The Intern Journal: Siena College Research Institute

The path to gaining work experience is more complicated for international students like Henrik Winkelmann '23, G'24. He grew up in a small German town about an hour from the Dutch border and came to Siena to play soccer and earn a degree - two of them actually - in business analytics. The four-year captain may pursue soccer professionally, but if he doesn't, he wanted to inflate his resume with real-world data analytics experience. But, there's that catch...

"As an international student, there's a lot of paperwork to fill out to work off campus. It was handy that I was able to find the perfect internship right here. No other applications or validation from the government was required."

Henrik found the experience he was looking for interning with the most accurate pollster in America. First, he went through basic training. Henrik learned about the software and different processes SCRI uses to collect survey data. Then, he took that data and went to work. Henrik applied data from new surveys into power points, changing graphs and plotting points on charts.

This fall, the All-MAAC defender is in his final season anchoring Siena's backline, while also finishing his master's in business analytics (he'll graduate in December). That's a pretty full plate, but Henrik enjoyed his summer internship too much to walk away before the November elections.

"This fall, I'm looking at data from all of the swing states for the 2016 and 2020 elections. I'm calculating how many voters - Republicans, Democrats, and independents - cast a ballot and who they voted for in each county."

SCRI can look at that data to determine how well they handicapped races by state, and using the results, they can adjust the weight of different measurements this season to strengthen their outcomes.

"All of these tools I'm using right now, I hope can apply them when I graduate. My capstone class, everything I'm learning at SCRI - I'm getting to apply it in the real world right away, and that helps so much. I'm excited to continue to grow in that field."

"When I think of a student who embodies technical expertise, soft skills, and the right attitude, Henrik exceeds all expectations. As a data analysis intern at SCRI, Henrik has made remarkable contributions across various projects, from building sophisticated data visualization dashboards to uncovering trends and crafting insightful reports. His ability to seamlessly write code and communicate results has been instrumental in advancing both the mission of Siena College and the success of SCRI.

Our interns are not just participants - they're contributors, bringing fresh ideas and collaborating on complex, high-impact projects that sharpen their skills and broaden their horizons. SCRI's success stems from the collective efforts of our telephone interviewers, student interns, and dedicated administrative team, working together as a seamless unit. This collaborative spirit is what has earned Siena the reputation of being America's most accurate pollster."

Travis Brodbeck '17, G'18, SCRI associate director of data management