by Emily Hunt
Staff writer
Listen up Sewanee students: it’s that time of year again! Even though the groundhog has predicted another six weeks of winter, this just gives us more time to cuddle up, buckle down, and start looking and booking for internships for the 2015 summer season!
Many students have been busy writing resumes and networking throughout the fall. Well, now they can put their internship seeking skills to the test. But don’t worry, because if you feel like you’re late in the game, you definitely are not. In case you don’t know where to begin, Internship Coordinator Elizabeth Wilson has offered up important deadlines and tid bits of advice to give the student body that jump-start they need. “We’re the first step,” Wilson states about Career and Leadership Development Offices, where students are welcome to make an appointment (or just drop in) to discuss everything from networking with alumni to answering the bigger questions, such as Wilson’s favorite, “what do you want to do with your life.”
In terms of connecting with Alumni, Wilson tells about the TigerNet program where students can access Sewanee’s alumni directory and take advantage of our strong community that lives off the mountain. Through a personal account and password, any student can access the names, locations and occupations of alumni whom we wish to emulate. Another resource Wilson recommends is the ACE Internship program—A Career Exploration. This program is only offered to Sewanee students, which means that in a year when everyone and their mother is trying to land an internship, there is a list of over 50 programs which are only offering positions to Sewanee students.
Instead of competing with thousands of other students around the world, we are given a leg up by only competing with our fellow classmates. Some of the most popular ACE Internships include a position at BrightHouse, a consultancy location in Atlanta, working under Tennessee Congressman Scott DesJarlais in Washington, D.C., as well as shadowing professionals in research facilities and universities through the ACE Medical Internships. If you are interested in applying for an ACE internship, the deadline is February 16. The ACE Medical internship applications are due on March 2. If you are interested in other internships outside of the ACE program, there are thousands of other opportunities that the Career Services staff are happy to help you find. If you do not have time to meet with a Career Services staff member, Wilson states that there are a handful of resources on the Career and Leadership Development website (http://careers.sewanee.edu/) that can be useful when looking for a job. These include the headlining post, “The INTERNSHIP Process; 2015 Internship Deadlines” which outlines a very helpful timeline of the internship seeking process. Some of the upcoming deadlines include:
- Apply for around 6-10 internships… and have a good backup plan. (Feb. 1-Mar. 1; ACE deadline is Feb. 16)
- Prepare for your interviews. (Feb. 15)
- Get an internship offer. (Feb.- Mar.)
You could soon land your dream internship in your favorite city. The only down side is that it is an unpaid internship. So what do you do if you cannot afford to live in that amazing city? Wilson informs that any student, both working in paid and unpaid positions, can apply to receive internship funding from Sewanee before April 1. Every year, around $400,000 is distributed among 225 students working at various internships around the world, offering about $380 per week for up to eight weeks to each student. It’s a stressful time and scary time of year, as well. However, if Sewanee has taught you anything, it’s that the hard work you put in now will absolutely benefit you later.
That being said, give the Career Center a call at 931.598.1121, walk in on your way back from Fowler, or visit their website. Regardless of how you seek an internship, everyone in Sewanee is willing and ready to lend a hand to help you succeed!