INTERN STORIES | Timi Sodipo internship with One Million Steps
Timi completed a science internship with One Million Steps as part of his Food Science and Nutrition degree at the University of Surrey.
Hear about his experience in an internship program.
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Video transcription
Why did you want to undertake an internship?
The reason why I wanted to take an internship over the summer after my graduation was mainly because I wanted to try and improve my communication skills and to build up my experience for the upcoming job opportunities in the future.
Are there any skills you developed during your internship?
So the main key skills which I managed to improve on during my internship were mainly my communication skills. I managed to improve my language and the way I expressed the topics I wanted to get across to the reader. I managed to change from a very professional educational (perspective) to more of a basic (perspective), for those who are not too experienced in the specified degree. The subjects which I spoke about, had a very good understanding of what I was trying to get across.
So I applied a lot of my food science knowledge and skills which I picked up from University. In addition to this, the collaboration of my supervisors set skills and ideas helped me create the best product that I could come up with when it comes to writing.
Share a few highlights of your internship.
One of my biggest highlights from my internship with One Million Steps was working with Ranjit, my supervisor. He's very educational and also funny. Personally, I feel like we did connect a lot and he showed me a lot of skills, which I didn't even think that I needed to learn at the time, especially when it came to IT skills and presentation.
Another aspect I really enjoyed was generally having the independence of working in my own time at the internship. I did require a lot of time management and this helped me improve (that skill). And goals, which I was trying to achieve. I managed to complete all the deadlines on time, and I guess it was just that independence that really helped me improve a lot more as a person.
Are there any key takeaways from your mentor?
Interactions with my supervisor were really insightful. We would have consistent meetings which (helped) organise myself. I (would) meet my supervisor three times a day and probably speak for a few minutes (or) talk for an hour depending on how much work we had. And we just had constant feedback.
What will stay with you from this experience?
One of the few memorable moments (which wasn't) just memorable, funny and entertaining, but (something that) was also very beneficial to me was, the meetings I had with Ranjit. It felt like I wasn't talking to my boss, I was talking to a friend.
What advice would you give others pursuing a similar path?
If you feel like you are lacking and you don't have enough (experience) that would be sufficient to get the desired role you are applying for, just look at different internships you could probably apply for. The more internships you get, the more your CV improves, and the more your CV improves, the more experience you have, the more experience you have, the more likely (you are) to get jobs. Employers are definitely more intrigued in your CV. At the end of the day, it's all about quality.
What’s next in your journey?
I'm going to be working in Saint Thomas’ Pharmacy in Central London. I will be distributing and stocking medications, different from a hospital. And I feel like the experience that I've gained from my previous internship at Million Steps has really helped me improve my communication skills and I feel that I'm a lot more (capable).