Luther senior Le interns at DECO Products

Working behind the scenes to facilitate business productivity, Luther senior Duc Le of Vietnam, spent this summer as a data science intern at DECO Products in Decorah, Iowa.

A 2014 graduate of Le Hong Phong High School, Le is the son of Van Luc of Ho Chi Minh City. He will graduate from Luther in 2018 with a bachelor’s degree in data science.

A supplier of precision zinc-die castings, DECO Products promotes sustainability by utilizing recyclable manufacturing materials. To help the company maintain high standards of excellence, Le daily analyzed inventory data and cross-referenced data to solve problems on a numerical level.

Applying his learning challenged Le to hone his quantitative abilities and obtain new skills specific to the profession. Interning at DECO Products encouraged “flexibility, teamwork and being open-minded in any business setting,” said Le.

Being able to work as a data analyst in a company gave Le a realistic perception of the position and its impact on business strategy and efficiency. In a data science career, he feels his practical internship experience is invaluable.

Approximately 10 percent of Luther students take an internship for academic credit each academic year. The Luther College Career Center assists students with their internship search through resume preparation, networking, online internship searches, career fairs, on-campus interviewing, and connecting the student to alumni through the college’s Alumni Internship Program. Students also meet with a faculty adviser prior to the internship to create an internship learning plan that includes learning goals and assessment benchmarks. An internship work supervisor assists in the process by writing an evaluation of the student at the end of the internship. Students also complete a self-reflection form to help finalize the learning experience.

A national liberal arts college with an enrollment of 2,050, Luther offers an academic curriculum that leads to the Bachelor of Arts degree in more than 60 majors and pre-professional programs. For more information about Luther visit the college’s website: http://www.luther.edu.