News Archives

Legendary Intern’s Last Day, New Gig

The first time I walked through the office doors, I didn’t notice much about my surroundings. Like any new grad, I was headed for an interview and my focus was directed at the person I was about to shake hands with and the questions they had in store for me.

This morning, the elevator carried me to a positive and supportive work environment, to people I have come to respect and admire. Ten months after that first meeting, the interviewer is now my mentor, and the questions made room for new ones. My view of the office is still narrow this time around as the superimposed emotional and psychological lens tries to concentrate on the people and the memories that remain.

I know. This sounds too reflective, too nostalgic. This is exactly the state I find myself in on the last day of my internship. The projects are all wrapped …

Continue Reading »

How to Make the Most of Being Home for the Holidays

Between the snowmen, reindeer and egg-nog, you may be thinking of the holidays as a time to relax for a moment (or at least appear to relax), right? After all, you’ve just finished your finals, wrapped up an entire college semester, slipped into your festive jammies and reclaimed your spot on the couch. You’ve earned this mental break.

You might be cozy by the fireplace – chowing down on sugar cookies and catching up on your favorite TV shows, but don’t let your internship hunt take a hiatus. Here’s how to make the most of being home for the holidays:

Update your resume to include leadership positions, volunteer activities and jobs you had during the past semester. The information is fresh in your mind. Just type it up and proofread it. Put your resume out there on internship/job sites; consider your university’s career site and www.IndianaINTERN.net (shameless plug: 800+ active …

Continue Reading »

Intern Featured on Annual Cover of GRAD Magazine

It’s not every day I get a text message from my coworker asking me if I want to be on the cover of a magazine. Naturally, I play it off as a joke and ask what issue. The next day, she explained how GRAD Magazine, a partnership of the Indiana Economic Development Corp., Indiana Commission for Higher Education and Indiana Business Journal (IBJ) media, wants to feature me on the cover of their annual issue. Apparently, one of my blog posts caught their attention. Flabbergasted, I nodded my affirmation. How could I turn down such an opportunity?

“How could I turn down such an opportunity?’

This was not my first encounter with the statewide, higher education publication. As a matter of fact, I remember picking up a copy in the career center at Anderson University my junior year and flipping through its pages for some valuable advice …

Continue Reading »

Internship Reflection: Parke County Community Foundation

Sarah Melvin, a 32-year-old mother of two, attended Franklin College out of high school and withdrew her senior year to join the US Navy. After living in Hawaii for eight years, she moved back to the mainland to raise her children near family. Sarah is currently a junior at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College seeking her bachelor’s degree in Business Administration.

I recently served as a Marketing/Support Intern for the Parke County Community Foundation (PCCF). I was curious as to what the organization was and visited the Foundation last summer to perform informational interviews with the staff members. My intentions were to gain insight on how nonprofits operated, and if I would be interested in pursuing a career in the field. Before I left, the executive director offered me the internship position that I recently completed.

The PCCF is a local nonprofit whose mission is to aid …

Continue Reading »

United Way Team NFL Interns Impacting Education

Indiana University senior, Tim Klawitter, tells of his experience as a student manager and how United Way team NFL interns are impacting education. Tim is specializing in sports communication, business and journalism. He will be graduating in December and is presently searching for a full-time position. As a a student manager for the Indiana Football team and a United Way TEAM NFL Intern, Tim promotes the civic efforts of Virgil Green of the Denver Broncos and Antoine Bethea of the Indianapolis Colts via digital marketing and social media. You can connect with Tim via both Twitter and Instagram.

In today’s fast-paced, results-driven world, it’s easy to get caught up in our to-do lists and forget about taking a second to give back. We focus on tasks that will benefit ourselves and spend our days consuming rather than making a difference and bettering the world we live in.

