Internship Highlight: Varsitaa Gunaseelan
Meet Varsitaa Gunaseelan, a third-year student at the Penn State Smeal College of Business majoring in supply chain and information systems. This summer, she’s gaining hands-on experience as an intern with the Volvo Group in Greensboro, NC, where she’s supporting the Mack Trucks Supply Planning team within the Service Market Logistics Department. We spoke with Varsitaa to learn more about her internship journey and what she’s discovering along the way.
Tell us about your internship – what company are you working with, and what kind of projects or responsibilities are you taking on this summer?
This summer, I'm interning with Volvo Group in Greensboro, NC, on the Mack Trucks Supply Planning team within the Service Market Logistics Department. I'm supporting projects focused on improving operational efficiency and supplier management. My work includes using SAP to implement supplier shutdown calendars, researching offshore supplier options in regions like India and Brazil, and contributing to initiatives with direct impact. I'm also working with tools like Power BI, SAP, Excel, Glopps, and GPS to carry out my tasks.
How has your coursework or experience at the Smeal College of Business prepared you for this role? Any classes, professors, or projects that stand out?
The experience that best prepared me for this role was serving as a researcher with Sigma Chi Mu Tau. In that project, I worked with real data for a company alongside another researcher, a faculty mentor, and the client and this environment closely mirrors my current internship. It strengthened my skills in data optimization and boosted my confidence in collaborating with a professional team to develop and present a final deliverable.
What’s one goal you set for yourself at the start of your internship, and how are you working toward achieving it?
One goal I set for myself at the start of my internship was to be an attentive, engaged team member and contribute meaningfully while expanding my professional network. To achieve this, I scheduled one-on-one meetings with individuals both within my team and across other teams to learn about their roles and career paths. These conversations deepened my understanding of business processes and tools, which I’ve applied to my tasks and projects, while also helping me build valuable connections I can turn to for guidance.
What’s the most unexpected or interesting thing you’ve learned about your company or industry?
One interesting thing I learned is that Volvo is divided into two separate entities: Volvo Cars and Volvo Group. Within Volvo Group, I was surprised to discover the wide range of brands it encompasses, such as Mack, Penta, Prevost, and Renault, each producing a variety of products including trucks, buses, construction equipment, and maritime machinery. The scale and diversity of the company’s operations were wider than I initially realized.
Have you gotten to explore the city or area where your internship is based? Any favorite spots for coffee, lunch, or weekend fun?
I’ve enjoyed exploring Greensboro and the surrounding areas this summer! One of my favorite spots is Downtown Common Grounds coffee shop, where I like to get work done for my summer class or relax in their beautiful outdoor seating area. On weekends, I love discovering new places with friends. Crooked Tail Cat Café is a fun spot to grab a bite and hang out with cats and we recently took a trip to Hanging Rock State Park to hike, swim, and see the waterfalls.
