn so much within the workplace.

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Controls System Engineering Intern

May - August 2019 • Maplewood, MN

What I liked

Amazing work culture, people and a types of different projects to work on

What I wish was different

3M used newer technology

Advice

If you have the opportunity to work here, take it

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Plant engineering

May 2019 • Brookings, SD

What I liked

Great employers, very flexible, great hours

What I wish was different

I wish it was related to my major.

Advice

This is a good money making job, not a good major experience job.

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Summer Temp

June - August 2019 • Brownwood, TX

What I liked

Getting to do a job I enjoyed, along with people that were fun to be around.

What I wish was different

Maybe a bit more organized in some instances.

Advice

Be willing to do whatever they ask you, wether you think you will like it or not. Be open to new experiences.

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Packer

May 2018 • Brookings, SD

What I liked

I worked with other college students so I was able to network with them as well as it was easy to relate and make friends with them.

What I wish was different

There was mandatory overtime usually which was not in the job description.

Advice

Get to know your supervisors, leads, operators, and everyone you work with so you can create a network of people to help in your future endeavors.

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Lab aide

June - August 2019 • Minneapolis, MN

What I liked

I liked the diversity and being in a lab setting

What I wish was different

I wish I had more time to work here

Advice

Working in a lab, or anywhere, is as enjoyable as you make it to be

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IT Intern

May - August 2019 • Minneapolis, MN

What I liked

I was assigned multiple projects that will actually be used by the company in the future. I was also able to experience a new city, Minneapolis, which was really exciting. I also enjoyed the culture and being able to talk to many people from different areas of the company.

What I wish was different

I wish I had known more people from my university there, but honestly I made so many new friends and connections it didn't really matter.

Advice

Embrace 3M culture and try and learn as much as you can about the different teams to determine what team you might like to work in full-time. Also be alright with not knowing everything going into the internship, you'll learn all the skills you need as you work on your project.

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Optimized Operations Intern

May - August 2019 • Wausau, WI

What I liked

The company is wonderful and my management team was very open and communicative. I also was placed in, what I felt was one of the coolest locations, I got to help set up explosives in the mine.

What I wish was different

My projects were all individual and the main project scope was unrealistic to begin with. I wasn't able to have as much of an impact as I would have liked but i was able to demonstrate my ability regardless.

Advice

Befriend your operators, they are the life-blood of manufacturing and could make or break your project. Also keep a positive outlook while being yourself, you might as well enjoy the time you spend at your internship. Also when interviewing, it's important to express your energy and passion, share some of your story, not just your work experiences.

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Medical Informatics Software Engineering Intern

May 2019 • Salt Lake City, UT

What I liked

Good work environment, great company, a lot of self-directed work and independence in completing an impactful project.

What I wish was different

Honestly, work conditions here were ideal; I wouldn't have changed anything (except maybe asking for more free food ;) ).

Advice

3M HIS is a great place to work! I'd recommend it out of any company I've ever worked at!

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Technical Aide

March 2018 • Saint Paul, MN

What I liked

Hands on Experience

What I wish was different

I would have liked more responsibility

Advice

Definitely a good way to get your foot in the door in terms of lab experience

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Technical Aide

May 2017 • Saint Paul, MN

What I liked

I like the freedom to conduct any relevant experiments, do research, and use my skills to design tools/processes to help my department.

What I wish was different

It would be nice if they didn't have a 32 hour max work limit per week.

Advice

Don't waste any extra time you have! Use it for research or bettering yourself/your department.

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Warehouse Operator

June - August 2018 • Forest City, IA

What I liked

Nice hours (9a-5p), friendly and relaxed work environment

What I wish was different

One longer lunch break instead of two short 15 minute breaks

Advice

Don’t be afraid to ask questions and make friends with your coworkers

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Field Sales Intern

May - August 2018 • Lexington, KY

What I liked

Valuable, hands on sales experience. Not really on training wheels, because I handled my own portion of my mentor’s territory.

What I wish was different

I was working remotely with no actual office or team, it was very field heavy and less collaboration in person, except from my mentor and manager.

Advice

If you want to challenge yourself, become a better influencer, and gain true sales experience - do this internship!

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Software Engineering Intern

May - August 2018 • Murray, UT

What I liked

I worked on interesting problems across multiple teams and got amazing real world experience. My team members were all helpful and answered every question I had which I appreciated.

What I wish was different

My laptop took a week to set up due to issues with IT which was frustrating.

Advice

Commit to the project and work hard. Be open to learning new things and don't be afraid to ask questions about why things are done the way they are.

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Marketing Intern

May - July 2018 • Sydney, New South Wales

What I liked

What I wish was different

Advice

Getting to learn about the work culture in Australia was a really valuable experience for me and opened up my eyes to the way work is done differently everywhere in the world. It really gave me a good view of how a global company operates outside of the US, even if they're based there.

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