Not too …

Continue Reading »

Thankful Intern Shares Grateful Moments

The below freezing temperatures hint at the brewing winter and signal a string of holiday celebrations. Every November, Thanksgiving is celebrated in Indiana with only the juiciest of roasted turkeys and the sweetest of pumpkin pies. As family and friends gather around the table, a sense of gratefulness fills the air almost competing with the blend of nutmeg and cinnamon. I find myself reflecting on the internship opportunity I have enjoyed with Indiana INTERNnet.

Grateful for the chance to gain work experience: Graduating with my MBA right after college, I had no experience in marketing. For the past 6+ months, I have learned how to manage social media accounts, design print and web materials, analyze website metrics and write content. My marketing internship has not only expanded my skill set but also provided me with relevant work experience.

Grateful to be building my portfolio with skills-focused projects: …

Continue Reading »

Talking Career Options (& Internships) with High School Students

Jack Hope (Hope Plumbing) presenting on the skills gap at Perry Meridian High School

We had the pleasure of presenting Indiana INTERNnet (and Indiana Skills) to eight classes of Perry Meridian High School students last Friday. It was great to see the attention students paid to these important topics – we had students ask us about training for jobs in sonography, truck driving and public safety.

“…many students don’t understand their post-secondary options outside of four-year college.”

We talked with the students about the importance of experiential learning no matter what career track you are on.

We had the added pleasure of being joined by Jack Hope, owner of Hope Plumbing in Indianapolis. Hope has become a terrific partner to Ready Indiana with his dedication to encouraging students to consider middle-skill careers. We know the demand and the rewards are there, but we find that many students don’t understand their …

Continue Reading »

Speak Up

“Speak Up” is a guest blog post by Hanover College‘s third-year English Studies student, Alyssa DelPrete, who dreams of making it in the publishing industry. She left her comfortable small-town life and traveled to Philadelphia for the fall semester, obtaining an internship in editing and being immersed in the world of publishing through The Philadelphia Center (TPC). “This experience is already changing me, and I can’t wait to see how I transform over the course of the semester,” says Alyssa.

This past Thursday, I had a meeting with both my TPC advisor and my internship supervisor. Not knowing exactly what to expect, I found myself standing nervously beside Mark, my TPC advisor, as we waited for my supervisor to return to her office. As Mark flipped through the recent issues of Book Business and Publishing Executive, the two publications done by the group at NAPCO that I’m interning with, …

Continue Reading »

10 Colleges With the Highest Rate of Student Internships

Indiana INTERNnet is proud of the two Indiana colleges that made onto the U.S. News’ “10 Colleges With the Highest Rate of Student Internships” list: Holy Cross College and Taylor University. Below is an excerpt from the featured article by Devon Haynie, an education reporter at U.S. News.

It’s a tough job market for recent college graduates.

Of the workers who graduated from college in the past two years, 41 percent say they are underemployed and working in jobs that do not require their college degrees, according to a 2013 survey from Accenture, a consulting company.

And even with their degrees, nearly 63 percent of recent graduates said they will need more training in order to get the job they want, the survey states.

Faced with this reality, many college students are doing everything they can to be more marketable after graduation.

More often than not, landing an internship is key to that strategy – …

Continue Reading »

Offering More Treats and Newer Tricks

It’s not technically the most wonderful time of the year, but Halloween comes pretty close. One quick stop in our neighborhood and you’d find that Indiana INTERNnet (IIN) is offering more treats and newer tricks than anyone on the block. Before I let you in on my favorites, promise me you won’t show up in your scream mask at my cubicle. Promise me.

“It’s not technically the most wonderful time of the year…”

It doesn’t need a shiny wrapper or a fancy commercial because IIN’s most decadent treat is just that deliciously designed. You’re probably familiar with the former state work-study program. As of the summer of 2013, a new recipe has spiced things up for both students and employers: the Employment Aid Readiness Network program (or EARN for short). With EARN, eligible students have access to resume-building, experiential, paid internships, while employers receive state matching funds in exchange for hiring these …

Continue Reading »

It’s The Final Countdown (For IMPACT Awards Nominations)

I can hear you humming that eighties song already. And, it’s true. We’re counting down to the deadline for IMPACT Awards nominations – and we cannot believe October 22 is almost here!

