Students who participated in internships during the summer said it helped them decide on their future careers and provided them with useful experiences.
Marissa Jones, a senior from Utah studying art education with a TESOL certificate, went on an internship to Cambodia to teach English to children ages 3 to 16. “I had the most amazing time,” Jones said. “The people there shared their culture and kindness with me.”
Jones said her internship experience convinced her she will teach English internationally as part of her career, despite preparing to be a high school art and special education teacher. “I have a better idea of what I’m getting into,” she said. “I am listening more in class because I have something to base my learning off of. I was actually finally able to apply what I was learning in school.”
Taylor Osborne, a senior from Idaho studying business management and supply chain operations, had an internship with the Federal Emergency Management Agency in Honolulu. He worked in assisted logistics and administrative work for three months.
“It was a wonderful experience,” Osborne said, “Everything was incredible. People were kind, encouraging and helpful.” He also added that his experience helped him decide what he wanted to do with his future: join the Air Force.
Jonah Stanford, a senior from California studying math education with a TESOL certificate, said he learned about an internship to teach English in Cambodia from a friend.
He said one of his favorite memories was when he was writing a lesson plan for his class and noticed a teacher outside who caught a mango from an unseen source. The teacher came over and gave him the mango. “We ate mangoes every day, it was awesome,” Jonah said, “I would definitely want to do [this experience] again.”
Jones said she found her internship in Cambodia through the Career Center on campus. “If a student gets an internship through the school, they can clear it through the department and have their internship registered for credit.”
She said students can find internships through the Career Center, or they can find it through websites such as Handshake, Indeed, Internships.com, or on their own terms such as connecting with friends and businesses they are interested in.
Emma Jugganaikloo, a senior from Idaho who works at the Career Center, has helped students go on internships and come back. She said it was rewarding to see students come back from internships with good experiences. “An internship gives students an opportunity to go out into the world and learn something they probably want to do forever,” Jugganaikloo said.
Writer: Rachel Reed