City of Seattle

GIS Intern

June 2016 • Seattle, WA

What I liked

SCL is a great place to work at. The work-life balance is great. Unlike the stress in private companies, SCL has virtually no stress. Employees are easy to approach and very helpful. As a public utility company, things are slow and it has to be passed to many people before a job gets done. Interning at SCL is fun as my boss is very friendly and easy to talk to. The work is not very stressful and there are no hard deadlines to complete tasks, SCL understands that every employee is human and life happens. SCL puts a very strong focus on a safe environment and there is information on safety available everywhere.

What I wish was different

I wish there were more field activities over the summer.

Advice

It is very important to consider which department you are working in and the things you learn will be mostly related to your department.

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Accounting Intern

June 2018 • Seattle, WA

What I liked

Everyone I've worked with is very kind and helpful. The environment is welcoming and they want everyone to succeed.

What I wish was different

Sometimes there are slow periods.

Advice

City Light is very flexible and understanding about student schedules. This is a great during-school way to make money and gain experience!

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Key Customer Intern

June 2018 • Seattle, WA

What I liked

I had a main project over the summer, but there was a lot of room for flexibility and learning skills that were applicable to me specifically. I got to meet many different people at City Light doing all types of different jobs. City Light has almost every division of a business, finance, marketing, project management, HR, and obviously departments more specific to the utility industry, so I got to learn a lot about people's career paths.

What I wish was different

Sometimes I felt like I didn't have very much to do. I also learned that as a whole City Light is extremely antiquated.

Advice

To get the job, things they really value are diversity, environmental stewardship, and being open to learning new skills. Once you have the job, take initiative to make your own projects and learn skills on your own.

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Electrical Engineering Intern

June 2017 • Seattle, WA

What I liked

Very supportive work environment. Other employees are very encouraging and willing to teach.

What I wish was different

Advice

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Technology Intern

January 2018 • Seattle, WA

What I liked

The work culture.

What I wish was different

More technical.

Advice

Constantly find new ways to make yourself valuable to a company.

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Historic Preservation Intern

June 2018 • Seattle, WA

What I liked

Cool experience and getting to know the city a lot better. Learned a lot about research and how preservation really works.

What I wish was different

There was a lot of busy work, as any internship would have. It was hard to communicate with supervisors about projects I was given, with little feedback and the onus on me to track that feedback down.

Advice

Always communicate well and often. Better to feel like a burden on management than to stagnate ;)

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Accounting Intern

June 2018 • Seattle, WA

What I liked

City Light has a friendly, welcoming environment and interesting recurring monthly work.

What I wish was different

I wish I had more large or long term projects.

Advice

Organization is key. I have a running to do list and a monthly work summary document to help me stay on top of my duties.

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Environmental Health and Safety Intern

June 2018 • Seattle, WA

What I liked

I loved working with professionals in my field, as well as skilled laborers offsite. In my position, I was able to dabble in a lot of subjects; TO15 air sampling, PIT tagging, chemical inventory, and hazardous waste management. I would recommend anyone who enjoys varied work to apply for an internship with SCL.

What I wish was different

I wish I had applied for this job last year!

Advice

Working with local government is an amazing way to interact with all types of folks. You will be exposed to some of the most intelligent, kind, and honorable people.

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