At Delmarva Power, our employees ensure the success of the company, support our communities, and work towards a cleaner, brighter future for every customer. To highlight our employees, and in celebration of National Intern Day, I spoke with a few employees who started their careers at Delmarva Power with an internship.  

How did your internship begin? 

Sarah Bradley, manager, Communications, Delmarva Power: 

As a student at the University of Delaware, I majored in Communications with a minor in Business and Technical Writing. One of my adjunct professors happened to work at Delmarva Power and taught a customer communications class transferring his day-to-day work experiences to the classroom. I found the energy industry fascinating with lots to learn about. Through small class conversations, he mentioned that Delmarva Power supported internships in the summer and winter sessions. So, I eagerly showed interest, applied and landed my first internship over the summer. My summer internship evolved into a winter internship and then I landed my first (and only) job at Delmarva Power following graduation.  

Dunk Buie, senior manager, Billing, Delmarva Power: 

I got the internship at Exelon after graduating from The University of Illinois Chicago, and it opened my eyes that the utility industry wasn’t just the individuals who were out on the poles or the people who were restoring power outages. When I got here, I found out there are many different types of engineering. There are many different departments, and there were a lot of things that I could explore across the company. I didn’t know that I wanted to be in utilities, but once I got here, I knew I wanted to stay. 

Why do you think interns are important to Delmarva Power? 

Marcus Beal, director, External Affairs, Delmarva Power: 

Interns bring a different perspective to the workplace and help bring new energy to our teams. We have a lot of new challenges and will need fresh ideas and innovation from everyone to achieve our business goals. 

Sarah Bradley: 

Interns allow the company to develop future talent, which makes it much easier to hire them and begin careers in this industry. They can also help tremendously with day-to-day tasks, freeing up more time for the team while also gaining experience in their field of interest. 

Do you have any advice for our interns or any young professional entering the workforce?  

Claudia Challender, associate communication specialist, Delmarva Power: 

One of the best pieces of advice I received from a mentor was to focus on being a sponge when stepping into a new role. It’s natural to want to prove yourself right away, but it’s just as important to actively listen, take notes, and seek out shadowing opportunities. You don’t need to know everything on your first day. What matters is your willingness to learn and grow. A strong team will support your development, and I’ve been fortunate to experience that firsthand with my team at Delmarva Power. 

Dunk Buie: 

Don’t limit yourself to the experience you’ve had in your internship’s assigned department. There are opportunities to shadow and touch all parts of the business as you are interning or rotating. There are so many connections you can make, branch out and network to learn about the entire organization. All of the managers are willing to help you make those connections and want you to get everything you can out of your internship. 

Marcus Beal: 

Engage with everyone you can – I made really good life-long friends at the company and learned a lot from many different people. Don’t be shy, ask questions, get involved in as many activities as you can, and enjoy the experience. Don’t just make it a job – make it more and the return will be very rewarding and fulfilling.   

To learn more about careers and internships at Delmarva Power, visit delmarva.com/Careers.