Student Blog
Brought to you from your @GoogleStudents friends. From pre-university to PhD (and beyond), we got you.
My BOLDest summer yet: A recap from the frontlines of a Google internship
August 19, 2011
Cross-posted from the
Official Google Blog
Lie down and remember that dream you had about something that seemed impossible—now imagine waking up and looking around to realize you were never sleeping. From strawberry funnel cakes to five-story cruise ships and
hangouts
with Larry Page, my summer of Building Opportunities in Leadership and Development (
BOLD
)—a Google summer internship program—never looked, tasted or sailed so well. Every day this summer I’ve jumped out of bed and into my real-life dream, working on products that I believe will change the world and contributing to a melting pot of proactive teamwork.
BOLD, one of Google’s
student and diversity initiatives
, brought 100+ undergraduates from all over the U.S. to Google in 2011. The program began in 2008 as a way to expose historically underrepresented students to the technology field. Whether it be sharing tofu with co-founder Sergey Brin or rubbing elbows with some of the world’s brightest minds at the
Google Science Fair
, Google interns worldwide have collected a plethora of unforgettable moments.
Being an intern here is much more than making coffee and photocopies. As one of Google’s largest sources of full-time hires, internship programs contribute to the company’s diversity, culture and future. Sure, I’ve made a few coffees during my internship—caramel mocha cappuccinos to be exact, from the espresso machine in the microkitchen. But my summer at the
Googleplex
was a packed, 11-week adventure within the Global Communications & Public Affairs apps and enterprise team. My projects ranged from working with my manager on the
Google+ Project
launch to staffing press at the inaugural
Google Science Fair
. Other BOLDers worked on major products like Android and YouTube, and even launched newbies, like
Games in Google+
. We attended weekly workshops, talks about technology and skill-building seminars led by company leaders like director of online sales and operations Stacy Brown-Philpot and chief legal officer David Drummond.
I was even able to scratch my creative itch for event coordinating and community service. On my second day at Google, I painted hallways alongside my team for a community
GoogleServe project
at middle school in San Francisco. Soon after, I coordinated a weekly intern discussion series with a few amazing mentors from the
Black Googlers Network
.
To share a few other perspectives beyond my own, I caught up with
Brandon Jackson
and Eoin Hayes from the BOLD and
Online Media Associate Program (OMAP)
bunch. I asked them to share a few of their experiences this summer:
Brandon, a two-time BOLD participant and rising senior at Stanford, worked with the technology human relations team, focusing on transitioning new Googlers to the company. He told me: “BOLD represents family. The program coordinators find some of the brightest, most intellectually curious and warm hearted students in the world. Coupled with inspiring mentors and an incredible university programs team, BOLD is a community that never stops looking out for each other.”
Eoin, a master’s student at London Business School who worked with the OMAP AdSense team in Dublin, said he not only gained deep product knowledge during his internship, but also leadership and management skills. A highlight was his visit to Google’s headquarters with four other international interns.
Eoin with other European and U.S. interns at a Googleplex TGIF
Although my internship officially ends today, my professional development is just beginning. I have a new perspective on life and career options after college, like having had a refreshing sip of “Googlemonade” in the Sahara of post-college stress. As a senior this year, I’ll be serving as
UC Merced
’s first Google
Student Ambassador
and I can’t wait to connect my college to all of Google’s collaborative learning resources and leadership opportunities.
Me (with the purple pants) & fellow BOLDers on the 80s-themed intern boat cruise around the San Francisco Bay
This summer was an unforgettable cruise and I will never forget those who set sail with me. If you’re interested in student opportunities at Google, visit the
Student blog
.
Posted by Shavone Charles, BOLD intern
Post a Comment
Labels
A Day in the Life of a New Grad in Google Dublin
7
AdCamp
2
AdMob
11
Ambassador Program
14
APAC
7
Appy Trails
28
Back to School
4
Better Know a New Grad
1
Better Know an Intern
16
Better Know an Office
4
Black History Month
10
Caitlin Talks to an Engineer
9
Chrome Extensions
3
Chromebook
1
College Tips by Google
1
Community
14
Conferences
16
consortium
1
CSSI
5
Day in the Life
2
deSTEMber
1
Development Programs
1
Diary of a Business Associate Intern
1
Diary of a Summer Intern
41
Diary of a Summer Intern - Erika
9
Diary of a Summer Intern - Franklin
3
Diary of a Summer Intern - Jess
3
Diary of a Summer intern - Luke
3
Diary of a Summer Intern - Madelaine
4
Diary of a Summer Intern - Pablo
3
Diary of a Summer Intern - Rio
4
Diary of a Summer Intern 2012
18
Diary of an MBA Intern
2
Education
19
EMEA
44
Europe
7
Events
13
Exploring Design at Google
4
GHC15
6
Going Green
6
Gone Google
2
Google Code University
1
Google Code-in
1
Google Games
3
Google Japan
1
Google Lime Scholarship
1
Google on campus
2
Google Online Marketing Challenge
10
Google Science Fair
2
Google.org
1
Google+
6
Googlers
14
Googlers Beta
11
Grace Hopper
11
GradTips
9
Hangouts On Air
21
Inside ITRP
6
Intern Insights
31
Intern Program
73
Interns Making an Impact
7
Interviews
1
Jobs
5
just for fun
30
K-12 (Pre-university)
14
LATAM
2
Life at Google
17
Middle East
1
My Path to Google
29
My Summer at Google
15
My Summer at Google 2012
10
North America
4
Office Environment
4
Open Source
9
PhD
7
Products
94
Programs and Competitions
116
Recruiter Tips and Tricks
15
Rice Plus
4
Scholarships
56
Search
1
STEM
2
STEP
1
Student Tips
15
Students
13
Summer of Code
1
Teach Parents Tech
10
Tech Students
3
Tips and Tricks
27
Women in Engineering
20
Young Innovators
10
YouTube
2
Archive
2018
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2017
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2016
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2015
Dec
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2014
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2013
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2012
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2011
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2010
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2009
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sep
Aug
Jul
Jun
May
Apr
Mar
Feb
Jan
2008
Dec
Nov
Oct
Sep
Feed
Google
on
Follow @GoogleStudents
Interested in opportunities and programs for students? Visit
google.com/students
.
