UWI Mona student wins UTCs Internovate Competition

A 22-year-old UWI Mona Campus graduate student has won the Unit Trust Corporation’s inaugural Internship Competition.

In a statement on Thursday, it said Sydney St Clair was awarded a six-month contract and $2,000 in units.

The competition had interns participate in a rigorous two-week process of submitting ideas including a youth podcast, enhancing UTCs digital engagement with millennials and boosting customer service channels.

The statement said, “With six creative ideas presented by Alicia Humphrey, Jeriel Lezama, Tamika Chacon, Toni Boucaud, Troy Roberts and Sydney St Clair Douglas, it came down to four interns for the finals.

“In the end, Sydney wowed the judges, including UTC executive director Nigel Edwards, vice-president marketing and operations Natasha Davis.

"As part of the winning prize, she will work with a cross-functional team for six months to execute a youth entrepreneurial podcast designed to engage this group.”

Edwards said the interns were a source of inspiration and the competition allowed the management team to see the corporation from the minds of young leaders.

The interns’ virtual graduation ceremony was held on October 8 at UTCs Head Office on Independence Square. The competition was open for young people between he ages of 18-25.

The competition began when an intern requested a meeting with the executive director, to discuss innovative measures that could be utilised by the corporation as part of its strategic direction. Edwards listened, and suggested that if other interns were like-minded, then he wanted to know what their ideas were. From there, it mushroomed into a competition that gave life to “Internovate."

St Clair said, “This is a great opportunity to work with a leading company and I am delighted that I can work with a team to bring my idea to life. I am really excited and looking forward to its potential impact.”