First Week at Scrintal
By: Daniel Trebejo-Ariza, Wharton ’24
Daniel on his first day with Scrintal.
Scrintal – Stockholm, Sweden
I applied to VIA to get a chance to experience a new business perspective. Although being in Sweden would have been great, I feel as though I am still learning about the culture over there. Being able to work with Scrintal, a company based in Sweden has been very enlightening and a fun way to start my summer. I wanted a chance to be able to broaden my horizons while also being able to enjoy the summer, so being with Scrintal has allowed me to do that. The time zone difference makes me wake up at 7:00 am and be done before the afternoon. It was tough at first, but now I wake up excited to start the day early. My schedule is flexible enough that I am allowed to do work throughout the day and have the rest of the afternoon to myself, so I am glad that VIA was still able to enrich my summer.
I wasn’t sure how my first few days at Scrintal were going to look like since this is my first internship. I got to know the CEO of the company and talk to him about their mission and his ideas on what we should do. Then I met with the growth specialist and she told us a little bit about how the company’s outreach was structured. Right now, I’m working with other interns to market the new company’s product, and our current project is creating a student ambassador program to get the word out. I’m also working on general marketing and growth for the company.
I have already gotten to know a lot of different people which has been an exciting process. The business setting in Sweden is a lot less formal and restrictive than in the US, so it feels like I have had a real opportunity to get to know my teammates more. Additionally, we’ve had an after-work meeting just to hang out and get to know each other outside of work, which was a great way for me to break the ice and feel more comfortable in the company. I’ve been learning how to speak Swedish in my free time so I hope that can come in handy when communicating with other people out there. Scrintal has been nothing but welcoming to me and I highly appreciate their desire to make the experience good for me.
I’m excited to see how the rest of the summer is going to look like with Scrintal!
The Virtual Internships Abroad (VIA) program provides self-directed and motivated Penn undergraduate students the opportunity to gain a fully funded professional work experience over the summer with a global employer, with the added convenience of working remotely.