Furman students “LockeDIN” to summer and post-grad opportunities

Furman University celebrated students who are “LockeDIN” to summer internships, research, job opportunities or graduate programs after this semester ends.

The Malone Center for Career Engagement and Furman’s Internship Office hosted their inaugural LockeDIN Spring Signing Day on April 30 on the Joseph Vaughn Plaza. The event was an opportunity to highlight the outcomes of The Furman Advantage, said Lauren Payne, assistant vice president of career and professional development.

Students enjoy cups of Dippin’ Dots ice cream on April 30 at the LockeDIN Spring Signing Day event in front of the James B. Duke Library. Photo by Owen Withycombe, Furman University.

“We honored our students who have secured summer internships and research opportunities, along with our graduating seniors who have attained employment at organizations across the country and admission to prestigious graduate programs at selective universities nationwide,” Payne said.

Some of the students celebrated at the signing day event will be working in summer internships at companies like Wells Fargo, Prisma Health, the Greenville Zoo and the U.S. Senate, while others enrolled in post-graduate education are pursuing masters programs at the University of Colorado Boulder,  Columbia University, the University of South Carolina Joseph F. Rice School of Law and The Ohio State University.

Ella Perry ’27 will be diving into math research this summer, analyzing NCAA March Madness numbers with professors of mathematics Liz Bouzarth, Kevin Hutson and John Harris. The Malone Center’s staff helped Perry land this research opportunity, and her professors have been helpful and encouraging, she said

Ella Perry ’27 celebrates her upcoming summer math research at the April 30 LockeDIN Spring Signing Day event, hosted by the Malone Center and Furman’s Internship Office. Photo by Owen Withycombe, Furman University.

In the Spring 2025 semester alone, staff at the Malone Center and Furman’s Internship Office met one-on-one with 672 students to support their summer and post-graduation plans. The signing-day-style event on April 30 invited students who landed one of these opportunities to come and pose for a picture, holding up a sign announcing what they’re “LockeDin” to for the summer. Each student took home a custom-designed LockeDIN pin acknowledging their achievements. Under a tent across from the Furman purple, balloon-lined photo backdrop, students lined up to get a free cup of Dippin’ Dots ice cream.

Jaret Phillips ’20, a career advisor with the Malone Center, was at the event answering students’ questions about the center. He said students will be working with marketing firms, digital media outlets, financial institutions and other companies throughout the country and abroad over the summer. Career advisors like him help students revise their resumes and cover letters, along with honing their interview strategies.

“It’s nice to be able to walk with a student through the process as you move through your college years,” Phillips said. “It’s not only our job to prepare them for opportunities but connect them with those opportunities.”