Recently, over a hundred students from a multitude of majors decided to join a challenge offered by Wells Fargo through the Global Career Accelerator: reimagine the Wells Fargo in-branch experience. Sara Lorca Garrido, a USF international student from Asturias, Spain, took on this challenge. Her project, “LifeBank—A Financial Wellness Studio,” focused on the customer, framing the bank as an interactive life experience. Lorca Garrido’s project placed third overall, a testament to her understanding of Wells Fargo’s core values of customer focus and community involvement.
“It was a pleasure to participate alongside many other talented individuals,” Lorca Garrido notes. “I am grateful that I was selected as one of the winners.”
The Global Career Accelerator is a career-focused program...that partners with universities to offer undergraduates real-world experience through working on projects from real companies.
Lorca Garrido is a rising senior at USF, majoring in mathematics and econometrics with a minor in physics, became aware of USF’s affiliation with the Global Career Accelerator through her advisor, and gave it a shot to earn credit towards her degree. The Global Career Accelerator is a career-focused program from Podium Education—a program that offers experiential learning programs to undergraduates— that partners with universities to offer undergraduates real-world experience through working on projects from real companies. As part of a participating university, USF students from any major with any level of experience can build skills that will help them gain relevant job skills across numerous industries.
During the Fall 2024 semester, Lorca Garrido worked as a Data Analytics Intern at the Global Career Accelerator, learning about data analysis, visual storytelling and intercultural collaboration. “I thought it would be a good opportunity to expand my network,” Lorca Garrido says. “It was a really good experience for me and a great way to further my career in the finance industry.”
Lorca Garrido aspires to become a data analyst, either in finance or in the sports industry. She began playing basketball at eight years old and is still playing with the basketball club at USF. Through the partnership between USF and the Global Career Accelerator, Lorca Garrido has gained real-world experience in data analytics and finance.
“These experiences give you a more global perspective and help you develop other skills you’re going to need that normal classes may not teach you,” Lorca Garrido says, speaking to her fellow international students. “You never know where your next opportunity is.”