My summer internship with Access Partnership turned out to be a lot of “firsts”. It was my first experience working in the private sector, particularly in the field of consulting. I learned what it was like to work with various clients, ranging from major tech companies to multilateral organizations, and how to support clients who each faced different contexts, constraints, and needs in an ever-evolving tech landscape. My tasks ranged from supporting the company’s business development through detailed proposals and slide decks, to actual project delivery consisting of economic modelling, industry research, and client meetings.
It was also my first time working outside my home country. Given the company’s global operations, I was able to learn from a diverse set of colleagues. I was also able to learn about the tech industry from varying levels of geography, from country-specific AI adoption and diffusion, bilateral agreements and regional frameworks, to the cross-cutting global implications of technology and how it is being governed.
Overall, the internship was challenging in the best way: I was able to experience the fast pace, extremely thorough, and highly analytical world of consulting, with the support of some of the brightest minds in the industry.