My first day at Cohen & Co, I remember being a nervous wreck. It was my first internship ever, so I wasn’t sure what to expect. I did know I was coming in with no experience and would have a million questions by the end of the day.
As the week went on and we went through more training videos, I started getting more comfortable with my fellow interns. Having lunch together really helped us bond. We would all ask each other questions and if one of us were learning something new, we all shared it with each other afterwards, so it really felt like we were building each other up throughout it all. Our second week we had a happy hour, and I think it’s still one of my most memorable events. It was so fun talking to all the employees at the office about what they like to do in their free time and see how many of them have really become good friends.
The best part of Cohen & Co truly is the people who work there. From helping all the interns get through our first day, to our weekly check-ins over video, everyone was always welcoming, and I never felt afraid to ask any questions if I didn’t understand what I was supposed to do. You’ll even have managers and partners stop by your cubicle just to ask how you’re doing or make sure you aren’t lost.
Even though the firm has offices throughout the country, it didn’t matter if you were working with someone in the same office or not because they were never too far away to help out. Most of my group worked in a different state, but they were always available to explain more, and it was super easy to follow along even through a video call.
Another thing that stuck out to me was how many opportunities there are to attend panels and ask questions to not only the staff, but also the geographic leaders and even the CEO! It truly shows how much everyone cares about each other and how no one gets treated differently. I also really liked how we got to interview a manager or above and gain insight on anything we wanted to know. The firm’s open door policy is real. If you work here, you can trust everyone to be there for you and answer all of your questions.
My advice from my experience here is to always be putting yourself out there to strive to be your best self. Don’t be afraid to ask for more work when you’re done with a task, and don’t be afraid to ask questions if you don’t understand something. The easiest way I found to figure out something new was to ask if someone could hop on a quick call with me to go over it. Everyone was always willing to help. They know that some systems are hard to grasp, but eventually you will get used to it. I learned so much by working with others, and I couldn’t have asked for a better experience!
Vania De La Rosa, Eastern Michigan University
