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Summer Internship Experience : 3

Many of our undergraduate and graduate students held internships this summer near and far. Here is a peek at how a few of our students spent their summers:

Meet Erin Stevens!

Where did you intern this summer and what was your main role?

I worked at Eileen Fisher this summer as a design studio intern in New York City. I assisted all creative teams: Sweaters, Fabric, Cut & Sew, Wovens, and Line Operations. It was really a mind-blowing learning experience, as I got to see the company from so many angles.

What surprised you the most during your internship experience?

I was pretty surprised the first time the company masseuse came to my desk and asked me if I wanted a ten-minute massage. Aside from how fantastic the company is to its employees, I was surprised to see a designer's process from intangible concept to a product in stores. They make it look easy. I was also fascinated by the amount of team work and collaboration between teams that I witnessed during design meetings.

How did you feel your experience at Philadelphia University prepared you to take on and understand the tasks you were given this summer?

Eileen Fisher makes products that are entirely designed around the fabric or materials. I felt fully equipped with the textile vocabulary, understanding, and language obtained at Philadelphia University to be able to communicate and participate in decision making while at EF. I also felt that my CAD skills were at the right skill level so that I could keep up with any design assignments on the computer.

What new skills did you learn throughout your internship that you might not have learned in the classroom?

On the job, I learned so much about how all the pieces fit together because in the classroom any discussion of industry is mostly theoretical. At Eileen Fisher, I gained a solid understanding of what it means to be a ethical and sustainable company without sacrificing the quality of the product. I mastered little things that are specific to the industry such as specification sheets, which tell the production team exactly how to reproduce a product.

Spending a summer in New York taught me the invaluable skill of how to live on a very tight budget :)

What was your favorite part of the job or working at the company?

I loved working for a company who's design aesthetic and company ethics I so passionately agree with. I also loved how much the designers cared about my learning experience. They always took the time to explain new things to me and I was able to shadow design meetings or accompany them to fabric shows and vendor appointments. All in all, the experience sufficiently exceeded all of my wildest dreams!

Summer Internship Experience : 2

Many of our undergraduate and graduate students held internships this summer near and far. Here is a peek at how a few of our students spent their summers:

Meet Lauren Westenhiser!

Where did you intern this summer and what was your main role?

This summer I was a textile design intern at Target Headquarters in Minneapolis, Minnesota. I worked with the ready to wear textile team, and was assigned a project for the juniors label, Mossimo Supply Co. I worked with another intern in design to create a collection of dresses for next Summer.

What surprised you the most during your internship experience?

The team I worked on and everyone I met at Target was so welcoming and helpful. No one was too busy to get to know or give advice on my project. I was able to connect with many new people and gain insight on the work culture and their design process. I was surprised to be given so much responsibility as an intern, and that I felt like an actual employee.

How did you feel your experience at Philadelphia University prepared you to take on and understand the tasks you were given this summer?

My computer skills and experience with textile design process helped me to create a mood, color palette, and exciting print collection for my project. In the print design graduate program, hands on and experimental image making is emphasized. Most of my designs are painted, drawn, or assembled by hand at first, and then scanned into the computer. Everyone at Target responded positively to this way of working when I shared my process during my final presentation.

What new skills did you learn throughout your internship that you might not have learned in the classroom?

I was able to experience and understand the role of the textile designer in an apparel design setting for a discount retailer. Often, there are printing constraints that the textile designer needs to anticipate when coming up with a repeat or color way so that it is cost effective and aesthetically pleasing. It is also important for the textile designer to be aware of the customer and how she responds to different design motifs and colors. Having access to that information and talking with other designers was the best way to learn how decisions are made when designing clothing in this type of company. In school there is more freedom during the design process.

What was your favorite part of the job or working at the company?

My favorite part of the job was the fast pace of designing because I surprised myself at how much I was able to accomplish over the summer. I also loved the how inspiring my manager, mentor, and other team members were throughout the process.

Summer Internship Experience

Many of our undergraduate and graduate students held internships this summer near and far. Here is a peek at how a few of our students spent their summers:


Meet Emily Weiss!


Where did you intern this summer and what was your main role?

I interned at Ralph Lauren in the Home Design Department. My main role was to assist the senior designers in bedding and bath design. I worked with mainly with the designers for TJmax, Kohls, and Chaps, but also with the designers for the Ralph Lauren Collection.

What surprised you the most during your internship experience?

I was surprised to learn how much work goes into making designs for the home. Especially at Ralph Lauren, every single aspect of a pattern or color has to embody the Ralph Lauren lifestyle. Everyone works so hard going back and forth with other designers to make the perfect textile for Ralph Lauren Home.

How did you feel your experience at Philadelphia University prepared you to take on and understand the tasks you were given this summer?

My experience at Philadelphia University has taught me a great deal over the years, but what really prepared me for this internship were my many design classes. Whether it was weaving, knitting, or print design, I used a little bit of everything working with the designers. They were surprised how much hands on work we do here, but I learned that it really gives you a strong background. Knowing how to use the basics of Photoshop and illustrator ahead of time also really helped, because everything is done on the computer! I was able to work closely with the senior designer, Jacqueline Beaulieu, who actually went to Philadelphia University! She taught me a lot of cad skills through giving me various design projects.

What new skills did you learn throughout your internship that you might not have learned in the classroom?

The internship at Ralph Lauren was a great experience for meeting people in the industry. We always discuss making connections for jobs after school, but doing this internship was the perfect opportunity to meet new people in the company, no matter what their position was. I learned it’s really all about making connections and that can take you anywhere. 

What was your favorite part of the job or working at the company?

My favorite part of the job was getting to experience the city. I’ve been there a million times before, but I’ve never lived and worked there every day.  It’s really an eye opening experience. There’s inspiration literally everywhere you go that you wouldn’t find somewhere else. My other favorite part of working at the company was being able to work with the people I did. I wasn’t expecting everyone to be so friendly and welcoming in such a big corporation, but they were more than that. They taught me new things every day and made sure I was enjoying myself. They take really good care of their interns.  

Graduate student attends the WithIt Conference in Raleigh, NC

Deb Spofford, a graduate student in the print textile program, had the

opportunity to attend the WithIt Conference during the summer break.

WithIt is a leadership development-networking group for the

furnishings industries that champions the advancement of women.

The group encourages female leaders to grow by recognizing

excellence, promoting leadership and positioning member at the

forefront of the industry.

With the generous support of several WithIt members, 18 students

from different universities were invited to attend the annual

conference. Deb Spofford flew from Seattle, WA and was greeted at

the airport by WithIt member Pat Bowling. This was just the beginning

of the hospitality shown to the students and first time attendees of the

conference. Jackie Hirschhaut, VP of Public Relations and Marketing

for the American Home Furnishings Alliance hosted the students and

was instrumental in connecting them with industry professionals that

matched their specific field of study.

The following three days were filled with amazing speakers, round
table discussions, and networking opportunities. Some of the break
out session topics discussed were Building a Premiere Design
Business, Launching a Career in the Home Furnishings, Creating a
Fabulous Blog, Critical Thinking, and Building Organizational Culture.

There were also many inspirational and informative speakers, which
included Mary Lou Quinlan, author of The God Box, Emily
Bennington, author of Who Says it’s a Man’s World, Mary Knackstedt,
author of The Interior Design Business Handbook, and Arlene Blum,
author and director of the Green Science Policy Institute.