Casey is a Marketing Intern at Knewton, as well as one of our star SAT teachers. She’ll be attending UVA Darden for business school in the fall.
Casey on a normal, dog-free occasion!
Hi! My name is Casey and I am a Marketing intern at Knewton this summer. I thought I’d share a bit about how my summer is going, what it’s like working for Knewton, and my quest to meet every single Knewton pet this summer. (Not an easy feat, I assure you – A LOT of Knewton employees have pets!)
Casey concentrates on taming Fitz, a Knewton-office regular.
From what I hear, the last Knewton intern blogger was a really good Ultimate Frisbee player. While I won’t be able to boast of my prowess on the playing field, there are a number of other ways that I have been able to participate in the Knewton community. I am actually not a Knewton knewbie (evinced by my tendency to “Knewtonify” words by inserting a “k” in front of everything that starts with n) – I joined Knewton as a member of an illustrious group of SAT teachers who have been here since the Knewton SAT course launch. However, I usually taught at Knewton on nights and weekends, so it’s pretty cool to see what the office looks like during the day. Plus, a looooong time ago, I was actually one of Knewton’s GMAT students. I believe in Knewton’s product so much that I came to work at the company!
I’m a big fan of lists, so what better way to encapsulate my thoughts than through a top ten list? Move over, David Letterman…
Without further ado, the top 10 things I am learning at Knewton:
10. Knewton has a ton of talent. The company is made up of a group of diverse individuals from all sorts of interesting backgrounds who bring a lot to the table in terms of hardcore passion, hardcore smarts, and hardcore skills. It’s a lethal combination.
9. Marketing touches everything. One of the reasons I like my role is that I’m able to interact with all sorts of folks – designers, engineers, product managers, and content developers. I think this gives me a well-rounded, holistic view of the company, which is great to see as an intern!
8. Knewton really benefits from its status as a start-up. It allows the company to be more innovative, more nimble, and more resourceful than a lot of the other test prep companies out there. This applies both to Knewton’s classes (unburdened by inflexible schedules at brick-and-mortar centers, students have the option to take the classes anytime, anywhere), as well as to the organization itself – Knewton is able to adapt quickly to changes and people are able to work closely together in teams. Also, if you have an idea, and want to implement something, you have the freedom to run with it. That’s really empowering.
7. Cute kids are the key to learning anything, including SAT vocabulary. Evidence here.
6. Revolutionizing education and changing the way people learn is at the heart of Knewton. With this vision in mind, there is limitless potential for the company to not only really shake up the education industry, but also to bring learning resources to those who could not access them previously.
5. When the US is playing during the World Cup, nothing else matters. It’s a good thing that the US suffered its defeat to Ghana during a Saturday, or I think the whole office would have shut down in despair. (It was still a somber Monday, however.)
4. Knewton doesn’t really stick to formulas in the way that it approaches many things, and people aren’t necessarily defined (and limited) by their roles. Knewton values all types of input – and from all sorts of people. As a result, everything is consistently in a process of improvement. Makes sense, I guess: A company that’s innovating education has to embody innovative thinking.
3. When your office overlooks Union Square Park, it’s really easy to come into work each morning. Goodbye, concrete jungles of Midtown East!
2. Knewton has a weekly meeting on Friday evening called “Tea Time.” It’s a chance for everyone to get together over some well-deserved snacks and refreshments and talk about the week. Various team members will share what they’re working on, and we collectively pet the dogs. I really think this is the best part of the week, not only because everyone gets to decompress, but because we get to plug into what everyone else is doing at Knewton. It really fosters a sense of community – while everyone has specific roles, they feel that their efforts are contributing to the whole organization, not just a tiny part. Tea Time is terrific.
1. People are really, really good at karaoke here. Enough said.
Well, that just about sums it up. I’ve only been here for four weeks, so I can’t wait to see how the rest of my summer turns out – I’ve already learned so much! My next goal may even be to try my hand at Ultimate Frisbee… or not.
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