Risk and Reward

Name: Maddy Kennard ’21 (Seattle)
Major: Media & Cultural Studies
Internship: BOME Productions 

What’s something you’ve learned that you’ll take with you going forward?
BOME Productions is a start-up, and students should be aware of start-ups for internships. They offer a lot of freedom. I was able to build much of my role myself. I started in social media, moved up to assistant agent, and now I’m interning as a production manager. If you see something that’s wrong with the system you’re operating in, it’s okay to say, “Hey, I think we should change this,” and not just keep operating in a broken system. You can take the initiative to fix things and develop your own systems. A lot of other jobs are not really like that—you just do what you’ve been assigned to do. So this experience was a different way of operating for me, but also very exciting and liberating to take those risks.  

What’s surprised you?
There are so many opportunities to network in the Twin Cities. It can be scary, but once you realize that everybody is doing the same thing—that it’s just a conversation with someone else—then it’s okay. 

No matter what you want to do, especially at Macalester, there are so many resources. I know that I haven’t tapped into half of them. And there are people that want to help you here. Even if you have an idea that doesn’t exist yet, got for it, and then ask for help later. If you put yourself out there, you will get a lot back—and Mac will support you.