Cullen McCadden, an exercise science major, is currently working part-time for Mike Boyle Strength and Conditioning. This job started as an internship over the summer and it blossomed into a part-time job throughout his senior year at Merrimack. Mike Boyle is one of the most well-known strength and conditioning coaches in his hometown, Reading, which is Cullen’s hometown, too. Mike has locations in Woburn and Middleton, and Cullen works at both gyms throughout the week.
As a coach, Cullen trains the local middle and high school sports teams such as soccer and hockey and helps them through their workouts in the weight room. He also works them through cardio after the workout such as running or stationary cycling. Cullen’s passion for the gym goes back to high school when he hurt his shoulder playing baseball.
“I ended up going to physical therapy [for my shoulder], which I didn’t like,” he said. “[But] I ended up going to a gym called Athletic Evolution, where I had a coach named Dan, and he was a great influence on me. I was starting to get really into learning about lifting and learning why we do certain things to…stay healthy and get stronger. So I ended up doing an internship at that same gym.”
Cullen’s internship with Athletic Evolution gave him valuable experience, but he also connected with one of Mike Boyle’s friends, Gary Geisler, who played a crucial role in getting this opportunity.
“I was lucky enough that my uncle knew someone named Gary Geisler, who’s a physical therapist,” he said. “So I had gone to Harvard…to meet Gary…and I told him I was interested in doing the internship with Mike Boyle, and I didn’t even know they were friends. He was like, ‘Oh yeah, I’m friends with him, I’ll get you in there’, and then I did the application online.”
Throughout the summer, Cullen credits Scott McEnelly at Merrimack, with helping him stay on task and making sure he was getting the most out of the internship.
“[Scott] was a big help,” he said. “He was the teacher for [my] internship course. He kept me on track with the assignments, [and] we had to update on what we were doing well, [and] stuff we wanted to work on. [He also] made sure I was learning from the internship…obviously you learn the most from doing it hands on, but then also looking for the most opportunities you can do [outside of that].”
Working with Mike Boyle taught him the valuable lesson that being a good person is more important than just being a good employee.
“In terms of working with people and getting a job somewhere, it matters a lot more being a good person rather than being a good coach,” he said. “Because if you’re not getting along with the people you’re working with and you’re not making good connections, then no one really cares how good you are if they don’t like you. You can learn to be a good coach over time from working there, but if you’re not a good person, nobody’s going to want to [work] with you.”
Towards the end of the internship, Cullen expressed how much he liked working with Mike Boyle. Not only because they have a big gym and great equipment, but great people coming in and coaches to learn from. He informed his internship coordinator, Dan, that he was interested in working for the company. A few weeks after the internship ended, Dan reached out and said there was an opening, which led to where Cullen is now.
With Cullen graduating in a few months, he hopes his job with Mike Boyle becomes a full-time position and wants to be there long term.
“This is definitely something I want to stick with,” he said, “This taught me that I really like working in [a] private setting…versus working in a collegiate…or a school, professional setting. I see no reason to not work there for a while. And the connections [I’ve made] there [are] super important. It’s been a very good experience so far.”
For students looking to be in Cullen’s position, his advice is to seek as many opportunities as possible, and when an opportunity is presented, get the most out of it by asking questions and learning as much as possible.
