Tag Archives: Indiana

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 …

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With the growth of local pride and demand for “homegrown” products, there are many opportunities to experience true Hoosier culture. Whether it’s restaurants, attractions, shops or anything in between, we’ll showcase some of our favorite gems that make Indiana a great place to live and work.

It may be surprising even to native Hoosiers that a quest for fine candies and pastries would include stops in Union City, Winchester and Hagerstown. However, there are hidden gems on the eastern side of the state with fascinating business histories, interactive tours and delicious products that make for a “sweet” daytrip.

Ghyslain: The art of chocolate (Union City)

Ghyslain Maurais and his wife, Susan, started Ghyslain chocolatier in a farm house in 1998, ultimately choosing Union City (Susan’s hometown) for its current location. Today, Ghyslain’s staff of 25 produces fine French breads and pastries in addition to gourmet chocolates, and the company …

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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 …

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Whether you’re a student preparing for your first internship or fifth, one of the best ways to begin a new career experience is to set goals.

This may seem like a simple task, but setting aside time to create legitimate objectives can improve your enthusiasm and outcomes during an internship. Breaking down goals into three areas will make it even easier.

Here is a great place to start:

Industry-specific goals These goals are set with the intent to apply theory-based knowledge from your classroom directly to your tasks and projects during the internship. Learn new industry skills and the techniques that other employees know best. Absorb the language of the business and be ready to be a hands-on learner. If you are in marketing, maybe you’ll learn design and Photoshop. If you are in informatics and computing, perhaps you’ll learn Java or coding. If you are learning a new software …

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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 …

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In 2015, Indiana INTERNnet launched regional initiatives to increase the number of experiential learning opportunities available to Indiana students. Chelsea DuKate, founder and president of Red Envelope Consulting, is working with employers in Central Indiana at every stage of internship management from development to recruiting to evaluation.

Indiana INTERNnet: Why are internships more important than ever for employers?

Chelsea DuKate: Besides the general benefits of enhanced productivity and gaining a potential new diverse perspective, employers also have an opportunity to better engage with the early career community. Internship programs can serve as a ‘selection method’ of sorts for full-time positions within their organization.

Studies have shown that interns hired full-time tend to be more loyal to that organization, which directly impacts labor and turnover costs. Other benefits include the company marketing that goes along with having interns and the increased name recognition and employment branding opportunities.

IIN: How are you helping …

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André Zhang Sonera is serving as a Bicentennial Visioning Liaison with the Office of Indiana Lt. Gov. Sue Ellspermann. The Visioning Project is a Bicentennial legacy project focusing on Indiana’s future. The project brought together thought leaders throughout the state to identify “big ideas” for Indiana’s future, which will be compiled into a book that’s expected to be completed this summer.

Indiana INTERNnet: What have you been responsible for during your internship with the Indiana Bicentennial Visioning Project?

André Zhang Sonera: “As a Bicentennial Scholar, my role on this project is coordinating the logistics of each (visioning) session. My job requires me to look at the big picture and make sure that all the knots are in place and ready to go for the event. From coordinating the venue to making sure that everything is running smoothly and efficiently for our experts – logistics are an essential component to the …

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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 …

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The answer to the question, “Is college worth it?” is a no-brainer for this grad. I answer with an emphatic, “Yes!”

The question is a central theme of the recently released Gallup-Purdue Index 2015 Report. The report surveyed more than 29,000 U.S. college graduates. One of the questions asked graduates how certain experiences in college influenced well-being and workplace engagement after graduation. A finding of particular interest to us here at Indiana INTERNnet pertained to the value of internships:

“If recent graduates strongly agree that they had any of three experiential learning opportunities — an internship related to their studies, active involvement in extracurricular activities or a project that took a semester or more to complete — their odds that they strongly agree that their education was worth the cost increase by 1.5 times.” – Gallup-Purdue Index 2015 Report

We are pleased but not exactly surprised by this figure. The …

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The tenth time’s a charm!

Indiana INTERNnet began the tradition of celebrating internship excellence nearly a decade ago by launching the annual IMPACT Awards program.

Today, the IMPACT Awards are presented at an annual luncheon honoring Interns of the Year (high school, college and non-traditional categories), Employers of the Year (for-profit and not-for-profit categories) and a Career Development Professional of the Year. Indiana INTERNnet will honor its tenth group of award nominees and winners on Feb. 3, 2016. Co-founder and CMO Angie Hicks of Angie’s List will be the keynote speaker.

Honorees are nominated by the public, and winners are chosen by a panel of impartial judges. Click here to submit your nomination(s) in any or all of the categories by October 23.

The inaugural group of honorees set the standard for years of inspiring stories of accomplishments by – and on behalf of – interns. Here is a sampling …

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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 …

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“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.

____________________________________________

“This kind of growth could not be found in …

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If I were given the chance to be everything I wanted to before I leave this Earth?

I wouldn’t mind being on the Today Show, or perhaps Late Night with Jordan Patterson. I would want to design BMW’s next flagship sedan and also be the leading architect in designing the perfect addition to Indy’s skyline. I would write and produce music for talented artists that would win me a record number of Grammy awards. Oh, and voice acting in a Pixar film would be awesome!

One might see why the question “Where do you see yourself in 10 years?” poses a challenge to a guy like me with many ambitions. I have a hunch that I am not alone. When giving campus tours at Butler University, I always ask the question to perspective students, “How many of you know what you want to do with your life?”

Of course, …

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Indiana INTERNnet celebrated internship excellence on Feb. 4, 2015, at the 9th Annual IMPACT Awards luncheon. Though the event is over and the winners have been announced, we are continuing to celebrate the nominees’ successes.

These are their stories.

IIN: Your nominator wrote that you “worked to create new training and development opportunities” for employees at Johnson Controls. That’s a great experience for an intern!

AB: What I did was create a deck to teach employees about the hiring process at Johnson Controls. There was nothing set up for this and managers were very unsure about the steps they needed to take. There were often many people in the HR office asking questions about next steps. After creating this deck, it was presented and implemented to the automotive interiors division.

IIN: What are one or two other projects that really allowed you to grow?

AB: I led strategy …

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After long winter months and tough internships, spring break is finally here for college students. If your spring break has some built-in downtime, use it to learn a new skill and build your resumé.

Intern Queen Lauren Berger has this advice for doing (a little!) work during spring break.

Get Tech: There are many online outlets to learn tech skills outside of the classroom. Check out https://www.coursera.org/ to learn basic HTML or CSS coding. If you took a technology class last semester, show what you’ve learned in the skills section of your resumé as well. Take an Externship: Spring break may be too short for a full-blown internship, but that does not mean you are out of options. Many companies host externships or job shadowing opportunities. Visit your school’s career center to find spring break openings in your area. Be Social: If you’ve always wanted to try a new …

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