Devon Blog

Tag: summer internship

  • Helping Students From Underrepresented Backgrounds Means Listening First

    By Carla J. (not her real name), College Coach

    I’ve worked with students from all walks of life, but the ones who stay with me the longest are the ones who didn’t think they belonged in the college admissions process at all.

    I remember one of my earliest students, Marcus (not his real name), a soft-spoken high school senior from rural Georgia who had a GPA most counselors would cheer for. But every time we talked about colleges, he looked away. When I finally asked him why he seemed so hesitant, he shrugged and said, “People like me don’t go to schools like that.”

    That’s when I knew my job wasn’t just to coach applications. It was to help students rewrite the narrative they’d been handed.

    The Weight of Being “First”

    Many of the students I support are the first in their family to apply to college. Some are first-generation Americans, navigating two cultures. Others come from communities where education hasn’t always been a visible path to opportunity. For all of them, the weight of being “first” can feel more like pressure than pride.

    I’ve learned that the first few sessions aren’t about essays or Common App strategies. They’re about trust. About learning how a student sees themselves. What they’ve been told they can—or can’t—achieve. The gap between ambition and belief is where most of the work happens.

    Coaching Is Not Correcting

    I once worked with a student named Aaliyah (not her real name), whose personal statement draft was a raw, honest story about growing up in public housing and caring for her younger siblings while her mom worked night shifts. She told me she wasn’t sure if it was “too much” or if colleges would think she was just trying to get pity points.

    I told her what I tell every student: Your story is your strength.

    Too often, students from underrepresented backgrounds try to erase the very things that make them compelling. They’re told to “polish” their narratives—to sound more like someone else. But my job isn’t to help them sound more like a college student. It’s to help them see that they already are one.

    Seeing What’s Possible

    It’s not enough to say “you belong.” I show students examples of others who walked similar paths. A DACA recipient now thriving at a top public university. A Somali-American girl who turned her love for coding into a summer internship and later a full ride. A trans student who wrote about building a safe space at their high school and now studies gender studies and political science.

    Representation isn’t a buzzword—it’s a blueprint.

    Small Wins, Big Shifts

    Sometimes, the breakthrough isn’t getting into a top-tier school. Sometimes it’s just getting a student to believe they deserve to apply. To ask for a letter of recommendation without apology. To talk about their achievements without minimizing them.

    I had a student last year, a Pacific Islander girl named Lina (not her real name), who used to preface every idea with “I don’t know if this is good, but…” By the end of our time together, she sent her final essay with a single sentence: “I’m proud of this.”

    That’s the win I live for.

    What I’ve Learned

    If there’s one thing I wish every parent, counselor, and admissions officer could see, it’s this: the students we think of as “underserved” are often the most resourceful, insightful, and emotionally intelligent young people in the room.

    They’ve had to be.

    And when they have someone who listens first, who affirms their stories instead of editing them out, they step into their power. Not just in their applications—but in their lives.

  • STEM, Startups, and Summer Programs: Crafting a Story That Stands Out

    By Michael Tran, Future Engineering Major

    Applying to college as a high school student is never easy, but for those of us passionate about STEM, there’s an extra layer of complexity. You’re not just trying to stand out academically — you’re trying to show your future school that you’re capable of contributing to cutting-edge technology, solving real-world problems, and driving innovation. And when it comes to crafting an application that stands out, nothing can be more impactful than real-world experience. For me, that meant diving into summer programs and internships with startups.

    Here’s how my summer experiences shaped my application and helped me tell a story that made me stand out to admissions committees.

    The Power of Hands-On Experience

    It’s one thing to take advanced math or science courses in school, but it’s another to apply those concepts in the real world. Early on in my high school career, I knew I wanted to study something like engineering or computer science, but I wasn’t sure how to show that interest in a way that would catch the eye of admissions officers.

    That’s when I stumbled upon a summer program at a local tech startup. It wasn’t a prestigious program, and it didn’t offer college credit or certifications. But what it did offer was invaluable — real experience. I spent six weeks helping a small team of engineers design a new app interface. I was learning firsthand about the intersection of technology and user experience, and that experience helped me develop a much deeper understanding of the field.

    Working in a startup also exposed me to the daily challenges that entrepreneurs face. I was able to see how quickly things could change, how flexibility and problem-solving were crucial in an environment where there was no room for complacency.

    Making My Summer Program Work for My Application

    When it came time to write my college essays, I realized I could turn that summer internship experience into a compelling story. But it wasn’t just about listing the technical skills I had learned — it was about showcasing how that summer program had shaped me as an individual.

    I wrote about how I entered the program as a student interested in tech but unsure of what that looked like in a professional context. By the end of the summer, I had developed new skills, learned how to work in a fast-paced team, and found new ways to solve problems under pressure. But most importantly, I was able to highlight how the program confirmed my desire to pursue a STEM field.

    When crafting the narrative for my personal statement, I didn’t focus solely on the technical aspects. Instead, I framed the story around growth — how I went from being a student in a classroom, learning theory, to someone who could apply that theory to create something real. That transition from theory to practice became the backbone of my essay.

    The Importance of Storytelling

    What I learned is that the key to a strong application is not just listing accomplishments but telling a story that connects those accomplishments to your larger goals. For example, I didn’t just talk about how I helped design an app interface. I explained how that experience sparked my passion for engineering and cemented my desire to work at the intersection of technology and user experience. I also described how I wanted to bring that hands-on, problem-solving mindset to my college studies and beyond.

    I also worked to connect my summer program experience to my future aspirations. I didn’t want to just be another applicant with a “cool summer internship” — I wanted my admissions officers to see that this was a stepping stone on my path to becoming an engineer who could create tech that improves lives. That meant emphasizing how the startup experience pushed me to think creatively, to collaborate effectively, and to approach challenges with an entrepreneurial mindset.

    Why STEM Students Need Startup Experience

    In my experience, startup internships and summer programs aren’t just great for building technical skills; they also give you an opportunity to learn how to fail and how to learn from those failures. Startups are all about rapid iteration and testing new ideas. It’s common to try something that doesn’t work, learn from it, and pivot. That’s a valuable lesson for anyone entering a STEM field, where failure is often the first step toward success.

    Plus, working in a startup allowed me to see the true scope of innovation. A single idea could transform into a product that would eventually reach hundreds, if not thousands, of people. This scale of impact was eye-opening and gave me a deeper sense of purpose in pursuing STEM.

    Don’t Forget the Soft Skills

    While it’s important to showcase your technical abilities, I also realized that startup environments test and develop your soft skills — collaboration, communication, leadership, and problem-solving. I made sure to highlight these in my application, as they are often overlooked by students focused on technical accomplishments alone.

    In my application, I discussed how working in a small team required clear communication and how I learned to take initiative, sometimes stepping up to lead a task or brainstorm a solution. These experiences helped me grow both as a student and as a person, and I made sure that came across in my personal statement.

    The Outcome: From Passion to Purpose

    When I finally received my college acceptance letter, it felt like the culmination of everything I had worked for. But what truly made me proud was that my summer program experiences had played a major role in shaping who I was as an applicant. I had demonstrated not only my passion for STEM but also my ability to apply what I learned, my commitment to personal growth, and my willingness to challenge myself.

    As I prepare to start my college journey, I know that the experiences I had in those summer programs and internships will continue to shape my future career. The most important lesson I learned throughout the process is that no experience, no matter how small, is insignificant when it comes to telling your story. By taking part in those programs, I didn’t just gain knowledge — I gained a story that is uniquely mine.