Celebrating National Intern Day at Grubb Properties

“After being given the opportunity to join the investments team as an intern, I was given a chance to learn the basics of this industry alongside a fantastic team. This was too good to pass up, and I am grateful to be here today.”

     - Emily Felder, rising junior at Wake Forest University, Grubb Properties Intern 2023
 

July 27 marks National Intern Day, celebrating internship programs across the country. 

Every summer, Grubb Properties hosts three to five interns for eight weeks in a variety of departments. We recruit from a wide array of colleges and universities, with a strong emphasis on diversity, offering traditionally underrepresented groups the opportunity to gain experience in the real estate industry.

Under the stewardship of Talent Acquisition Manager, Melissa Needham, the program has grown significantly in recent years. “As Grubb Properties has grown, we’ve been able to expand the program and bring interns into new departments, depending on the needs of both the departments and the interns,” she said. “It’s exciting to bring interns into areas that aren’t traditional ‘real estate,’ like marketing and accounting, to show interns how their skills and passions are still needed in the real estate world.”

Needham starts the process every summer, working with department heads to see where interns might be most useful. Job postings then go up in the fall, with Needham and the recruiting team attending career fairs and other recruiting events. Once applications are received, interviews start in early spring to ensure Grubb Properties can attract the top talent.

Under Needham, recruiting has expanded to a national scope, with a focus on HBCUs and participation in programs designed to bring diverse students into the intern pool, like UNC’s Real Estate Diversity Initiative (REDI) and Johns Hopkins’ DEI Collective program. The company also worked with Climate Corps to bring in a sustainability intern in past years.

“I selected Grubb Properties for my internship because after researching the company, I felt like I resonated with their values and mission. Throughout the interview process, everyone I spoke with was very friendly and made me feel comfortable. I could really see myself fitting in with the company and getting the most out of my internship experience.” 

     - Emily Barnaba, rising junior at Virginia Tech University, Grubb Properties Intern 2023 
 

Once interns are selected, Needham and her team work closely with them to ensure that housing and other logistics are worked out prior to the interns’ start dates. “We have a huge advantage as a multifamily developer,” said Needham. “For interns coming from out of town, we are able to offer short-term leases in Link Apartments as an option.” 

Moving forward, Needham plans to continue to expand the intern program and its scope of recruiting. “While the pandemic and ‘work-from-home’ created challenges, we are now back in full force. I love giving interns the opportunity to see how their skills and interests can be applied in real estate, and we’ve gotten great feedback from our interns about their experience with Grubb Properties.”

“I selected Grubb Properties for my internship because I wanted to support its mission to be part of the solution to the affordable housing crisis. I believed the internship would provide me with valuable experience and key insight into the real estate industry, as well as strengthen my professional skills with meaningful tasks.”

     - Gabrielle Mack, 2024 rising senior at Johns Hopkins University, Grubb Properties Intern 2023
 

Explore our Careers page to learn more.