Bryant student recognized as one of Northwestern Mutual’s top interns

Jacob Bruschi ’10 is ranked second among the company’s 2,100 interns across the country.

Jacob Bruschi ’10 (Ludlow, MA) is still a few months from graduating. Yet for the past year, he has been meeting with clients to discuss the details of one of the most important decisions they will make: their life insurance policies.

He has done this as an intern working for Northwestern Mutual, the nation’s largest provider of individual life insurance. For his efforts, Bruschi was recently ranked second among the company’s more than 2,100 interns around the country. (Read more about Northwestern Mutual's internship program.)

“Challenging times call for financial security strategies, and in Providence, Jacob has led the way this year helping families revisit their priorities and protect what matters most,” says Todd Schoon, Northwestern Mutual senior vice president.

Bruschi can be classified as an intern in name only. In addition to taking six classes and being active in Bryant’s Greek Life, Bruschi, a finance concentrator, dedicates anywhere from 15 to 25 hours each week to his internship. This past summer, he was working 50 hours a week.

A test drive

Each year, more than 2,000 full-time college students earn real-world experience interning at Northwestern Mutual. For the past 13 years, the company’s internship program has been included in the list of “Top 10 Internships” as rated by Vault’s Guide to Internships.

Bruschi says his time at Northwestern Mutual has been an ideal opportunity to test drive a potential career.

“Working at the company allowed me to make sure this type of work is something I will enjoy doing full time,” says Bruschi. “It also gave me a head start building a client base and learning the ins and outs of the business so that I can really hit the ground running after I graduate.”

(L-R) Jacob Bruschi ’10 (Ludlow, MA) and Matthew Raposo ’09.

The most important lesson he has learned is to have conviction for your work. “I will make sure to take a job only if I can be passionate about what I am doing and know that I am making a positive impact on society.”

Internships also provide an excellent opportunity to network with colleagues in the field. Bruschi learned this firsthand when he took part in Northwestern Mutual’s Intern Impact Day this summer.

“We were able to share ideas to create enthusiasm for the upcoming summer term,” remembers Bruschi. “It was great because it allowed us to network with other offices and share our success stories with one another.”

Bryant connection

Bruschi has to look no farther than the next cubicle over to see the success in store for him. A Bryant alumnus, Matthew Raposo ’09, is Bruschi’s college unit director at Northwestern Mutual. Raposo served as an intern before being offered a full-time job soon after graduating.

“When I graduated, I was confident in my ability to make the transition into the professional world because I had already lived it for the past six months,” says Raposo.

Only several months into his professional career at the company, Raposo was promoted to his current position, where he has taken on a leadership and mentoring role in the company’s internship program.

Raposo commended Bruschi for his leadership skills and his willingness to put in the extra effort.

“Jacob’s passion for the internship program has generated great success for him and motivated his peers,” says Raposo. “I believe that his entrepreneurial spirit and ambition to succeed are the most important attributes that set him apart.”