A Conversation with our Intern, John Mazza: His View from the Construction Site
August 2026
Northstar is committed to mentoring and nurturing the next generation of talent passionate about pursuing careers in project management. As part of our internship/co-op program, we collaborate with institutions to identify exceptional candidates.
We had the pleasure of welcoming John Mazza to our team for the past four months. John is from Waltham, MA, and is entering his final year of his Master of Business Administration at Boston College Carroll School of Management. In his spare time, he loves hiking with his dog, exploring new restaurants, watching sports (especially baseball), and playing golf.
During his time with us, he was actively involved in Dartmouth College’s 25 West Wheelock Student Housing project and Boston Children’s Hospital 421 Park Drive | 201 Brookline Avenue project. John attended weekly meetings, including owner, architect, and contractor meetings and design-phase meetings; participated in punch list items; supported functional commissioning; contributed to market research; and assisted with close-out activities. He maintained key project trackers, including schedules, budgeting, punch lists, and close-out documentation. In addition, he joined site tours for other projects, including Sanofi’s project, a global software solutions company’s tech-focused office fit-out project, and assisted in various tasks for Harvard University’s 100 South Campus Drive project and Osprey Village’s project in South Carolina.
We took the opportunity to sit down with John to learn from his experience as part of our Northstar team during his internship.
Tell us a little about your background.
I am currently entering the final year of my MBA program at Boston College Carroll School of Management. I grew up in Waltham, MA, and sports were a massive part of my upbringing, as I spent much of my time traveling across the country playing competitive baseball. Over time, I committed to playing Division 1 baseball for the University of Maryland, College Park. After two years and a major knee surgery, I decided to transfer to Northeastern University, where I graduated as a student-athlete with a BA in Communication Studies and a Master’s in Sports Leadership. After I graduated, I signed a contract to play professional baseball as a catcher with the New York Yankees, where I spent many years in Tampa, FL.
Outside of my athletic career, my background includes various experiences in the AEC and commercial real estate industry. These include an internship with John Moriarty & Associates as a field engineer/construction management intern, an electrical wireman with IBEW 103, a multifamily investment analyst with the DSF Group, and operations and strategy roles with both established organizations and startup companies. These experiences strengthened my interest in pursuing a career in the commercial real estate and AEC industry. With Northstar’s diverse portfolio of projects and clientele, this internship gave me valuable insight, exposure, and experience in the industry.
How would you describe your co-op experience at Northstar?
Dynamic is the word that comes to mind! Being exposed to various projects across the industry built a pathway for exponential growth and learning. Each day brought excitement, and I was trusted with tasks with the support and guidance of my mentors and colleagues. For example, one day I would build an equipment list tracker used for an academic research lab fit out at 201 Brookline Avenue for Boston Children’s Hospital, which would be utilized by architects and engineers to integrate the systems. Another day, I would manage the initial start of an FF&E delivery for a major student housing project. It was exciting to think strategically, stay organized, and communicate effectively through different phases of large-scale projects, all while gaining valuable hands-on experience.
What is the greatest lesson you’ve learned with your internship at Northstar?
The greatest lesson I learned was to be proactive and ask questions. Being exposed to a range of projects, each with its own variables, meant I often had to ask questions to understand the methods and reasoning behind certain decisions. For example, on site walks I’d ask questions about MEP systems to understand how the structure functioned, and during cost budget reviews I’d ask questions about financial feasibility to make sure the numbers held up. The Northstar community was very welcoming with any question I asked, which helped me build both the technical and soft skills I use in day-to-day tasks.
What was the most rewarding thing about working with the Northstar team?
The most rewarding thing was the trust the Northstar team provided, combined with the team’s support, which gave me the confidence to take on new challenges to the best of my ability. For example, I led the first night of the overnight furniture delivery on the Dartmouth project, acting as the main point of contact between the delivery team and general contractor.
Northstar also provided many opportunities for growth, such as participating in “Lunch and Learns”, “All Hands Meetings,” and “Fireside Chats”, which allowed me to learn from engineering professionals, law professionals, and the career paths of current colleagues. I also found it interesting to learn about market report presentations, understanding trends, and the various metrics tracked within the industry. These experiences showed me that Northstar invests in its people, and that made all the difference in how much I was able to grow during my internship.
What new skills and knowledge did you gain through your Northstar internship?
This internship allowed me to grow both my technical and soft skills. On the technical side, I became comfortable leveraging Bluebeam Revu and Procore for tasks like evaluating various architectural drawings, overseeing punch list items, and reviewing potential change orders. I also deepened my financial understanding of what goes into a budget detail sheet and invoice log tracking throughout the various phases of a development project.
On the soft-skills side, I strengthened my ability to communicate and cross-collaborate effectively with owners, architects, engineers, and other consultants, while also learning to allocate my time wisely across tasks and projects. Each project came with different deliverables, so I had to stay adaptable, moving from understanding the design process of a lab fit out to assisting with facilities, operations and management site tours for student housing dorm development.
What career path are you looking to get into and why?
Looking back on my time with Northstar, this experience has been eye-opening, as it exposed me to the breadth of career paths available within the AEC and commercial real estate industry. I can see myself pursuing project management as a career path, as well as investments, spanning acquisitions and asset management, on the developer/owner side. I find it fascinating to dig into research around a proposed asset, understanding both the macro and microeconomic factors that shape the market a project sits in. At Northstar, I got a taste of this through projects like the named-storm and insurance risk research I conducted for Osprey Village, and reviewing cost budgeting material trackers throughout various projects.
Paired with my prior experience, this internship has provided me with more excitement, as I enjoy evaluating real estate opportunities financially while also understanding what it takes to execute them on the ground throughout various phases of a development project. Overall, I see my career path continuing to grow within the commercial real estate industry, and I look forward to connecting with many professionals in the field and seeing what the future holds!
How would you describe the Northstar culture?
I would describe the Northstar culture as collaborative, motivated, and welcoming. During the day, everyone is buzzing around, communicating effectively with one another, and staying disciplined in their work, all while maintaining an environment that’s comfortable for everyone. I was invited to many events and business development opportunities, which were a great way to connect with industry professionals.
One event I enjoyed was the Seaport Walking Tour with various AEC professionals, where we explored Fan Pier’s planning, design, and development, with a particular focus on sustainability and resilience. Altogether, Northstar’s culture brings positivity to each day and fosters an environment where everyone feels heard.
