Daemen senior Marc Gonzalez trained and competed in Olympic-style weightlifting for nearly seven years. The Daemen health promotion student decided to connect with his network to find an internship that would merge his educational and personal passion.
“I participated in a weightlifting club with Absolute Performance’s Director of Performance, Tom Corradino,” said Gonzalez. “I called him and inquired about an internship at his facility to help me better understand the training of athletes.”
Tom Corradino, director of Absolute Performance and Marc Gonzalez.
Daemen's Career Services aided with improving Gonzalez’s cover letter and resume, setting up mock interviews, and preparing for the interview process.
“The application process required a cover letter, resume, and references all submitted through email," said Gonzalez. “The interview process was conducted on the phone. I felt extremely prepared and was offered the position.”
While interning at Absolute Performance, Gonzalez coached athletes from various sports — all from different age groups and different levels of competitiveness.
“I worked with athletes on individualized programs that were based on their specific goals,” said Gonzalez. “I ensured they were using proper technique during various exercises, drills, and movements. I also provided support for agility drills and conditioning workouts.”
Gonzalez’s Daemen education prepared him to work with athletes.
“Learning about evaluation and movement assessments in the classroom allowed me to confidently take new athletes through the process before starting a program in the gym,” said Gonzalez.
The learning continued at the internship placement as well.
“We had physical therapists speak about athlete performance and rehabilitation and bridging the gap between the two,” said Gonzalez. “We also visited the strength and conditioning coaches at the University at Buffalo and watched a presentation on strength training and programming styles for track and field athletes.”
Gonzalez noted that the internship helped prepare him for his future in athletics.
“The internship provided so much information on athletic performance, health and fitness, Olympic weightlifting, strength training, CrossFit, agility work, and conditioning,” said Gonzalez. “We also performed research on the latest topics in the strength and conditioning field and presented on the topics that we researched. The last week of the internship included a presentation where we chose an athlete, took them through a movement evaluation, and wrote a three-month program for them.”
Gonzalez plans to pursue a master’s degree in sport physiology or exercise science.
For information about landing an internship, visit Career Services.