Travis Hosea: From Fellowship to Internship to Full-Time Job Estimated reading time: 2 minutes, 48 seconds
Like college students everywhere, Travis Hosea had heard the longstanding career-development advice: One of the best ways to gain job-specific experience and strengthen a resume is to complete an internship.
Hosea, the 2020 Mitchell Scholar from Messalonskee High School and Accounting major at Babson College, needed no encouragement. Instead, he needed help paying for housing in Boston — one of America’s most expensive markets — for a summer internship with Deloitte, a global provider of audit, consulting, financial advisory, risk advisory, tax, and legal services.
With a coveted spot as an audit and assurance intern in hand, Hosea lined up summer housing at nearby Boston University, the cheapest option he could find. While the internship with Deloitte paid a good stipend, the cost of housing would leave him with little left over to help cover expenses for his final year at Babson.
Fortunately, Hosea remembered the Mitchell Institute Fellowship Program. Mitchell Institute Fellowships are financial awards of up to $1,500 — over and above the Scholarship — that are available to both current Mitchell Scholars and alumni for a broad range of activities, such as unpaid or underpaid internships; travel or accommodation costs associated with professional or personal development opportunities; and professional licensure and examination fees. The Mitchell Institute offers two application rounds each year. The fall round of applications is open from October 1 to November 1 for activities occurring between December and May, and the spring round is open from March 1 to April 1 for activities occurring between June and November.
As his need aligned with the purpose of the fellowship program, Hosea was one of 46 Mitchell Scholars and alumni to receive funding for endeavors scheduled during the spring 2023 award cycle.
“The Mitchell Institute fellowship funding gave me peace of mind when it came to securing housing during my internship,” he said. “Given the price of housing in Boston, I am not sure if I would have been able to complete the internship without substantial levels of stress.”
Undertaking the internship without financial hardship was one win. Gaining real-world experience and professional references was another.
“One of the biggest highlights was meeting people within the industry I’m going to work in and learning more about what the day-to-day of being an accountant is like,” Hosea said of the eight-week internship with Deloitte. “The experience furthered my interest in working in the audit sphere of public accounting. Another area I learned about was the developing industry of auditing sustainability reporting, which I plan to pursue at some point in my career.”
When an internship goes well and both intern and employer are happy with each other, the best possible outcome is the offer of full-time employment after graduation. That’s just what happened for Hosea, who will be joining Deloitte as a staff accountant in fall 2024.
Now that his future is more certain, Hosea is especially grateful for the fellowship support — and to the donors whose generosity makes this funding possible, year after year.
“If I had the chance to meet the donors, I would personally thank them for allowing me to catapult my career development,” he said. “The result of receiving a full-time job from a company like Deloitte might not have been possible without such a generous contribution.”
Learn more about the Mitchell Institute Fellowship Program online.