School is officially out, (unfortunately though UC students still have a few more days before they’re set free) and summer is in the air. Intern season is back. However, for most college students the arduous process of looking for a summer internship began last fall, almost a year ahead of any potential internship.
My name is Katrina Swarthout and I am a Splunktern. Now you may be wondering, what is a Splunktern? Well, it’s pretty simple: Splunk + Intern = Splunktern. I count myself extremely lucky to be a Splunktern working in the marketing department based here in SF HQ this summer.
When it comes to a great place to intern, I may be a little biased. However, we’ve been selected as one of the “Best Places to Work” in the Bay Area for eight years straight — a true indicator of the fun, disruptive and innovative nature of the culture and the people working here. For an intern this translates into a lot of things, primarily the hands-on learning experience you receive (note: you aren’t going to be stuck getting someone coffee all summer).
Over these past few weeks I’ve been working closely with the social media team here and thought it would be great to share stories of my fellow Splunkterns here on the blog. To kick things off, I was fortunate enough to sit down with Katia Ratkovich, the Program Manager for University Recruiting here at Splunk, to discuss the history and highlights of the program.
Internships at Splunk are open to full-time students and typically the recruiting program begins in the fall when HR representatives from Splunk visit top universities across the country. Splunk is committed to finding students who are smart and eager to join the company for a summer and hopefully even longer. A majority of the students who intern for Splunk come from the career fairs that Splunk attends.
Splunkterns are valued and trusted. They contribute on a higher level and generally help work on projects that go to market. There is a real effort to ensure Splunkterns are fully immersed. Katia stressed that everyone loves having interns because they bring vibrancy to their teams and fresh, new perspectives.
This summer there will be about 50 of us Splunkterns placed in offices across the U.S. and around the world. We’re coming from a wide range of universities and working in a variety of different departments, ranging from engineering to sales to human resources.
Throughout the summer some of my fellow Splunkterns will share their experiences here on the blog and answer a range of questions, from how they found out about Splunk to their typical day at the office, and share their personal Splunk stories. To give you a taste of what’s to come, here are a few answers from my point of view:
What motivated you to apply for an internship at Splunk?
Having grown up in the Bay Area I’ve always been around tech companies, so my five-year plan has always involved working in corporate communications at a tech company. In December I had the opportunity to shadow members of the marketing department and after experiencing the fast-paced environment and genuineness of everyone I was hooked.
What kind of experience do you hope to gain from your internship?
My goal for the summer is to learn and gain as much experience as possible, and ultimately determine what I want to do post-graduation. Everyone at Splunk has been so willing to help me gain a better understanding of the marketing landscape and where I could fit into it. I hope to take full advantage of everyone’s industry and career insights.
What has been your favorite moment at Splunk so far?
I would say it’s a tie between having co-workers tell me that they’ve heard I’m doing a great job (I mean what’s better than that)… and I think one of the funnier ones would have to be when my managers (they’re trying to keep me busy) found out that I turn 21 during my internship.
What is the coolest project you’re working on this summer?
Getting to work on these blog posts of course! I’m super excited to get some real-world writing experience and have something to show people after the summer is over. Bonus, I also get to learn about my fellow interns and all the awesome stuff they’re doing.
What’s your favorite snack in the kitchen?
The fully stocked micro-kitchens are what dreams are made of for this college student. But after reminiscing on the freshman-15 I’ve decided it best to stay away from the sour-punch straws (my favorite) and try to head for the fresh fruit.
Stay tuned for the next post to learn more about how cool being a Splunktern really is when I sit down with Dillon Lew, a Splunktern in the legal department!
Thanks!
Katrina
Resources:
Internships at Splunk
Splunk University Recruiting on Facebook