What influenced your decision to do a banking internship?
In searching for my career calling, I knew I wanted to make a positive impact in the lives of my community. Banking is an excellent industry for helping others, achieving goals, and continual self-growth. This prompted me to seek an internship to sharpen my skills and learn how banks work together to better their communities.

What has been the most beneficial part of your internship?
The most beneficial part of my internship was learning the language used in the banking industry. There are a lot of moving parts for a bank to be successful. For example, collaboration and a general understanding of each department create smooth and efficient daily operations. Being able to understand the topics and practices my coworkers discuss, I am better equipped to contribute to the success of our bank.

What areas of banking did you focus on in your internship? Is this something you want to continue doing in the future?
Throughout the summer, I worked mostly with the loan department for my internship. I was fortunate enough to learn multiple aspects of the loan department. Through this internship, I was able to analyze financial documents, home inspections, credit analysis, prospect and customer meetings, data entry, as well gaining basic knowledge in ag, mortgage, and consumer lending. Lending is an area I want to continue to grow my knowledge in. I am looking forward to my banking career after graduating from college, thanks to the building blocks from this internship experience.

How has this internship grown your interest in the banking career path?
This internship has shown me that a career in banking is a career full of purpose. Banks are able to help their community in many different ways. Witnessing this firsthand in this internship has greatly grown my interest in pursuing a career in banking.

What is the most important thing you have learned through your internship?
The most important thing I have learned in my internship is building relationships in the community. The bank thrives when the community is thriving; therefore, the perfect catalyst is being involved in the community and discovering ways to help assist people.

Do you think this internship will help you in your future? If so, how?
Yes, I’m confident this internship will greatly help my future. One of the keys to a successful career is building a strong foundation at the beginning. This internship has given me the knowledge and skills to be able to build a strong foundation, so I have the opportunity to create a successful career.

What would you say to someone who is considering a banking internship?
I would say to do it! Internships are a great way to find out more about oneself and what their interest are. The banking industry has many different careers and paths to choose from; an internship can help someone discover a career that works best for them. Even if one doesn’t choose to pick a career in banking, the lessons and skills learned in an internship translate well to other career paths.

Anything else you would like to add?
I want to thank Jones Bank for all the time and help that they invested in me for this internship. They have been a great team to work with as well as learn from.

What influenced your decision to do a banking internship?
Ever since high school, I have been interested in banking and the financial aspect of agriculture. Being in the NBA program has given me the opportunity to further my education and interest.

What has been the most beneficial part of your internship?
The most beneficial part of my internship was being able to go on farm visits. The visits allowed me to connect with customers and learn more about their operations.

What areas of banking did you focus on in your internship? Is this something you want to continue doing in the future?
Union Bank & Trust gave me the opportunity to shadow many of their departments. I was able to learn about estate planning, credit analyzing, wholesale loan ops, as well as the different types of lending. I could see myself continuing to work in the banking industry in the future.

How has this internship grown your interest in the banking career path?
With being exposed to all that there is in the banking industry, my interest has grown wildly over the summer. Starting out the internship, I was only focused on becoming a loan officer. After completing the internship, I have realized that there are so many other important careers that keep the bank running.

What is the most important thing you have learned through your internship?
The most important thing I learned through my internship was the steps that it takes when dealing with loans. From a consumer perspective, it may look simple when applying for a loan. The reality of what goes into the decision of lending and the step after approval is very detailed. Lending involves many departments.

Do you think this internship will help you in your future? If so, how?
I believe that my whole experience in this internship has better prepared me for my future. I plan on continuing my career in the banking field and having a better understanding of how the bank operates will help me in my future. Banking is a complex industry that requires various departments to run smoothly.

What would you say to someone who is considering a banking internship?
I would recommend that they give it a try. You learn so much about the banking industry and gain knowledge and skills that can help you in your future. The banking industry has so many different careers that form a bank, and you might find something that piques your interest.

Anything else you would like to add?
Banking is much more than just numbers. Having the basic knowledge of how a bank operates can help you in any career you plan to pursue.

What influenced your decision to do a banking internship?
I am the youngest of five in my family. Three of my older brothers have specific roles in agriculture: agronomy, animal science and mechanized ag. I was always good with numbers, and my father suggested being in ag finance. I took the challenge to explore the career and developed an interest for it. I knew right away that when I decided to do ag finance, I would want to work in the bank as an ag lender. Of course, knowing little about what goes on in banking, I knew I would need to do an internship to get an idea of what I can expect working in this field.

