Summer Internships Allow RISD Students to Explore Creative Career Options

“This summer, I’m learning how design works in a corporate context,” says rising senior Maggie Xian 26 GD, “and how to present my work professionally—to tell enough of the story, but not too much.”

Xian is speaking about her summer internship in Apple’s Austin, TX office, where she is focusing on interactive design and the company’s online shopping experience. As a Graphic Design major, she has had some academic experience in UI/UX but says that the bulk of her background comes from extracurricular projects and clubs.

“Generally, I’m working on adding interactions that make the Apple experience fun and engaging,” she says. “There’s a phrase they like to use here: surprise and delight. That’s basically what I’m trying to do.”

Xian is one of more than 300 RISD students who landed internships across the country this summer, garnering professional experience that they’ll take with them after Commencement. “Student outcomes include a stronger resume, valuable professional connections and exposure to career fields and job markets that can inform their career path,” says RISD Careers Associate Director Susan Andersen. “When students have the opportunity to work as interns for RISD alumni, they can also gain deep insight into how a RISD education is applied to running a creative business or studio practice.”

Rising junior Zaila Strayhorn 27 PT is interning at the Atlanta Printmakers Studio in her home city and says she’s using the opportunity to experience the south’s art scene. As a Painting major, she says, she has done some printmaking—mostly monotypes—and she’s eager to learn new techniques she can bring into her practice. 

“Earlier this summer, we made cyanotypes and risographs, and in the coming weeks we’ll be focusing on letterpress and block printing,” she says. “I enjoy working with patterns and color and texture, and I see block printing, in particular, as something I can take with me and use in my practice.”

Much of her time, she adds, is spent cleaning and maintaining the studio for upcoming classes and workshops, which she expected, but she was delighted with the opportunity to prepare for the studio’s early-summer Atlanta Print Biennial. “I helped with unpacking the art, creating conditions reports and then repackaging everything after the show,” she explains. “I could see myself doing that kind of work in the future in the museum or gallery space.”

Industrial Design major Orson Ophir 27 ID is also spending the summer preparing for his post-RISD career, interning at multidisciplinary design consultancy Fuseproject, based in San Francisco. He’s working on a series of 3D-printed wooden objects (vases, pencil boxes, etc.) that are pushing him to develop expertise with CAD software.

“In the ID department, we’re required to study the leading CAD software, Solidworks, and I thought I was proficient until I saw how good the designers here are with it,” Ophir says. “I’ve been spending a lot of time with the software, although we’re also encouraged to ideate with paper and colored pencils beforehand. My goal is to keep pushing with CAD and incorporate it into more of my projects and models when I get back to RISD.” 

Fellow junior Channing Christ 27 FAV is building technical skills as an intern at the Chicago International Puppet Theater Festival. “I’m a Film/Animation/Video major and really interested in stop-motion animation, so this internship is a great experience in learning fabrication techniques, like papier mâché and mold-making,” she says. “It’s also an opportunity to take a backseat as an artist and learn how to collaborate, take direction and work with others on bigger projects.”

Finally, Textiles major Nick Merlo 27 TX is working as a print design intern at women’s apparel company NIC+ZOE in Natick, MA. Founded by RISD alum Dorian Lightbown 73 AP, NIC+ZOE takes pride in its long-standing relationship with the college and notes that more than half of its design team and “too many summer interns to count” came from RISD.

“I’ve been hard at work here creating patterns, patterns and more patterns,” says Merlo. “I bounce around between design departments—knitwear, print design, wovens, and cut and sew—drawing and then working in Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop to mock up patterns for manufacture.”

Merlo was blown away by the sheer number of colored yarns at his disposal and really appreciates the personal attention and feedback he gets from Lightbown. “After my first semester in Textiles, I was sure I wanted to do commercial design work,” he recalls. “Then I was more in the mode of doing studio art. This experience has opened me up to the idea that you don’t really have to choose—there are aspects of both in the commercial environment.”

Top image: rising junior Zaila Strayhorn cleans screens at the Atlanta Printmakers Studio, where she is interning this summer.

Simone Solondz
August 13, 2025