Category Archives: Work and Learn Indiana’s Intern
Make the Internship Work for You
Allison Gaffney graduated in May 2016 from Indiana University-Purdue University, Indianapolis with a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism. She majored in Journalism with a concentration in Public Relations. While at IUPUI, Allison interned with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra and Girls Inc. of Greater Indianapolis.
Internships are a great way to develop skills, build your network, make an impact and gain experience working in a professional environment. While it is important to produce quality work during an internship, it is also important to make sure that your internship provides you with opportunities to build your resume and portfolio.
According to Robert Meier, President of Job Market Experts, only the top two percent of applicants make it to the interview stage. Once you reach the interview stage, it is important to stand out. One of the best ways to do this is by having a diverse portfolio of work from internships and …
Career Ready: Strengthening Indiana’s Talent Pipeline
Indiana INTERNnet, Indiana Commission for Higher Education, and Purdue University joined forces to coordinate a session during the HR Indiana Annual Conference. The session, Career Ready: Strengthening Indiana’s Talent Pipeline, occurred on Wednesday, the final day of the conference. Indiana INTERNnet was honored to share the podium with brilliant minds who are shaping and strengthening Indiana’s talent pipeline for career readiness.
A few of Indiana’s esteemed influencers in the world of education, public affairs, workforce policy, and business shared their insights on plans to help Indiana’s economy grow. Teresa Lubbers, the Commissioner for Indiana’s Commission for Higher Education (CHE), discussed invaluable strategies that CHE is pursuing to ensure Indiana’s post-secondary education system is aligned to meet the needs of students and the state. She addressed key values of career alignment, competency and completion that will carry CHE’s goals to the fullest extent of success in our community.
The Indiana …
There is Always a Bigger Picture
Brittany Ulman is currently a senior Creative Writing student at Ball State University with minors in Professional Writing & Emerging Media and Spanish. During her college career, Brittany took online summer classes and held an internship that counted for course credit, so she will be graduating a semester early in December of 2016. This summer, she was the marketing intern for International Floral Distributor’s Executive Director and was in charge of writing several press releases for IFD and its Flower Trends Forecast as well as working on various projects aimed at enhancing distributor services for IFD’s vendor partners.
The immediate effects of an internship are easily known; benefits such as gaining professional experience, learning more about a particular trade, obtaining various technical and communication skills, etc. can all certainly be acquired during an internship and oftentimes are the most common. However, there are also numerous other aspects of an …
Intern to Employee: I Said Yes to Success!
Many students have the same goal, to obtain full-time employment following an internship — whether that be transitioning from intern to employee with the same organization, or bringing their experience to another organization. In my case, it was a modified version of transitioning from intern to employee.
In January, I started my first college internship as a marketing intern with Indiana INTERNnet. The next few months I learned about the marvels of internships, while gaining first-hand knowledge and experience. As the end of spring semester approached, I was offered the opportunity of interning for the summer. I decided to decline the offer and explore full-time employment opportunities elsewhere. Little did I know, opportunity would soon knock again from Indiana INTERNnet.
Once my internship ended in May, the search for a full-time career was in full swing. Let me tell you, it is tough out there for a recent graduate. In …
Networking, Financial Guidance and Funnel Cakes
Last Friday, Indiana INTERNnet partnered with the Indiana State Fair to host the third (and final) intern engagement event of the summer. The interns were ready for a full day of fun, which started with a round of networking bingo!
Each player searched for a fellow intern who matched a description on the bingo card. For example, an intern who has studied abroad or one has complete multiple internships. Once a row or column was completed, the player was entered in a drawing for Fair Bucks (dollar-amounted vouchers to be used only at the Indiana State Fair). Janet Boston, Executive Director of Indiana INTERNnet, announced the winners-all three were Salesforce intern- during her welcoming speech.
The entertainment continued with two representatives from the Indiana State Fair making an on-stage appearance. Mark Anderson, Director of Human Resources at the Indiana State Fair Commission, thanked everyone for coming and discussed …
Interns Flocked to Indianapolis Zoo for Career Building
Indiana INTERNnet partnered with the Indianapolis Zoo to host our second intern engagement event of the summer! This event, much like our previous engagement event at the Children’s Museum in June, was a fantastic success for everyone involved. We were ecstatic to have over 170 interns from various companies all around the state come together to network and learn more about one of the best attractions our city has to offer.
The Indianapolis Zoo, a place known for discovering new wonders of the animal world, is also the perfect place for innovative educational learning for kids and adults of all ages. Their enduring reputation is the product of their outstanding staff members, interns, and volunteers that enhance the guest experience year-round. And our visitors got the chance to learn from 5 of these staff members during a career panel. With backgrounds ranging from public relations and HR, to veterinary hospital …
The Transition from College to Career
As a recent college graduate from a Big 10 university, I know how stressful and exciting those last few months of campus life can be. It’s a whirlwind of emotions.
In the middle of trying to take in all the sights and scenes before I left a place I called home for the last four years, I had to stop and consider what the next step was. Once I received my diploma, I was faced with the decision of whether to immediately start my career, attend grad school or take time to travel the world. But transitioning from a free-spirited undergrad to a professional with a bachelor’s degree was tougher than I thought!
My senior semester was dedicated to a lot of job applications and cover letters, but I didn’t have a full-time job waiting for me once I left Bloomington. I learned quickly that I didn’t have enough …
Summer Internship to Offer Experience, Adventure
Summer is finally here!
For students, this time of year calls for vacations, sun burn and poolside fun, not to mention a luxurious break from classrooms and exams.
