An internship in Product Management?

Mounia·Jun 09, 2021

Posted in:Advice Favors Early Career Management and Leadership Career Growth

Hello! I hope you have a great summer!I'm Mahsa. I am a mechanical engineering student and I'm graduating with my BSc in a few weeks.Some months ago I decided that I want to pursue Product Management as my career. I started gaining skills in Data Analysis and general knowledge about Product Management. I am still trying to learn necessary subjects. I thought it would be great to take an internship in Product Management. But I'm worried about not having an academic business background, since I've studied mechanical engineering. Do you have any advice about how can I get an internship (while not having any experience in business and management) and whether an internship would be helpful for me? I really appreciate your advice and comments!

Chitraf·Jun 09, 2021

Hello @MahsaGoudarzi I had a Mechanical/Manufacturing BS degree and started my career off as an engineer but have worn many hats since then. I've been a manufacturing engineer and then switched to business development manager to product manager to owner of tutoring center to CEO of a software company. IMHO, you don't need a business degree to get into product management, just start looking for internship and really show your enthusiasm of what your want to do. Another way to get into PM is work for a company doing engineering stuff and then move laterally to marketing/pm....that is what I did. You can reach me at [email protected] if you have any other questions.Good Luck and Cheers!Chitra French

Mounia·Jun 10, 2021

Hi Chitraf! Thank you for sharing your experience. It was really helpful!And thanks for your email address! I will ask you if I need help!Good luck and have a great time!

bonnieli·Jun 10, 2021

Hi Mahsa! The company I work for (Hatchways) is exploring the option of hiring a PM (intern or part time). We're in the exploring phase at the moment as we have never hired a PM before. If you'd be opened to it, would love to jump on a quick call to see if we could help each other out! :)

mbawri·Apr 28, 2022

Hi Bonnieli, Is Hatchways still looking for interns? Thanks

Mounia·Jun 10, 2021

Hi Bonnieli!Thanks for your recommendation!Yes, that would be very great!

bonnieli·Jun 10, 2021

great! I'll DM you to schedule a time :)

navasha·Jun 10, 2021

Hi Mahsa,I did a huge career change this past year, so understand the apprehension of starting on a new career path. I was pleasantly surprised to find that there are companies who offer paid internships and apprenticeships for people looking to gain more experience in roles like PM, Dev, UXD, and more. I ended up doing an apprenticeship with Viget and it was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. They are opening up applications again soon if you want to check it out: https://www.viget.com/apprenticeship. Happy to answer any questions you might have about it if you want to DM me. :)

Mounia·Jun 10, 2021

Hi!I really appreciate sharing your experience! And thank you for introducing Viget. I'll ask you if I have any questions! Thank you again.

rachelserwetz·Jun 16, 2021

Thank you for sharing your story! For those in a similar position to @MahsaGoudarzi : Hi! I'm Rachel Serwetz, an ICF-certified career coach. My background is at Goldman Sachs & Bridgewater Associates, before moving into the career space to systematize my novel career exploration and job search methods and tools.My mission in life is to ensure people feel supported in making these critical, impactful career decisions. These decisions can feel stressful and tough, but with the right support (which you deserve), you can feel relieved, excited and confident in your next steps. I have been coaching hundreds of professionals for over 8 years and have developed unique processes and frameworks so that you can confidently clarify your ideal career direction and efficiently job search to land a role you feel fulfilled by. Happy to chat directly and see how I can help! calendly.com/woken/demo Best,Racheliamwoken.com