Meet Udemy’s 2019 Interns!
This article was written by summer intern Irene Suarez
From ping pong tournaments to Friday lunch outings, we interns made the most of our time here at Udemy. With a total of twenty interns from all over the world, we learned and grew in personal and professional ways throughout the internship program, while enjoying budding friendships and plenty of kombucha.
Thank you, Udemy, for teaching us the importance of lifelong learning within the company and beyond. This was definitely a summer to remember!
I’ve been an avid user of the Udemy platform since long before I joined as an intern. I remember the day I enrolled in my first software engineering course during the summer of my high school freshman year. By the end of it, I was able to build my first mobile app, CryptoTip. It felt indescribable. From that point on, Udemy continuously motivated me to learn and really define my career trajectory.
During my time at Udemy, I’ve met so many amazing people, formed long-lasting friendships, and got to build some pretty cool features for the mobile app! Of all the internships I’ve done in the past, Udemy has a special place in my heart.
Helen Hu – Product Design Intern
Week one at Udemy, I was encouraged to set up one-on-one “coffee chats” with the immediate five stakeholders on my team. I felt anxious asking these busy individuals for time on their calendars. Soon, I learned that people here are incredibly warm, supportive and helpful (no one turned me down)! In the next few weeks, I met with over thirty Udemites across different teams, and each conversation helped me learn more holistically about Udemy as a company. I am grateful to Product, Design, Engineering and Udemy as a whole for the investment in me and am humbled to know that my research and design work will live beyond my internship.
Cameron Turner – Public Relations Intern
I feel so lucky to have had this internship opportunity. Since graduating from University of California Santa Cruz, I’ve been excited to learn more about public relations and communications. Being an intern at Udemy has given me so many learning opportunities, from copywriting to data analytics, and has made me understand how important accessibility is to education. I spent my summer going climbing with fellow interns, writing press releases, learning SQL, and snacking on Reese’s Pieces, just to name a few.
Eric Berkovsky – Financial Planning & Analysis Intern
Growing up in the Bay Area, I have always been fascinated by the startup world and was excited to experience working at one, especially in the EdTech space. Over the past ten weeks, I learned more about finance, completed a project on unit economics, and made many new friends. I appreciate how invested my team was in helping me grow and learn more, and the Udemy community for always being welcoming and passionate about what they do. Following this internship, I will be returning to University of California Berkeley to finish my final year of undergrad.
Yuki Mizuno – Software Engineering Intern
My internship at Udemy has been one of the most rewarding experiences throughout my career as an incoming software engineer. Everyone at the company is extremely supportive and firmly believes in the mission to provide everyone with access to education. I am grateful to have had the opportunity to work at such an impactful company in the EdTech industry. Soon, I will be returning to UC Berkeley to finish my degree, but even after graduation, I hope to continue contributing my skills to make an impact in the world.
Rachel Carlon – Employer Branding Intern
Coming from across the country and interning at a tech company in San Francisco was intimidating to say the least. I am amazed at how much Udemy has taught me in just two short months, and I am so thankful for this amazing learning opportunity. Udemy has provided me with a clearer idea of what I want to do post graduation from Auburn University, and who knows, maybe that will bring me back to San Francisco!
Omar Samara – Android Engineering Intern
Moving across the country to work at Udemy was an eye-opening experience. I lived in North Carolina all of my life, and being able to experience the city of San Francisco, hang out with other interns, and learn how to play ping-pong has been awesome. Oh yeah, and writing code was cool, too.
Aswin Natarajan – Product Management Intern
As an MBA student from the University of Washington, I joined Udemy for the opportunity to work on our mobile products. I’ve had the opportunity to learn technical skills (hello, SQL!), own the design and release of a new feature, and even lead a high-level strategy project. People at Udemy do serious work but they don’t take themselves too seriously, which I absolutely love. One time, our team decided to bring our “thinking caps” to a design ideation session by literally wearing construction hardhats. It was hilarious to see people outside of the meeting room peeking in to see what we were “building!” It will be bittersweet returning back to Seattle this fall, but I feel better prepared than ever to pursue my career goal of becoming a product manager.
