Cade Sheeran
Bachelor of Arts in Economics, '23
Business Development Intern at Visitor
What are some of your responsibilities as a business development intern?
My main responsibilities include working to acquire new accounts, researching the non-alcoholic beer market, and organizing sales reports from our distributors. Given that I am working for a start-up, I am offered a lot of flexibility to input my knowledge and ideas into the business in any way that I can. Normally, I start my days with checking my email to see if there’s any new information from accounts or my supervisor that I should keep track of. In my free time, I carry out market research on the non-alcoholic beer industry to see if I can notice any trends or opportunities that my company can take advantage of. Additionally, the owners of the company and I meet about twice a week to discuss new opportunities, brainstorm business strategies, and discuss upcoming events and important developments to make sure we are all on the same page.
Is your internship remote?
Much of my work is remote, but I do meet in person a few times a week.
How did you find this internship? How long did it take to find?
I was lucky enough to be recommended by a friend of mine who is good friends with the founders of the company. This really showed me the importance of networking and the benefits you receive from it. I spent about a month applying for various internships until I found the right fit.
Do you have any advice for students looking to find an internship?
First and foremost, I recommend thinking of networking connections you have made at DePaul, or anywhere else to see if there are any opportunities from people you know that you can take advantage of. These connections can prove to be much more valuable than what is on your resume. If there’s nothing there, I recommend making sure your resume is top-notch and applying to as many internships as you can on
Handshake and/or Indeed. Even if you don’t think you are qualified, it doesn’t hurt to apply because more often than not you are more qualified than you think, and there are so many opportunities in Chicago that you can take advantage of if you take the time to apply.
What job do you hope to get when you graduate?
I love my opportunity with Visitor, so ideally I can transition this internship into a full-time job once I graduate. If not, I would love to do market research analyses with another company.
Why are you majoring in economics?
I chose to major in economics because I am incredibly fascinated by the perspective economics gives you on people and decision making. The tools learned in economics are valuable to many different careers, so building a strong foundation is great when you are uncertain about what exactly you want to do.