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SCENE
| March 23, 2004| Send features
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Catching
the Intern Ship
For some, an internship is hard
to find in the slow and competitive economy
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| The Shorthorn: Brandon Wade |
| Nursing junior Andrea Mason
is excited that she is one of a few students
who received a student position working part-time at Parkwood
Hospital in Dallas. |
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By Josie
Garcia
The Shorthorn Staff
Saurav Pandey thinks he has something special
that only he can offer employers. At least that’s what he
wants them to think as he sends out his internship applications.
But because of a slow economy and a competitive work force, Pandey
realizes his goal of getting a professional job after graduating
next spring may not be easily achieve
The computer science and engineering junior
is searching for an internship but has had little luck landing one.
He has sent in several résumés in the past three months
to companies such as Motorola, Methodist Health System and Sprint
in hopes of gaining real world experience.
If he gets a job, he will work closely with his major by writing
computer software.
No companies have replied to his applications.
A paid internship can help with finances, Pandey said, but at this
point, he won’t be too picky if he receives an offer.
“I want an internship to have a better chance of getting a
job when I get out [of college],” he said. “I’ll
take whatever comes along.”
Pandey is one of many students who realize the importance of getting
training in their field before graduating. While some have found
and have benefited from their experiences, others are still struggling
to find this opportunity.
Pandey criticizes what President Bush has done for his lack of luck
finding an internship.
“Blame Bush,” he joked to his friends. “It was
easier to find a job two or three years ago.”
Although his tone was playful, Pandey was serious about this nationwide
problem that may affect his future.
With spring break come and gone, some junior and senior students
may be wondering how much more they can prepare for the work force
as graduation edges closer.
Arturo Elizondo, UTA Student Employment career counselor, said getting
an internship is not impossible, even with the weakened state of
the economy.
Despite setbacks, Elizondo encourages students to apply for internships.
While some struggle to get an internship and others may have it
easy, he said an internship can help students feel confident about
their career choices.
“If you haven’t done one before you graduate, do one
because it will help you out in the long run,” he said. “Internships
give the ability [for students] to check out their career.”
Gaining work experience and possibly being offered a full-time position
at the internship’s company are other benefits, Elizondo said.
Unlike Pandey, nursing junior Andrea Mason feels secure about having
a job after she graduates because her position is in demand. She
recently started working as a student nurse technician at Parkwood
Hospital in Dallas.
“Majority of nursing students have a job before they graduate,”
she said.
Although her job is not called an internship, Mason said it is similar.
She values the hands-on experience and working with people, not
on dummies.
“That’s why it’s good to be in the hospital,”
she said. “You get oriented with actually touching the patient.”
Ashutosh Kole, a mechanical engineering graduate student, understands
the advantages of an internship after working for Array Products
Company in Muskogee, Okla., during the summer and fall of 2003.
Kole was paid by the hour to modify oil reservoir valves and work
on the control equipment. His experience was more than what he would
have been taught in a classroom or from a textbook, he said.
Kole said he learned communication skills from working with people
from other manufacturers and customers who are connected to the
oil industry.
“It gave me a lot of experience and helped me for future jobs,”
he said.
Angela Long can relate to Kole as she looks forward to her fall
internship. As an early childhood education senior, Long is part
of the education program, which requires its students to spend time
in the classroom.
This semester, Long has worked at two elementary schools including
William J. Thornton in Arlington. She said she hopes to learn more
about teaching styles.
“I want to take what I’ve learned from them and bring
them in my classroom,” she said. “It brings you that
one step closer in what you want to do.”
CORRECTION
This story should have said Nursing junior Andrea
Mason works at Parkland Hospital in Dallas.
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