Data shows that internships pay off for students as they enter the workforce. According to Strada, interns who had completed a paid internship during their undergraduate education were earning $3,000 more than their non-internship participating peers a year after graduation.[1]
What’s the story behind the data? Ascend hosted four summer interns and gathered their perspectives on the value of their internship. At the same time, we asked Ascend leaders to reflect on the business case for engaging students in work-based learning opportunities.
Ascend’s interns collaborated with members of the Product and Engineering teams on projects in product management, quality assurance and software engineering.
The summer interns learned valuable skills while Ascend benefited equally, according to Ascend Vice President of Product and Engineering, Sushil Kumar:
“Over the course of their internships, the interns immersed themselves in real-world challenges, contributed meaningfully to our product discovery and delivery cycles, and brought fresh energy and insight to our work.
“Their final presentations highlighted not only the evolution of their technical and professional skills, but also the depth of their curiosity and commitment. From shaping user stories to improving QA processes and writing production-ready code, each intern made a tangible impact on the platforms we’re building to support Indiana’s workforce.
“As an organization deeply invested in expanding work-based learning across the state, we’re proud to serve as a living example of what’s possible. Our internship program reinforces the idea that meaningful career-building experiences don’t require a big budget—just thoughtful mentorship, real responsibility and a shared sense of purpose. We hope our experience helps inspire more employers to open their doors to emerging talent.”
Scott Evans, lead product manager at Ascend, also had this to say about this summer’s interns:
“As Lead Product Manager, I had the opportunity to work closely with our technology interns every day. Fully embedded within our software development team, they operated as true contributors—helping shape product strategy, testing features and ensuring a high-quality experience for our users. Their individual and collective contributions this summer played a meaningful role in advancing both our immediate product priorities and Ascend’s broader mission.”
We asked each intern to describe the impact this summer’s Ascend internship has had on their individual education and career journeys. They offered these inspiring insights:
Jackson Stone, product engagement intern
“I had a fantastic summer with Ascend, and I truly enjoyed the role I was given. I was able to do work that was new to me, but it still required many of the skills I have learned in college. Throughout the summer, I worked on projects that benefited my team or the organization as a whole, along with a team that values my input and ideas.
My expectations that I would work at a supportive and fun company were surpassed. I’ve had a great time with my coworkers every day and truly enjoyed the fun events we occasionally have. Being hybrid and having flexible options within the company was also a major plus. Moving into the corporate world, I expected a lot of office politics and bureaucratic nonsense, but that hasn’t been my experience here. I am happy to say that this summer has been free of office drama.”
Anastasia Cook, product owner intern
“When I first came to Ascend Indiana, I wasn’t sure what to expect. The plan was for me to receive in-depth training in Backlog Management & Control, along with gaining a solid understanding of the related processes and systems. However, due to circumstances beyond our control, my role became open-ended and flexible because of the changing situation. Instead of focusing on a single area of expertise, I soon found myself taking on a more adaptable and broad role.
My role, in other words, was expanded to a “Jack-of-all-trades” position within the team.
Looking back now, the adaptability I had gave me the opportunity to gain hands-on experience in a wide range of areas that I might not have encountered otherwise. I was able to contribute to various projects, from conducting market research and competitor analysis to drafting User Stories, participating in Quality Assurance testing and more. No day was the same. Each day brought something different, offering a new learning experience and immersion, which further expanded my “toolchest” of skills and knowledge.
Although my time as a Product Owner Intern was brief, it proved to be a memorable and rewarding experience. I was inspired by the people, the mission and the meaningful work Ascend Indiana aims to achieve. This internship not only enhanced my technical and creative abilities through hands-on experience but also expanded my understanding of user-centered design and the value of creating impactful user experiences.”
Dev Patel, software engineering intern
“I was really excited to join Ascend because I knew this internship would expose me to the work culture in the U.S., which was one of my main goals as an international student. From the start, I was assigned a meaningful and impactful project—developing a recommendation engine for the Ascend platform. This project was a perfect mix of AI and software development, allowing me to explore areas I’m passionate about, including open-source AI models and various AWS services.
Throughout my internship, I learned many important skills such as:
- Communicating ideas effectively with stakeholders.
- Taking full ownership of my work.
- Collaborating with team members to align our work with stakeholder expectations.
- Asking the right questions at the right time to gain clarity.
- Writing clear and useful technical documentation.
As an intern, you should expect to be curious, flexible and eager to learn—not just about technology but also about how a real-world team functions. You should anticipate working on challenging problems, receiving guidance and being trusted with meaningful responsibilities. That’s exactly what I experienced at Ascend. I wasn’t just observing— I was actively contributing. I appreciated the trust and independence I was given, along with support whenever I needed it.
My goal for this internship was to spend my summer doing meaningful work that would help me grow professionally. Ascend not only met but also surpassed those expectations. I especially appreciated how the organization promoted awareness about industry-based learning and integrated it into its own team.
Overall, this was a highly valuable and enriching experience. I’m grateful to Ascend for providing me the opportunity to learn, grow, and contribute this summer.”
Ahmet Arslan, quality assurance intern
“Coming into Ascend, I didn’t know what to expect. I thought I would be doing minor tasks, shadowing a few meetings and just hanging around to get a general sense of things in a corporate setting. I assumed my role would be limited, mostly observing rather than contributing.
From the start, however, I wasn’t given busy work; I was trusted to write test cases, help scale automation and contribute to debugging major issues when the platform grew to over 100,000 job postings. I learned what happens when things don’t go as planned and how teams rally together to fix it. That kind of teamwork, shared responsibility and accountability was one of the most valuable lessons. Overall, I came in hoping to become a better engineer, and I did, but I left with a much deeper appreciation for fast-paced problem solving and what it means to be a reliable team member.”
[1] Torpey-Saboe, Nichole, Elaine W. Leigh, and Dave Clayton. “The power of work-based learning.” Strada Education Foundation. (2022). https://stradaeducation.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/031522-PV-report.pdf
