![“I wasn't discouraged by some of the obstacles we faced. I learned a lot from the leadership. I found that different people need different ways of receiving feedback — you can't [just] tell them to do something and expect the best. [Some] people needed more incentive. A large part of my role was to figure out what worked for everyone and to figure out how to lead all these separate individuals as a team,” Suhana Bhandare (’26) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/SuhanaBhandare_JasmineHansra-1-1200x798.jpg)
![“This is actually from Randy Pausch Randy P. Brick: ‘Walls are there for a reason. You have to show how much you want to overcome them.’ You have to show how much you want something. That's what I've always been able to do with tennis, Link Crew and getting that internship [with Kushy Baby]. It’s important pushing through that — getting around that brick wall, climbing over it or clawing through it,” Yash Sachdeva (’26) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/YashSachdeva_RamBatchu-copy-1200x1002.jpg)
![“[Building nerf blasters] became this outlet of creativity for me that hasn't been matched by anything else. The process [of] making a build complete to your desire is such a painstakingly difficult process, but I've had to learn from [the skills needed from] soldering to proper painting. There's so many different options for everything, if you think about it, it exists. The best part is [that] if it doesn't exist, you can build it yourself," Ishaan Parate said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/DSC_8149-900x604.jpg)
![“When I came into high school, I was ready to be a follower. But DECA was a game changer for me. It helped me overcome my fear of public speaking, and it's played such a major role in who I've become today. To be able to successfully lead a chapter of 150 students, an officer team and be one of the upperclassmen I once really admired is something I'm [really] proud of,” Anvitha Tummala ('21) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/Screen-Shot-2021-07-25-at-9.50.05-AM-900x594.png)
![“I think getting up in the morning and having a sense of purpose [is exciting]. I think without a certain amount of drive, life is kind of obsolete and mundane, and I think having that every single day is what makes each day unique and kind of makes life exciting,” Neymika Jain (12) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Screen-Shot-2017-06-03-at-4.54.16-PM.png)
![“My slogan is ‘slow feet, don’t eat, and I’m hungry.’ You need to run fast to get where you are–you aren't going to get those championships if you aren't fast,” Angel Cervantes (12) said. “I want to do well in school on my tests and in track and win championships for my team. I live by that, [and] I can do that anywhere: in the classroom or on the field.”](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/DSC5146-900x601.jpg)
![“[Volleyball has] taught me how to fall correctly, and another thing it taught is that you don’t have to be the best at something to be good at it. If you just hit the ball in a smart way, then it still scores points and you’re good at it. You could be a background player and still make a much bigger impact on the team than you would think,” Anya Gert (’20) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/AnnaGert_JinTuan_HoHPhotoEdited-600x900.jpeg)
![“I'm not nearly there yet, but [my confidence has] definitely been getting better since I was pretty shy and timid coming into Harker my freshman year. I know that there's a lot of people that are really confident in what they do, and I really admire them. Everyone's so driven and that has really pushed me to kind of try to find my own place in high school and be more confident,” Alyssa Huang (’20) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/AlyssaHuang_EmilyChen_HoHPhoto-900x749.jpeg)
Career Connect hosted a Mastering Summer Applications workshop to help students navigate research positions, internships and summer programs on Monday in the Innovation Center.
Seniors Keira Chang, Mia Tang and Linda Zeng constituted the speaker panel, sharing their experiences finding and applying for summer opportunities. Each panelist spoke about how these pursuits influenced their academic paths and gave guidance to students embarking on similar journeys. They advised students to take advantage of school clubs, smaller opportunities and independent projects outside of school to demonstrate initiative.
Linda, who participated in COSMOS and the Princeton Lab Learning Program, reflected on how these programs developed her passion for AI research and writing.
“It’s important to not put too much pressure on yourself,” Linda said. “It’s more about the experience and how you learn from that than actually being able to say that you went to a prestigious summer program. Instead of worrying about putting names on college applications, look for opportunities that you truly want and are curious about.”
Attendees learned about strategies for crafting unique applications through leveraging teacher recommendations and mentorship from upperclassmen.
Business and entrepreneurship programs adviser Michael Acheatel led a crash course on acing interviews for jobs, internships or club positions. He emphasized the value of preparation and genuine engagement to make a lasting impression.
“I have had successful job interviews where I spent more time talking about personal stories rather than about the actual material related to the job,” Acheatel said. “It’s important to find ways to create real connections with the person that’s interviewing you. If it’s down between you and another interviewee, and you have that relationship with the interviewer, that one little extra point of difference can hopefully tip the scales in your favor.”
Attendee Sophie Wu (10) noted that the tips provided by both the student speakers and the crash course help her feel more prepared as she begins applications.
“For summer programs, I learned about starting small, so I can have a base that I can eventually build up on,” Sophie said. “I can hopefully reach bigger opportunities later on and develop the habit of reaching out. Personally, this makes a difference because before this, I was stuck on how to prepare for interviews and form a distinctive application for these competitive programs effectively.”
Career Connect Executive Director Aanya Shah (12) hoped to guide students in exploring the variety of academic opportunities available to them.
“This is definitely a type of event I would have loved to have when I was an underclassman,” Aanya said. “It can feel intimidating because there are so many possibilities of summer programs and it’s hard to figure out the steps to success in these fields. Fortunately, all the seniors we reached out to were super excited to be part of the panel and to give their guidance, which shows how open to mentoring others the Harker community really is.”
The Mastering Summer Applications workshop was the first part of the Summer Prep Series they are hosting, which concluded with a mock interview session on Nov. 12.
