| Baylor > Environmental Science > Student Spotlights > Dannie Dinh |
During Dinh's first week she completed assigned tasks, and shadowed Zrubek during her representations for the Office of Waste in Information Technology project meetings. As Dinh gradually moved into assisting the Industrial Hazardous Waste/Municipal Solid Waste Team and managing web content for the Occupational Licensng Section, her responsibilities grew from completing small tasks and mostly observing to working on more extensive projects that worked from beginning to end.
"These projects must meet specific deadlines and goals," Dinh said. "I had to focus specifically on these tasks, coordinate with Division and Regional staffs, and make sure to manage time efficiently."
The internship responsibilities consisted of completing important work that is usually handled by a Team Leader or specialized staff member. While the job description dealt with directly handling web content of online exam registration, Dinh assisted in pushing forwards and completing an initiative that has been on hold for over a year.
"I really saw myself grow and mature tremendously by applying myself to the projects and to the professional work environment," Dinh stated. "An education is a foundation that provides the basic knowledge, but I learned and explored my interests by practice, by working at my internship, observ-ing and asking questions, noting what I had done right, correcting mistakes, and making connections."
There were high expectations upon her arrival at the internship, but Dinh is now back at Baylor to complete her final fall and spring semesters of un-dergraduate study. The internship was able to give real world experience relevant in her field of study. She mentioned "I have a much better assess-ment of myself and my interest, my classes, knowledge, and what I have to do to achieve my immediate goal of furthering my education through gradu-ate and law programs."
