Intern - Westchester, IL

Who We Are

Follett Higher Education is a leading educational service provider and omnichannel retailer that provides students, faculty and staff, parents, and fans with the course materials, learning tools, and retail services needed to successfully support the collegiate journey. Follett Higher Education supports over 6 million students through its 1,100 physical and 1,750 eCommerce campus stores across North America.

Inside Follett's Internship Experience

Follett's Summer Internship Program offers an exciting opportunity for college students to gain hands-on, real-world experience in a dynamic retail and education company. Over eight weeks, interns will work alongside experienced professionals, contribute to meaningful projects, and develop skills that prepare them for future leadership roles.

Our program is designed to provide exposure to the inner workings of a corporate environment through mentorship, project ownership, and collaboration across teams. Each intern will complete a capstone presentation summarizing key outcomes, learnings, and recommendations to company leaders.

What You'll Do

• Contribute to assigned department projects and daily business operations
• Participate in professional development sessions and leadership talks
• Collaborate with team members and mentors to analyze data, improve processes, or develop creative solutions
• Present findings, project results, and recommendations to leadership at the conclusion of the program
• Engage in networking opportunities with interns and company professionals

What You'll Gain

• Real-world experience in a fast-paced corporate setting
• Exposure to senior leaders and cross-functional collaboration
• Professional development through workshops, mentoring, and feedback
• Hands-on project ownership with measurable business impact
• A strong addition to your professional resume and network

Internship Areas of Focus: Pick One

• Marketing: Get hands-on with marketing strategy in a student-focused retail environment. As a Marketing intern, you'll have a focus on Lifecycle Marketing & Analytics for consumer marketing. You'll learn how we connect with customers through compelling narratives and targeted outreach - while contributing to projects that make a measurable impact.
• GM (General Merchandise): Explore the business of merchandising in a dynamic, student-focused retail environment. As a General Merchandise intern, you'll work alongside experienced buyers and planners to understand how we select, price, and present products across our stores. You'll contribute to projects that enhance product appeal and operational efficiency - while building skills that translate across the retail industry.
• IT (Information Technology): Get under the hood of our tech ecosystem with an Information Technology internship focused on application development, operations, and support. You'll collaborate on system maintenance, troubleshoot issues, and contribute to projects that add new functionality, improve performance, and reliability. This is your launchpad into the world of enterprise IT.
• HR (Human Resources): Step into the dynamic world of Human Resources and gain hands-on experience and exposure to strategy across key HR disciplines, including HR business partnership, talent & development, employee relations, talent acquisition, benefits, compensation, and operations (HRIS and payroll). Throughout the program, you'll lead a capstone project that ties together your learnings and delivers real impact. This is your chance to explore the full spectrum of HR while building skills that matter.
• Finance: Join our Finance team and explore how data drives decisions in a dynamic retail environment. As an intern, you'll gain hands-on experience with financial planning, reporting, and operational analysis. You'll contribute to projects that shape strategy and improve performance - while building skills that matter in any business setting.
• Product Development: Explore the operational side of Product Development in a fast-moving, impact-driven internship. Your focus will be on product operations, including Learning Management System (LMS) and Student Information System (SIS) interfaces, integrations, and scaling support (learning how we scale support for thousands of learners). This is your chance to build technical and strategic skills while contributing to real-world solutions.

What You'll Bring

• Current college student pursuing a degree in Business, Marketing, Finance, Human Resources, Product Development, IT, Merchandising, or Retail Management
• Strong analytical, communication, and problem-solving skills
• Strong computer skills (i.e., Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, Slack)
• Self-motivated, curious, and eager to learn in a team environment
• Ability to work in a hybrid schedule - 3 days onsite and 2 days remote - at the Westchester, IL headquarters for the full 8-week term