If you haven’t heard of the IMPACT Awards, it’s the internship equivalent of the Oscars. Imagine your favorite intern finally getting recognized for their excellent work this past year. The difference is that you get to play a first-hand role – not just in celebrating them, but also in nominating them.

“It’s the internship equivalent of the Oscars.”

Just like the Academy Awards, the IMPACT Awards take place in February and include multiple categories: Intern of the Year (High School, College and Non-Traditional), Employer of the Year (For-Profit and Non-Profit), and Career Development Professional of the Year. Don’t worry, you don’t have to wear a fancy cocktail dress to this event – or get anxious about Meryl Streep …

Continue Reading »

Looking Back at Last Year’s IMPACT Awards Winners

As fall internships are in high gear, we want to remind you of an opportunity to recognize the rock star you had the pleasure of working with this past year. Whether it’s the intern who exceeded your expectations or the employer or career coach who’s served as a great role model, we want to hear your success stories!

Indiana INTERNnet would like to recognize these overachievers at the annual IMPACT Awards luncheon which will be held on Feb. 5, 2014, at the Ivy Tech Culinary Center Ballroom. We are now seeking nominations for these awards (Deadline: Oct. 22). More information on the IMPACT Awards is available here.

Several great stories from last year’s IMPACT Awards remind us of the gems in the workplace:

College Intern of the Year Cody Adams made significant contributions to Roche’s HR department. He was instrumental in the development of first annual summer …

Continue Reading »

Fall into Internships

Have you noticed the leaves turning from green to red, yellow and brown – as if the cooler weather wasn’t enough of a clue that the seasons are changing? So, you reach for that college-branded hoodie from the back of your closet and head to the nearest coffee shop for that pumpkin spice latte. As you sit there in your black rimmed glasses and faded jeans, you browse your Twitter feed and wonder how the summer flew by.

Maybe you spent it lounging on the lake, or taking orders at the neighborhood fast food joint. Maybe you were working your way through online quizzes for that one math class, or watching all 4 seasons of Arrested Development. Or maybe, just maybe – you were gaining some experience at an internship (I can only hope).

As you take a sip of that heavenly java concoction, the smile that …

Continue Reading »

Internship Frequently Asked Questions

Do you have some unresolved questions about internships? Whether you’re a college student wondering if internships are the best next step for you – or you’re an employer curious about setting up an internship program at your organization, here is a compiled list of internship frequently asked questions with answers by our internship experts:

What is the point of interning?

Employers: A New Age of Internship Possibilities Students: Internship Experience May Increase Your Salary Discovering your career path Why Intern? Mind the Employment Gap No. 1 Perk of an Internship

Are internships truly a stepping stone into a full-time job?

From Intern to Full-Time Employee Considering an intern as a full-time employee

I hear a lot of myths about internships. What are some truths?

Five Simple Truths About Internships

I keep hearing about virtual internships. What are they all about?

The Potential of Virtual Internships Virtual …

Continue Reading »

Meet Our New Program Manager

The chicly-dressed new program manager at Indiana INTERNnet might not look like it, but Ann Mears is a born and raised farm girl. Hailing from Delphi, Indiana, Ann grew up on a small cattle farm just east of town. When she was old enough to gather eggs from the chickens, she quickly found a way to make a return on her investment in this least-liked chore by selling the eggs to her grandparents and neighbors.

When it came to deciding on a major at Purdue University, Ann started out in Agricultural Economics, but quickly realized that her calling was in Hospitality and Tourism Management. To solidify her choice of studies, she dived into multiple internships throughout her college career.

Ann’s internship experience began with Indiana Packers Corporation, where she excelled at her human resources internship and eventually became the intern to the executive assistant. As the events intern with the …

Continue Reading »

Feedback