By Morgan Wick
This summer, I interned at Kreg Tool Company where I learned important skills and had the opportunity to experience things that will help me in my future career. Kreg Tool makes woodworking tools for any experience level from professional woodworkers to beginner DIYers. I spent my summer in the creative marketing department as the creative marketing intern. In this position, I learned about graphic design, copywriting, videography and photography to better advertise and market a product.
As I participated in this internship, the Greenlee School Internship Scholarship helped me focus on gaining experience rather than worrying about financial issues during this summer. I was able to put full focus into growing my skills and building connections.
At my internship, one of the most interesting things I did was attend and participate in a professional photoshoot. We took lifestyle photos of people using Kreg Tool products. I used Camera B, which meant that I moved around the room to get photos that were closer up. Camera A was on a tripod and stayed in one place for each shot. I then got to edit the photos intended for different advertising materials.
I worked on many graphic design projects. The first one that I worked on was an award entry binder and trifold for a competition between employee-owned companies. The entry theme was about how companies communicated with their employees during COVID-19. I worked with another intern who was also from the Greenlee School to make the entry. She focused on the copy side of it while I worked on the design and layout. It was great to get to work in a team with another intern while also getting help and critiques from full-time Kreg Tool employees.
I also worked on a project where I learned more about branding, copywriting and graphic design. I worked on their holiday campaign. This helped me grow my skills in a well-rounded project. It was also a multi-step process where I presented my ideas, brainstormed with coworkers and created final design ideas.
While I worked on many different projects during my time at Kreg Tool, I also worked with many people who helped teach me skills in all sorts of areas that I hoped to learn more about, and areas I didn’t consider previously. This internship really helped prepare me for my future career, and it showed me how my education at Iowa State has also helped prepare me for my future.
Editor’s note: Edited for length and clarity. Greenlee 499A internship scholarships support students who have a primary major in advertising, journalism and mass communication or public relations and are completing their required 400-hour internships. The application is available each spring.