D'Amore-McKim students Ellen McNeill DMSB'18, and Brandon Pascua CAMD'17, (Business minor) produced and performed an original rendition of “Jingle Bells,” and D'Amore-McKim co-op student Richard Carr, DMSB'19, put it all together with video images of winter at Northeastern.

McNeill shares her insights as a business major, how she grew her sense of independence through co-op, and why the opportunity to travel helped her choose Northeastern.

Q: What are you looking for in your third co-op? Any specific skills or experience you're hoping to gain?

I'm exploring the possibility of co-oping in a nonprofit or social enterprise for my third co-op to gain industry experience for my future. I'd like to be exposed to a variety of roles and responsibilities, improve my interpersonal and communication skills, and have the ability to exercise my creativity. I've worked at a company where everyone is incredibly passionate about their job, and in a company department that creates an incredible social impact on a global scale, but I've never been immersed in a company where people are so passionate about a cause that they devote their immediate life to it. I'd love to experience working in that sort of environment. I'm really interested in working with the International Refugee Crisis and am planning to create my own co-op next fall with an organization that's involved with the situation like the IRC, Red Cross, or the IKEA Foundation. (So if you know anyone, let me know) 😉

Pascua shares his insights in pursuing his passion while also gaining key business skills to build a career in the music industry.

Q: Why did you decide to minor in entrepreneurship?

After attending a few Entrepreneurship Club meetings, I knew I had to learn as much as I could. The creativity in forming, implementing, and managing your own venture really interested me. The music industry is currently in a resurgence with the revenue potential of streaming services, and this means that there are plenty of opportunities for innovation. Since I'm also a songwriter/artist, having the mindset of an entrepreneur is key because my music is essentially the venture. My latest project, with fellow Husky Camille Frazier, is a songwriting duo called Be Cool. Having an entrepreneurship background is really helping move the project forward.

“Keep your eyes and ears open. You may not think you're an entrepreneur, but this place is very exciting for creating something new,” he said.