Summer Internship with Vot-ER
Marit Vangrow, Daytime MBA 2026
This summer, I served as a Strategy Intern with Vot-ER, a dynamic nonprofit organization committed to integrating non-partisan voter registration into healthcare settings. Working within a mission-driven startup environment was an incredible opportunity; I quickly learned to wear many hats, which provided unique exposure to different parts of the organization from day one. My responsibilities spanned across big-picture strategy, programmatic work, and partnership outreach.
My most significant project focused on strengthening the organization’s long-term financial health by diversifying its revenue stream. Drawing on the analytical foundation from my finance, strategy, and marketing courses at Fuqua, I performed in-depth financial modeling, conducted market research on potential new funding sources, and facilitated stakeholder interviews with key partners and institutional leaders. These business skills were directly applied to create a quantifiable path forward.
Ultimately, my work culminated in a detailed strategic plan that, once implemented, will guide the organization toward greater financial stability while remaining true to its core mission. This experience gave me invaluable confidence in my quantitative analysis methods and affirmed the power of a data-driven approach in the nonprofit sector. Moving forward, I plan to leverage this learning to approach complex business challenges—whether in a for-profit or social impact setting—with greater strategic clarity and conviction. I am now better equipped to not only identify business problems but also to develop financially viable and mission-aligned solutions.
This internship was supported by the Summer Internship Fund, which enables first-year Duke MBA students to learn about the rewards and challenges of using business to drive positive impact without making a significant financial sacrifice. The program enables organizations that otherwise could not afford to hire MBA student interns to benefit from students’ expertise. Funds are raised through student fundraising and from donors who believe in the mission of the program. If you would like to contribute, you can donate online using your credit card.