Paulina Biernacki – UX Research Intern
As a Stanford PhD student in Learning Sciences, I am excited about the potential for technology to transform global access to education. This summer I have been fortunate to work with the fantastic UX Research team here at Udemy. It has been very inspiring to research the design of effective online learning environments and to hear from Udemy students about their learning journeys.
Anya Carion – Product Marketing Intern
Education is an incredible privilege, and Udemy’s commitment to making education more accessible was something I was so excited to jump into. Over the past few months, I’ve been supported by the best team to achieve both my personal and professional goals, learned a diverse set of skills and eaten about a thousand chocolate-covered almonds! After my summer in San Francisco ends, I’ll be taking everything I’ve learned with me back to Scotland to finish my degree.
Luke Hendrickson – Legal Intern
I am so grateful for having had this wonderful opportunity at Udemy. My dream is to one day do what the lawyers here do: working in-house at an exciting tech startup dealing with the unique legal quandaries created by being on the cutting edge. The team here has been so wonderful and I’ll miss them as I brace myself for the hell of law school!
Richard Hai – Software Engineering Intern
As a fresh coding bootcamp graduate doubting my technical abilities, I started my Udemy adventure determined to learn as much as I could. Not only did I learn the foundational technical and soft skills demanded from software engineers, but also had an amazing time doing so with my team. The summer flew by faster than I could have imagined, thanks to all the amazing co-workers and interns I’ve met.
Sunah Park – Software Engineering Intern
After spending six years at Samsung as a corporate finance manager, I decided to start a new adventure as a software engineer in SF. It was a big decision for me, but my experience this summer at Udemy’s Data Platform team made me believe it was the right decision. I really enjoyed working with everyone on complex data engineering projects!
Theodora Karatzas – Product Writer Intern
I worked in the music industry before I started graduate school and over the last couple years have become very interested in UX writing and content strategy. This summer has been a great way to get some experience in that area and build a few pieces for my portfolio. I’ve loved working on the design team at Udemy and I’m excited to head into my final year of my master’s degree with new knowledge I can apply to my studies.
Sidney Hirschman- Legal Intern
Having the opportunity to work at Udemy this summer has taught me so much. I’ve been doing everything from researching tax law to scoping out fraud issues — and, of course, guarding the legal department’s bucket of cheese balls. Before I head back to the East Coast for my second year of undergrad at Yale, I’m looking forward to learning SQL, diving into the database, and making new friends.
Christina Munoz – Legal Intern
My summer working for Udemy has been incredible and the experience I have gained here—both professionally and personally—is invaluable. I feel fortunate to have worked side-by-side with such an intelligent and fun-loving team of attorneys. As I enter into my last year of law school, I feel confident that I have chosen the right career path and am excited to start practicing next year.
Michael Palisano – Marketing & CRM Strategy MBA Intern
Udemy allowed me to combine my industry experience working at the African Leadership University with the skills I’ve gained doing my MBA at INSEAD. I’ve learned a lot from working in one of EdTech’s major players and I’m excited for Udemy’s incredible growth opportunities in the years to come. The company also has an exceptional culture and one of the friendliest and smartest teams you’ll find anywhere. I’m also thankful for 2 months of unlimited access to Udemy’s entire catalog – I’ve learned SQL, interview tips, mindfulness, and how to whistle!
Arthur Hwang – Corporate Finance Intern
As a Bay Area native who’s excited about technology that makes the world better, I was thrilled to join Udemy this summer as a financial analyst intern. I’ve had an incredible learning experience, growing my finance skills, understanding the tech business landscape a bit more every day, and even attending a hip hop dancing class taught by my boss during Udemy’s Global Learning Fair! While I’m headed to sing and travel the world with the Yale Whiffenpoofs next year, I will always miss my awesome team and intern friends!
Irene Suarez – Social Media Intern
Having finished my second year at California State University-Fullerton, I wanted to experience what it’s like to work at a tech company in San Francisco. The large responsibility of contributing to Udemy’s social media platforms by creating content, developing campaign analyses, and executing my own campaign allowed me to learn so much about who our followers are and how to develop effective strategies on social media. During my time here, I’ve made new friends and drank all the coffee the city can offer me. With one more year left in college, I plan to make the best of my education and continue to explore opportunities I find along the way.