What has been the most beneficial part of your internship?
I think some beneficial parts of this internship would have to be the personal lessons I've learned while interning here. Being able to understand what to expect when buying a home. Learning how a bank operates and actions taken behind closed doors. As well as understanding some of the policies and guidelines on loans that are in place to protect both the lender and the borrower. The most beneficial part would be the networking and personal connections I have gained throughout the last 10 weeks. Columbus Bank & Trust Co. encourages community involvement with their employees and acts like a second family to me. Especially someone who spend the majority of their childhood working on their family farm, it was an easy transition for me.

​What areas of banking did you focus on in your internship? Is this something you want to continue doing in the future?
Throughout the 10 weeks I was there, I worked with Consumer Banking, IT/Deposit Operations and Loan Operations, which included positions such as Universal Banker, Personal Banker, IT/Deposit Operations, Mortgage Operations, Loan Operations and finally Ag/Commercial Lending. All of these areas were well worth the experience, and I enjoyed all departments equally. Although, with my passion towards agriculture, I found myself suited for ag lending because I got to work with farmers and help their operation perform.

​How has this internship grown your interest in the banking career path?
Coming into this internship, I had no real clue what all takes place in banking. This internship allowed me to understand all aspects of banking and further understand how all departments work with one another. I also got the chance to speak with customers from all backgrounds, and being able to help them with their financial needs was a great deal for me.

What is the most important thing you have learned through your internship?
There is plenty of opportunity to grow in the bank. Everyone is encouraged to take on new responsibilities and discover certain areas of banking that they haven't tried before. I like to think of this when I continue on because I don't like to think that I'm tied to one position. Rather, I would like to have multiple positions/jobs in a bank. Small banks often need people to cover multiple positions and should be noted when entering the banking industry.

Do you think this internship will help you in your future? If so, how?
Yes. I wish to end up working in a bank someday even if I don't get to be in lending right away, but with the experience gained from this internship, I wouldn't be caught off guard with a different position. I also want to mention that this internship helped me expand my business/finance knowledge. Having this knowledge developed will be a lot easier for me to come back to when I'm working full time.

What would you say to someone who is considering a banking internship?
Ingest everything you see and don't be afraid to take the wheel. I learned so much faster doing the work right away with someone overlooking my shoulder. I was able to learn how to do my work as well as ask questions that pertained to the work I was doing. But that's familiar to me, since I grew up on a farm and learned to work with my hands rather than watching.

Anything else you'd like to add?
I want to thank Columbus Bank & Trust Co. for investing their time and efforts in me. I have grown a personal connection with them and hope to keep that connection with them from here on. I would also like to thank the Nebraska Bankers Association for helping me get in contact with Columbus Bank & Trust Co. and allowing a smooth transition.

What influenced your decision to do a banking internship?
I have been interested in banking since high school when a loan officer came to our school and told us what he did.

What has been the most beneficial part of your internship?
The most beneficial parts of my internship were getting to know people that work in the banking industry and learning how things work within the industry.

What areas of banking did you focus on in your internship? Is this something you want to continue doing in the future?
The areas of focus during my internship were being a teller, looking through loan documents, and helping with securities. I could see myself doing these things in the future.

How has this internship grown your interest in the banking career path?
The way it helped grow my interest was by talking with all of the people I worked with and seeing all of the things that go on in the bank.

What is the most important thing you have learned through your internship?
The most important thing I learned through my internship was how to better communicate with people.

Do you think this internship will help you in your future? If so, how?
I think it will help me in the future because it helped me work on my people skills. There are a lot of customers that enter a bank, and you have to communicate with them, so learning how to do that proficiently will always be beneficial.

What would you say to someone who is considering a banking internship?
If you are considering it then you should just go for it because if you like it, then that's great. But if you don't, then at least you tried it.

2023 Bank Intern
Waypoint Bank, Eustis

What influenced your decision to do a banking internship?
I thought it might be what I wanted to do after school, so I decided to intern at my hometown bank. It has been a great decision.

What has been the most beneficial part of your internship?
Getting to work with the loan officers one-on-one.

What areas of banking did you focus on in your internship? Is this something you want to continue doing in the future?
I worked with the loan officers the most because that is what I am wanting to do in the future.

How has this internship grown your interest in the banking career path?
It has helped me decide that I want to have a career in banking.

What is the most important thing you have learned through your internship?
It is very important to get to know your customers and listen to their concerns.

Do you think this internship will help you in your future? If so, how?
Yes, because I have gotten a lot of experience and learned a lot.

What would you say to someone who is considering a banking internship?
I think it is a good idea.