Nadia Wong, Protonex Technology Corp.
From Legos to engineering
In addition to engineering students from local colleges, Protonex also hires interns from high schools. These teenagers’ job duties often include handling ordering, assist engineers in drawing cable designs and running lab tests, and research European directives the company needs to comply with – not to mention putting their time in English class to good use.
“Usually their grammar skills are better than the engineers’,” says Chris Bonnie, a senior engineer at Protonex and manager of the intern program. “Engineers are notoriously bad at that.”
Nadia Wong, a Southborough 16-year-old who’s interning at the company this summer said she took on real responsibilities right away, including ordering parts and logging receipts.
“It’s a bit stressful, to be honest, because people are relying on you to do the work right,” she said. “But I feel like it’s been a really good experience.”
Nadia Wong, 16
Intern, Protonex Technology Corp., Southborough
Lives: Southborough
Makes: Portable power solutions
Career aspirations: Engineering career
Pay: Above minimum wage, with potential for raises
Wong, who’s following in her older sister’s footsteps interning at Protonex, said she’s been drawn to engineering since she was playing with Legos as a kid.
“I’m kind of looking to get a major in engineering in college, so this is definitely bringing me closer,” she said.
