It’s already just a little over the halfway mark of my internship with Cohen & Company, and it’s safe to say I’ve had a great experience so far.
This is my first internship opportunity, so starting that first week felt daunting. I was worried that I knew too little, and the information overload I received during training was overwhelming. Fortunately, the people at Cohen & Company have been some of the most supportive that I’ve met.
Coming into the internship, I wasn’t really expecting to get that much interaction with my coworkers, and I assumed everybody would keep to themselves. The firm’s open door policy has really shocked me. There’s always people greeting you at the beginning of the day, and everyone is eager to assist you with any questions or problems you may stumble upon — and starting off, you’re going to have a lot.
One of the biggest things I was afraid of at the beginning of my internship was making mistakes, which is going to be unavoidable. Everyone is always eager to hop on a call and help walk you through a mistake that you made. That really helped build up my confidence in the beginning. I think the best thing you can do during your internship is to take notes when your questions are being answered, so you won’t ask the same questions over.
There’s never a dull moment whenever I go into the office, and there’s plenty of opportunities to connect with the people at the firm. It always seems like every other day there’s a happy hour or an opportunity to go out to lunch.
Before I even started my internship, I attended the St. Clair Shores office’s Christmas party, and it really helped me feel at ease. I met everyone from the office, and they all gave me a little piece of advice from their own experience. At the end of the night, I even won the raffle! Everyone was ecstatic that an intern was one of the winners, which made me feel like I was actually part of the firm and not just “some intern.”
The incoming CEO, Chris Bellamy, also took time to check in on us interns to see how we were doing and get feedback on our experience so far. He also shared a couple of eventful stories he has had throughout his time at the firm.
So far, my time at Cohen & Company has been a remarkable learning experience. Looking back to seven weeks ago, it’s hard to believe how clueless I was. The thought of even attempting to do a return worried me. Cohen & Company’s inclusive culture made it easy for me to get to know others in the firm, and the firm’s support has helped me to get this far in my internship.
The biggest piece of advice I have for future interns is to keep your head up when you’re starting out. You may feel like you are clueless, but you have a whole firm that’s ready to help you every step of the way.
Jalen Mitchell, Eastern Michigan University
Cohen & Company is not rendering legal, accounting or other professional advice. Information contained in this post is considered accurate as of the date of publishing. Any action taken based on information in this blog should be taken only after a detailed review of the specific facts, circumstances and current law.