With hands-on projects and the guidance of their tutors, university students from across Argentina took part in an internship experience that marked the beginning of their professional journeys.

The latest edition of the Summer Educational Practices (PEVs in Spanish) brought together 222 young participants across the Techint Group, including 54 at Tecpetrol, all eager to learn, collaborate, and take on new challenges. The program concluded with a closing event where participants reflected on their experience, discussed the obstacles they overcame, and proudly shared their contributions and lessons learned.

At Tecpetrol, 70% of participants are continuing their careers with the company as Ordinary Educational Interns (PEOs) or Young Professionals. One of them was Antonella Martínez, a fifth-year electronic engineering student who joined as a Maintenance PEV in Neuquén and now continues as a trainee in the same area. During her internship, Antonella worked at two operating sites. At Los Toldos II Este, she was tasked with reviewing technical documentation to identify the spare parts required for equipment maintenance. Later, at Fortín de Piedra, she accompanied operational teams in the field to observe a range of technical procedures, which she then helped transfer and replicate at Los Toldos II Este.

“What I value most is having had the chance to work in an industry I barely knew before and ended up really enjoying. I learned a lot, not just about the operation itself, but also about how processes are managed,” says Antonella, underscoring that, “It was also really interesting to see firsthand how a company of this scale works.”

Franco Delli Quadri, who is set to graduate as a petroleum engineer once he completes his thesis, carried out his internship in Drilling, Workover & Pulling as part of the RTOC (Real Time Operations Center) team. There, he worked on the development of software designed to optimize the daily loading of field data. “From day one, the team made me feel like I was truly part of it all. Everyone was super open to sharing what they knew and helping me deal with the technical challenges that come up in the operation,” Franco says. “What impressed me most was the level of trust they have in you. Being able to share your ideas, get involved in real projects and take on actual responsibilities makes you grow a lot in a very short time.”

Franco decided to continue his journey at the company through the Young Professionals program. “I’m really excited about everything that’s ahead,” he says. “I see this as a great opportunity to keep learning, get to know different areas of the company and work with people from all kinds of backgrounds. I know it’s going to help me grow both technically and personally in many different areas.”

Solid results

The closing survey for the PEV program was carried out across the Techint Group to gather feedback and continue improving the experience. It was completed by 90% of participants and highlighted the strong impact of the initiative. Overall, 64% rated the program with the highest score possible, while another 23% gave it a 4 out of 5.

The results also reflected a high level of engagement: 82% said they felt “very happy” with the experience of working within their business unit, while 87% described the workplace atmosphere in their sector as excellent or very good. In addition, 78% said they would recommend the program to students at their university.

“Listening to and sharing the experiences of the PEV participants is essential for us to continue designing meaningful learning opportunities and strengthening the development of young talent within the organization,” says Florencia Zibritovsky, Training & Development Manager at the Techint Group.

Do you want to find out more about the PEV experience? Hear about it firsthand from one of our interns.