Communications Arts junior is AACE Intern of Year

Patricia Brown is the Alabama Association of Colleges and Employers (AACE) Intern of the Year.

Michael Mercier | UAH

A Communications Arts junior at The University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH) is the Alabama Association of Colleges and Employers (AACE) Intern of the Year.

Patricia Brown, originally from Montgomery Village, Md., was recognized at the recent AACE Summer Conference held in Huntsville.

"I was quite excited, and a bit surprised," Brown says. She has completed an internship with the Better Business Bureau (BBB) and will begin a co-op with ADTRAN Inc. in the fall semester.

Each year, AACE solicits nominations for the award from the 27 four-year and two-year colleges and universities that are members of the organization. Brown was nominated by the UAH Office of Career Services for her internship with the BBB, her strong GPA and her involvement at UAH and in the community.

Brown learned about the BBB operations and marketing internship after UAH Career Services placed a link to it in a university e-newsletter. "My fiancé forwarded it to me because he thought it was something that could apply to me."

Dr. Sean Lane, dean of the UAH College of Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences, says the Intern of the Year Award is a "very impressive and well-deserved honor" for Brown, and that "the College is extremely proud of her accomplishments."

Brown located her second experiential learning opportunity in user experience at ADTRAN through the UAH Career Fair conducted by Career Services, at which ADTRAN was present.

She says she learned two important things while an intern at the BBB.

"I have learned that teamwork is invaluable to results, and that to stay relevant in today’s world, a company’s service or product must always keep up with the needs of the user."

The most important marketing element she’s observed across the board is that it is vital to have user-friendly software interfaces that provide streamlined services, she says.

"A hassle-free or even fun experience with the product or service is key to not just the user experience, but the brand experience," she says. "This can increase the retention rate as well as the referral value."

It’s a field in which she’d like to work after graduation, either as a user experience designer or researcher.

"I’m very excited about the increasing emphasis on user experience design and that I can be a part of that, and I hope that UAH and other schools will continue to expand it as an academic discipline and as a practical function of the business world," Brown says.