I have always wanted to be an entrepreneur. Even as a little child I can remember exhibiting traits of an entrepreneur by selling various snacks and goods during lunch time to my fellow classmates in elementary and middle school. As I began to mature and transition from a kid, who vaguely understood what entrepreneurship encompassed, to a teenager, who realized that entrepreneurship embodied many forms, I began to “broaden my horizon” and open my mind to a form of entrepreneurship previously unknown. I discovered that by being a social entrepreneur I could change and improve the lives of various people in distant and foreign locations. For this reason, social entrepreneurship enticed my intuition and stimulated my interest as I began to dream of improving society and slowly eliminating poverty for all. Although my first semester at Babson and in FME was largely based on traditional entrepreneurship, which focused chiefly on producing revenues and profits, the idea of becoming a social entrepreneur always remained in heart.

After learning from the Babson Career Connections Center, (“BCCC”), that there was an internship opportunity in social entrepreneurship with a major 501(c) 3 non-profit corporation located in Washington, I performed extensive research on the company and the projects it produced.  As an upshot, I learned that the non-profit organization implemented several projects including building schools, libraries, and community centers in various impoverished regions across the globe. After I saw that the organization superseded my expectations and aligned with my passion, I began to holistically pursue the internship. My first priority was to visit BCCC, where I received invaluable help in ensuring that my resume was appropriate and formatted in an effective manner. Next, I proceed to completing the application process which included: writing several essays, submitting a resume, as well as an official transcript. Then, I strategically followed my completed application with several phone calls to the organization to check the status of my application and express my interest in the internship. Within two weeks of submitting my application I received confirmation, via email and phone, that I had been selected to move onto the next round of the application process which included multiple phone interviews and submitting a progress report for my classes. After completing this rigorous and lengthy process I was soundly confident that the organization felt I was an ideal candidate for the internship opportunity. Finally, after taking advantage of all the resources that Babson has to offer, I was notified that I had received the internship and would be interning in the Northern Providence of South Africa this summer. While in South Africa I will stay for approximately two months with a host family in the Manyeleti Community and perform groundbreaking work in Social Entrepreneurship in efforts to develop and implement sustainable projects that will immediately relieve these communities from poverty.