Catherine Hogan, DMSB'20, is taking over the @damoremckim Instagram account this week, detailing her recent experiences on the dialogue: Entrepreneurship and Global Consulting in Israel. Follow along for an inside look at her time abroad!
Q:What are you majoring in at D'Amore-McKim?
I am an international business major with a concentration in management Information systems.
Q:Tell us about your recent global experience through a Dialogue of Civilizations in Israel. When were you there and what did you do during the trip?
The trip to Israel was called Entrepreneurship and Global Consulting in Israel. Northeastern students formed cross-cultural teams with Israeli students at the Ben Gurion University of the Negev to work directly with start-ups and solve real-world problems they experienced in their efforts to expand their businesses.
Q:What moment was the highlight of the trip and why?
For most students, visiting the Intel plant in Kiryat Gat was the most unforgettable part of this trip. This visit included presentations that outlined the history of this specific Intel plant and why it is so crucial to innovation in Israel. Students were able to see through the explanations and examples of a lead engineer and learn how Intel innovates its processes to become more effective and efficient.
Q:How has the trip enhanced your business skills?
Consulting with Israeli start-ups is real-life exposure to the hardships of business that many undergraduate students will never get. This dialogue is also a wonderful resume booster for internships and co-ops.
Q:What other global experiences have you had at Northeastern? What were these like?
I participated in NUin Greece my first year and I also participated in this same dialogue last year. These experiences have transformed my way of thinking as a student and as a global citizen. I have made so many friends abroad and I keep in touch with them as well as visit whenever time permits.
Q:Where have you held a co-op position?
I am currently on co-op at a biotech startup in Waltham, MA. I work at Arsanis Inc. as a business operations associate and work within most disciplines of the business field. This type of position gives me exposure to many of the concentrations offered at D'Amore-McKim and allows me to figure out which types of positions I might be interested in for my next co-op and potentially my career trajectory.
Q: Any additional insight you would like to share?
Consulting experience is a wonderful quality to have as a young business person because it touches on product development and marketing, market penetration strategies, and exploration, whether that is in the form of product or process innovation, or market exploration.
Q: What do you hope your takeover will showcase?
In the takeover, I tried to show what makes Israel a very unique country, and why this country is a perfect place for business students. Israel is known as the start-up nation and there is no better place for business students to be when learning how to build, run, and expand businesses to be successful.