Ohio State students learn leadership skills through internships

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Ohio State students learn leadership skills through internships

From AI to abroad: Students showcase transformational journeys at expo

Undergraduate students at The Ohio State University showcased the interpersonal and business skills they're learning through internships during the recent Second-Year Transformational Experience Program (STEP) Expo at the Ohio Union.

Students presented projects in one of six categories: Creative & Artistic Endeavors, Leadership, Service Learning, Undergraduate Research, Education Abroad and Internships.

Anthony Fox, a computer science and engineering major, said he learned how artificial intelligence can strengthen cybersecurity during his internship last summer with Kudu Dynamics/Leidos. Fox was part of the company's research team that participated in DEF CON, an annual cybersecurity hacking event in Las Vegas.

"My company, which was hosting this challenge, was creating this system called a cyber-reasoning system," he said. "That system is an AI tool that scans over code bases and finds vulnerabilities within those code bases and then auto-patches them - fixes them automatically."

Working with AI during his internship raised his awareness of tools that can increase efficiency in his study habits, Fox said.

"There's this tool I was looking into," he said. "You upload your notes and it uses a RAG, which is a retrieval augmented generation, to help you study on your specific notes and not just broad information."

Sean Broderick, also a computer science and engineering major, said he expanded his knowledge about data analysis by working as an AI engineer intern at Union Home Mortgage last summer.

When evaluating mortgage applicants' eligibility, "we used a lot of machine learning models for predictive analysis of risk," he said. "We also worked with BLMs, which are object detection models for analyzing financial documents and doing analysis on them."

Broderick said he also learned how to apply his major to a career in finance.

Before starting the internship, "I didn't even know how to get a mortgage," he said. "I also learned how these companies make money, how these different companies are tied in, how they are able to get loans from … other big companies to then finance them to give loans to other people … [and] how interest rates actually affect these companies and affect mortgages and how these companies make money."

Misa Huls, an operations management major, also learned about the real estate industry. She earned a real estate license through Hondros College and Colibri Real Estate. She completed 120 hours of training in subject areas ranging from law to finance to property appraisal.

"I was able to get one-on-one time with professionals in real estate," she said. "I was able to go on showings with them, which was just really transformational, to get that one-on-one time and learn client relations and how they negotiate."

Huls said she plans to apply the knowledge she gained through the program to her studies and future business and investment opportunities.

"I decided on my major before I decided on doing this as my STEP project," she said. "I wanted to get the full roundedness of business."

Carine Adorh, who is majoring in marketing with a minor in fashion and retail studies, participated in the Global May Korea program last summer. She said the program helped her move closer to her goal of becoming fluent in Korean, making her more competitive in the job market when she graduates.

"It was a personal thing," she said, "wanting to learn more about their culture because I do want to work there sometime in the future."

During the month-long program in South Korea, Adorh studied at Kyung Hee University, visited cities such as Busan and Gyeongju, and met many people she found to be welcoming.

"Everybody there was so friendly," she said. "They're so warm, inviting."

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