Internships Put Students' Futures And Schedules In Hand

UNIVERSITY PARK, PA-Christopher Ambrose expects to have an easier time managing his schedule during his senior year in Penn State's Smeal College of Business. The 21-year-old senior majoring in management science and information systems is going high-tech with his schedule this fall, thanks to a palm pilot he recently won by working an internship through the summer.

Ambrose is working as a Transportation Cost Analyst Intern in Hershey Food Corporation's Distribution Department. He notified the Corporate Relations Office in Penn State's Smeal College of Business of his internship and was entered in a drawing to receive a palm pilot and was notified in June that he won the device-which was donated to the college.

"The palm pilot will help me organize myself from what I do at work to even my extracurricular activities. It will help me plan meetings, all the various projects I am involved with and assignments that are given to me," says Ambrose, who is originally from Johnstown, PA. "Also, it will help organize time management skills between a class I am taking presently during my internship and sports activities with other interns and friends after work."

It didn't take a palm pilot for Ambrose to realize the value of working an internship.

"I selected the internship that I did because I know that it would benefit me tremendously in my studies and whenever I have to go out and start a career after school. Also, it is great experience to get into a great corporation instead of working minimum wage at little summer jobs every year," says Ambrose.

In his internship role, Ambrose is, generally speaking, trying to save Hershey Food Corporation as much money as possible. For instance, he will analyze a lane or a truck route that will be most efficient for the cheapest price. That involves sifting through many different carriers and looking at their contracts to see who has the lowest rates.

"It's what the real world is about. This internship got me involved for the first time in a business atmosphere and shows me why companies like Hershey have been successful for such a long time," says Ambrose. "Studying in school gives you background information about a business and how it works, but I really didn't understand it until I officially experienced it myself."

Students need professional work experience to compete in the entry-level job market. Some recent national surveys report that 80 percent of college seniors have had internships and two thirds have had at least two, notes Robin Stevens, director of Corporate Relations in Penn State's Smeal College of Business.

"Companies like to 'test drive' candidates before hiring them and students like the opportunity to feel out a company before signing on full time. An internship can provide all of this and more," says Stevens. "Almost 50 percent of students on internships are offered full-time employment with the company they are interning."

The Smeal College Corporate Relations Office has successfully matched thousands of students with companies seeking internships. In the past year, nearly 700 students have completed one or more internships. The office matches students with more than 400 employers annually in 23 states and abroad. Stevens notes that Smeal College students on internships earn competitive salaries while on work assignments that usually last three to eight months. Students can make, on average, between $500 to $800 a week, depending on their experience, field, and educational level.

"Students on internships have the opportunity to develop many of the skills that employers deem necessary for success in the workplace, such as leadership, teamwork, maturity, and communication skills," says Stevens. "It's never too early to start preparing by doing an internship."