At Pepco, 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 Pepco with an internship.
Is there a moment that sticks with you from your internship?
Edward Alessandro, manager, AMI Engineering, Pepco:
My group and I were passionate about learning all that we could during our internship. We would attend every single ‘lunch and learn’ to meet with directors, managers, and employees from all different departments. We were able to ask questions like, “What is your job? What’s your department?” This approach of networking to learn about the company helped me discover all the areas of the business I could land a full-time position in.
Reaching out to people and constantly asking questions is the advice I’ve given every intern that has come after me. If you want to learn more about what other departments are doing, just ask.
Will Ellis, director, External Affairs, Pepco:
I had the unique opportunity to work at the Control Center in Bethesda for my internship. I remember when I first stepped into the control room and saw the large display that showed all the infrastructure across the District and Maryland. It really opened my eyes to the role that power plays in the lives of every resident and business.
Some students may take for granted having power or flicking the light switch on, but behind the scenes there are countless engineers and personnel working to ensure this service we provide is seamless. That pride of working on something so important to the success of our communities really showed when I was speaking with other senior leaders during my four months interning. This resonated with me that I wanted my career to also be guided in purpose.
Why do you think interns are important to Pepco?
Sarah Bradley, manager, Communications, Pepco:
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.
Will Ellis:
Internships are so important to quickly translate education into real world solutions. Working at Pepco during the summer enabled me to better understand what I was learning in the classroom, and how that translated into the real world and made me focus more on being the best engineer I could be. I remember during my undergraduate career I was so focused on my studies. I really didn’t have time to think long-term about my career, but having multiple internships allowed me to think about what fields of work exist and how I could leverage my strengths and what I was passionate about. I remember from all the presentations, trips and assignments I worked on as an intern, I loved big picture projects and strategy. That led me to accept my first role at Pepco in Capacity Planning.
Do you have any advice for our interns or any young professional entering the workforce?
Edward Alessandro:
If you’re looking for a full-time position, there’s, in my opinion, not many better places to work than Exelon. If you want to set yourself up for a decent career, then take your internship seriously and stand out. Of course, make friends and have fun, but you will get out of your internship what you put into it. It’s not a coincidence that most of the top talent that we have comes from our summer internships. It’s a great opportunity, it’s great programming, and I’m lucky to have gotten placed where I was.
Sarah Bradley:
Explore all the opportunities while interning. Just because you have a degree in one area does not mean you are pigeonholed into one area within a corporation. Network, network, network. Relationships are not only critical to getting a job, but they are also key to helping you succeed in your career.
To learn more about careers and internships at Pepco, visit pepco.com/Careers.