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16 HARTFORDBUSINESS.COM | JUNE 30, 2025 Ignacio Estella, Avangrid's senior vice president of innovation, talent and equal opportunity, talks with this year's summer interns at the Orange-based utility company. About half of the people who intern for Avangrid will return for a second internship or receive a job offer after they graduate from college. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO 'Strategic Investments' As summer internship competition intensifies, Avangrid receives record 10K applications for 71 spots culture, and whose work ethic Avan- grid has already seen firsthand. The chosen few For interns like Scott Lowder, who returned for his second summer at Avangrid this year, the company's offerings are an ideal match. The Orange native is a senior at Boston College, where he's majoring in computer science and finance. Lowder is one of about 25 interns based at Avangrid's Orange headquarters. He learned in March, after two rounds of interviews, that he had been rehired. "I got the email, and I was very appreciative," he said. Last summer, he applied his tech- nical skills to help with the company's migration to a new computer system. "I was working with stakeholders, I was making project charters, I was making project timelines, working with my manager and team members," Lowder said. Now, the project he helped launch By Andrew Larson alarson@hartfordbusiness.com C ollege students who earned coveted seats in Orange-based utility company Avangrid's internship program this summer have more than a few reasons to celebrate. This year, Avangrid's internship program received its greatest number of applications ever, with 9,923 applicants seeking 71 positions. That was a 168% increase, up from 3,703 applications received in 2024. In other words, Avangrid had about 140 internship applications per opening. That record demand underscores a trend in the internship realm: sharply increasing competition. Avangrid said the surge reflects "rising interest in careers in the energy sector, Avangrid's growing reputation among emerging talent, and the increasing value students place on programs that offer both local and global career pathways." Avangrid's 71 interns work in 20 different departments — including IT, communications and network — across offices in New York, Maine, Connecticut, Massachusetts and Oregon. The interns come from more than 50 colleges and universities across the United States and abroad, including international interns from Mexico and Spain, home to Avan- grid's parent company, Iberdrola. Unlimited questions Ignacio Estella — Avangrid's senior vice president of innovation, talent and equal opportunity — said interns are viewed as "stewards of the company." Avangrid places great value on their ideas and creativity, and interns often offer original ideas and creative solutions, unen- cumbered by entrenched thinking, he explained. Interns are encouraged to ask questions about anything to anyone. "We give that privilege to our interns because they are strategic investments," Estella said. "We give our interns the No. 1 most valuable management tool in any company, which is to ask questions unlimitedly." Company executives not only listen, but empower them to drive change. Interns' satisfaction with the program is reflected in a high rate of conversions to full-time employment, he said. About 50% of Avangrid interns either return for a second college internship, or accept a job offer from the company when they graduate, Estella said. "The strength of our numbers is also driven by the fact that internship is a path to a job," he said. Further, the internship program creates a stock of job candidates who are already familiar with company Scott Lowder INTERNSHIP COMPETITION BY INDUSTRY AVERAGE APPLICATIONS PER INTERNSHIP (2022-25) Source: Handshake TECHNOLOGY 45 25 50 45 55 42 85 78 115 85 62 125 PROFESSIONAL SERVICES 20 15 28 32 40 35 55 62 68 52 48 105 GOVERNMENT 15 12 18 20 25 22 38 42 45 35 30 78 FINANCIAL SERVICES 30 20 35 38 42 28 45 55 65 48 42 95 MANUFACTURING 18 15 20 22 25 18 35 40 42 28 25 85 TRANSPORTATION 25 22 30 35 40 35 50 58 62 45 40 88 TOTAL AVERAGE 26 18 30 32 38 30 51 56 66 49 41 96 APR 2022 JUL 2022 OCT 2022 JAN 2023 APR 2023 JUL 2023 OCT 2023 JAN 2024 APR 2024 JUL 2024 OCT 2024 JAN 2025