Qin Ying at Sadie Nash

Qin Ying, an engineering student heading into her sophomore year at NYU, switched gears this Summer in her supporting internship at the Sadie Nash Leadership Project! Quite to the contrast of her scientific school time studies, Qin Ying tested the waters of a socially-based, nonprofit organization under the guidance of Morgan Little, who works as Sadie Nash’s Director of Programs.

Qin Ying’s role at Sadie Nash Leadership project primarily revolved around data which connected to her interests in computer engineering and technology. However, as many people in the nonprofit sector know all too well, oftentimes you must wear more than one hat in the office. Qin Ying’s other hats included direct outreach to young women in the program (called “Nashers”), creating gift bags, writing cards for donors who support Sadie Nash’s initiatives, helping with event planning, and assisting in other open projects around the main office. Though she admitted it could sometimes be tedious, she saw the importance of her primary initiatives to help sort information into Sadie Nash’s databases and she hopes that her efforts to create new databases will assist in the office’s organization even after her internship ended.

(From left to right) Qin Ying, Tamia, and Morgan, their supervisor.

Watch the blog to read about Tamia's WISIP experience in the future!

Out of all her tasks, Qin Ying said that the recruitment and outreach to the Nashers posed not only as her biggest challenge but also her biggest area of growth. At first, making the calls made her feel very hesitant. However, with some practice and the support of the Sadie Nash staff, Qin Ying felt her confidence as a professional grow. Morgan mentioned that the facilitation of confidence is one of the hallmarks of the Sadie Nash Leadership Project and that she was happy to see the progression of confidence in Qin Ying over the course of the internship. Lasting confidence and strength in communication are great takeaways - especially from a first internship experience!

In addition to a confidence boost, Qin Ying’s time at Sadie Nash allowed her to explore the variety of careers needed to operate a mission-oriented organization. Prior to this Summer, Qin Ying had always considered the worlds of engineering technology and social justice to be wholly separate. In engineering school, she explained, everyone is in a bubble focused on engineering technology and only engineering technology. There was no room for social commentary or politics. This internship opened her eyes to the possibility to merge her interest in solving technology problems with solving social problems in a way she had not previously considered. It was wonderful for her to have the ability to explore the variety of professions even further by having personal lunches to discuss professional paths with Sadie Nash staff, including the Executive Director.

Thank you Sadie Nash for a wonderful Summer of personal growth and inspiration!