The Starburst Internship Program: Meet our Summer Interns

This summer marks Starburst’s third annual internship program. We are thrilled to welcome nine new All-Stars working remotely around the United States and can’t wait to see what they accomplish this summer and beyond.

This year we’ve placed an emphasis on both personal and professional development, with some fun activities peppered in between. The program includes educational sessions from leaders around the organization so our interns have a foundational understanding of both Starburst and how they fit into the bigger picture. We also understand that while an intern may be focused in marketing or web development, gaining exposure to different parts of the business can spark their interest in different fields.

These educational sessions run alongside personal development sessions. Infact, we even hosted an interactive workshop with former interns on how to make the most of the experience in an open Q&A format. Justin Borgman, our CEO & Co-Founder, also hosted a welcome lunch where he shed light on his career path and shared some words of wisdom. At the end of the summer, we plan to have a resume review and interview skills workshop led by the recruiting team to help set up our bright interns for success in their next adventures.

Further, to showcase our amazing company culture, we even hosted an “Intern Social” where managers got to ask their interns rapid fire “get-to-know-you” questions. It was a great way to get to know personalities and learn if someone would rather be stuck in a horror movie with their best friends or a romcom with their enemies, or who their number one music artist is.

This summer has been action packed so far and we’re so excited for what’s to come. To find out more about our interns, read on…

Bryan Phan

• Product/UX Design Intern
• San Diego State University
• Computer Science Studies
• Working from San Jose, CA

Bryan wants to create something that has a positive impact on Starburst before his internship ends. Bryan’s favorite place in the world is Japan; he loves the culture, the food, and their transit system (he’s a big fan of bullet trains).

Cindy Ngo

• Product Management/Web Development and Design Intern
• University of Florida
• Digital Arts and Computer Science Studies
• Working from Gainesville, Florida

Cindy loves the opportunity Starburst provides her to meet and work with team members around the world. Cindy has two pet budgie birds, Fiji and Mel!

Hailey Fahey

• HR Intern
• Connecticut College
• Psychology and Human Development Studies
• Working from Norwich, Vermont

Hailey’s favorite thing about working at Starburst is the people she has met and worked with; she thinks the culture at Starburst is welcoming and supportive. Hailey grew up skiing with her family and now she skis whenever she has the time!

Kaitlin Chau

• Content Marketing Intern
• University of California, Riverside
• Business Administration (Marketing) Studies
• Working from San Jose, California

Kaitlin hopes to put what she’s learned in her studies about SEO writing into practice. Her favorite place in the world is Budapest because of the extravagant and unique buildings.

Mason Giunta

• Sales Operations Intern
• St. Lawrence University
• Statistics and Business Studies
• Working from Medfield, MA

Mason’s favorite thing about his internship is meeting new people and creating relationships. When he was little, Mason wanted to play for the Boston Bruins!

Paige Napholz

• Marketing Department and Digital Marketing Intern
• University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
• Marketing and Information Systems Studies
• Working from Elk Grove Village, Illinois

By the end of this internship, Paige hopes to launch a marketing campaign with little to no guidance. When she was a child, Paige wanted to be an Elementary school teacher and used to teach her stuffed animals lessons!

Payton Swan

• Sales Operations Intern
• Louisiana State University
• Theater Studies
• Working from Boston and Baton Rouge

This summer, Payton wants to learn whether a sales operations career would work for her, and so far she is feeling very connected to it. Payton’s plans for the summer include traveling to Paris and London.

Sepideh Koohfar

• Customer Success and Data Science Intern
• University of New Hampshire
• Computer Science Studies
• Working from New Hampshire

Sepideh’s favorite thing about working at Starburst so far is connecting data scientist tools to Trino.

Shea Jamba

• Information Engineering Technical Writing Intern
• University of Southern Maine
• Computer Science Studies
• Working from South Portland, ME

This summer, Shea wants to be proficient with Git when using large repositories. Outside of work, Shea is looking forward to attending a Star Wars orchestra this summer.