You may find yourself asking, what does a day in the life of a NEED and Exelon Foundation STEM Academy scholar look like? Luckily, I am here to help! My name is Emily Curran, and I am a class of 2026 Exelon Foundation STEM Academy scholar and a sophomore at Villanova University studying computer engineering with minors in business and computer science. As part of the Scholar Program, I was granted the opportunity to intern at PECO this summer in the Business Operations department under Customer Operations. Let’s see what a day at PECO might look like for me!
My morning starts bright and early at 5:30 am when I groggily snooze my alarm and roll out of bed to get ready for the day. I pick out my new, business professional outfit before jumping into my car to drive to the train station. I hop on the 6:26 train from Warminster towards Center City, and since the train takes about an hour, I typically spend my mornings resting my eyes or getting some extra work done. When my train arrives at 30th Street Station, I get off and begin my short walk to the office. It only takes about five minutes before I am walking through the revolving door, scanning my badge, and jumping on the elevator up to the 20th floor. There are only 26 floors in the whole building, so the 20th floor has an awesome view of the city skyline. I had my own cubicle this summer, that I was able to decorate and make my own little home. After I get my belongings in order, I head to the third floor to make some coffee, begin sifting through my emails and preparing for the day.
A typical day in the Main Office Building includes a multitude of in-person and virtual meetings, chatting with my coworkers, and working on my many projects. During my internship, I contributed to two major projects that extended over the entirety of the Customer Operations department. The first project was the creation of a comprehensive one-page reporting dashboard for the Senior Vice President of Customer Operations. This dashboard allowed me to work in Power BI to consolidate and visually represent performance indicators, metrics, and relevant data regarding customer pain points. My challenge was not only to gather and condense this information effectively but also to present it in an easily digestible format. My second major undertaking revolved around the development of a weekly operational reporting communication, amusingly titled “It’s Electric!”. This project involved crafting a concise yet informative report that highlighted the week’s operational achievements, challenges, and pertinent updates. It’s Electric! Promoted communication and collaboration within the department not previously available and will continue following the conclusion of my internship.
Working on these projects allowed me to collaborate with various teams, speaking to professionals and subject matter experts from various departments in Customer Operations. They enhanced my understanding and provided me the opportunity to learn from professionals, gain insight into effective collaboration, problem-solving, and project management. Overall, my time at PECO was highlighted with immersion in a corporate environment where I engaged in projects that demanded effective communication and a holistic understanding of Customer Operations. This summer both enriched my knowledge and allowed me to cultivate valuable skills that I am eager to carry forward into my future endeavors.
My favorite part of each day was definitely intern lunch, when we would all walk to Trader Joe ’s, then sit in the cafeteria to catch up, talk ab out work, and ultimately become one of the closest groups of friends I have ever been a part of. As a group, we set up and ran an intern service project, partnering with Philabundance to pack over 500 pounds of food for those in need. The many workshops and teambuilding exercises we were apart of continued to grow the bond between us as young professionals and I am grateful for the amazing peers I met during my internship experience.
Following a long day in the office, I pack my bag, walk back across the street, and jump on the 4:26 train home to Warminster. Arriving home around 5:45, I had a multitude of After work I had many hobbies, from working out, to spending time with family, and even helping at the 2023 Philadelphia STEM Academy. I spent a ton of time down the shore in Sea Isle City and even ended the summer by celebrating my cousin’s wedding!
I am excited to head back to Villanova to start my sophomore year as part of the STEM Academy Scholars family. I am grateful for the endless support and enthusiasm from PECO, NEED, and everyone in the program!
Until next time,
Emily Curran