Summertime is also the perfect time to dive into the workforce and build professional and personal skills. This summer, I chose to pursue a marketing internship with Indiana INTERNnet. I recently graduated from The Media School at Indiana University with a Bachelor’s degree in Telecommunications. With the help of IU’s amazing career services, every summer since I was a freshman I have been fortunate to have internships in Indianapolis with some great employers.
Throughout my collegiate experience at IU, I used every summer to my advantage. I was a summer camp counselor as a freshman, an intern at the Indy Hostel as a sophomore and a marketing and promotions intern for Do317 as a junior. Even though some opportunities might not have been the most …
The True Value of Internships
As spring semester is coming to a close, reality is setting in. Graduation is near (or has already passed for some of you), and the stress is overwhelming. School-project deadlines are approaching, upcoming final exams, and the biggest struggle of all: job searching.
If you haven’t started searching for jobs, do it now! For months I have been stalking Indeed, CareerBuilder, Charitable Advisors and various organizations’ websites for available positions. The biggest issue I’m having is a lack of experience/education.
I’ve started thinking maybe I’m just picky or aiming too high. A position of Assistant Director could be a leap for a recent graduate, but it somewhat matches my ideal job description. Could there be a person in a level below the assistant director who could be promoted and I’d take their spot?
My biggest regret in college is only participating in one internship. If I had known I would …
New Year, New Adventure
The New Year started with an opportunity to learn and gain real-life experience as Indiana INTERNnet’s marketing intern. In December, I had been struggling to find the perfect spring internship until I came across Indiana INTERNnet. Suddenly, there was a plethora of internship opportunities!
I am currently attending my last semester at IUPUI for public relations. I grew up near Bloomington, Indiana in the small town of Spencer. I met my fiancé, Jacob, in high school. He was a football player and I was the equipment manager. Besides football, my true passion in life is animals. I have a Pomeranian, Vada, and a grey short-haired cat, Murphy. They are the best of friends, always chasing each other around the house. After graduation, I hope to work for an animal rescue organization. In the future, I aspire to start my own organization!
Since graduation is right around the …
Experience produces lifetime internship advocate
Over the 17 weeks as a marketing intern for Indiana INTERNnet, I found my stride in helping the small nonprofit achieve its mission of connecting interns and employers throughout the state.
Not surprisingly for an organization that promotes internships, Indiana INTERNnet knows how to provide an excellent experience for its intern. I managed its social media networks, approved employers registering to use its services and generated blogs about internship topics. All of these tasks bolstered my résumé and upped my odds of landing my dream job.
On Facebook and Twitter, I shared materials on interns, internships and job search tactics such as cover letter and résumé writing. I posted Indy-related photos to Instagram and wrote a weekly announcement on LinkedIn. I measured Indiana INTERNnet’s success through web analytics and generated a weekly social media report for the staff. I grew from a clumsy social media novice to a skillful knowledge-sharing …
Studies show internships matter
Did you know that employers nationwide offered full-time positions to their interns nearly 65% of the time in 2013? And 79% of the interns accepted the offer.
I find these figures from the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) fascinating because they are a testament to the value of internships. Many employers now treat internships as an extended job interview of sorts – training the next generation of talent in order to build their workforce. A 2015 survey by NACE confirms this trend. The report reveals about 70% of employers indicated that seeking full-time, entry-level employees is a main function of their internship programs.
An additional benefit to internships is the return on investment. A study cited by Purdue University Calumet showed that in 2012, college students with internship experience made on average 15% more money than those who did not complete an internship. More coin in the pocket …
Non-traditional review of The Intern
Admittedly, when I first considered applying to work with Indiana INTERNnet, I thought I was a bit aged to take on an internship.
That is until I watched the trailer for the upcoming movie “The Intern.” I am nowhere near 70, the age of the intern character played by one of my favorite actors, Robert De Niro. But I did wonder how I would compete against traditional college students. It goes to show that no matter your age, if you’re willing to learn, you can find opportunities.
I call this a non-traditional movie review for two reasons. First, non-traditional (a 37-year-old parent who works while attending college) is the type of student I am, and second, I’ve yet to see the movie, which is set for release Sept. 25. Based on the trailer, however, I expect to experience more than a few laughs and maybe even learn a life lesson …
Indiana INTERNnet Summer Intern Reflects on Growth
“Do what you are afraid of.”
These are the words of Caryl Auslander, VP of Education and Workforce Development Policy at the Indiana Chamber of Commerce. When she said this, she didn’t know I accepted this internship at Indiana INTERNnet for that very reason.
Prior to joining this team to help increase talent retention, I was a student plagued by writer’s block, and I had very little social media experience. I decided I wanted to face this head-on.
I was that guy, probably like your parents, who used Facebook just to see who wished me a happy birthday once a year. As far as I was concerned, hashtags were never the character displayed in front of a word to loop a post into a larger conversation. It was always just the number/pound sign to me.
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“This kind of growth could not be found in …
Wrap Up Your Internship Like a Boss
It’s party time because you’ve almost made it through your summer internship! You’ve learned new things and grown professionally. You’ve become a significant part of the team. Whether you are sad to skedaddle or ready to roll, how you leave is just as important as how you arrived. Here are some tips for wrapping up your internship in a professional manner! What will they do without you?
Reflect
Internships are like swimming in the kiddie pool. It’s the same water the professional swimmers use, only it’s specifically constructed for learning. In other words, internships are the time to test the waters and even pick up some new strokes. After “splashing around,” perhaps you know that you are in the right area, or maybe you need to explore another career path.
Make a list and reflect on things you liked about your experience and things you didn’t. What did the …