Thinking of hiring interns this fall? Where to go, who to know to find great talent

Internships offer students valuable experiential learning opportunities and the chance to list real client work on their resumés. For

employers, they offer a fantastic, low-risk opportunity to ‘try out’ new talent for their organizations. Given that most employers today are seeking entry level hires with at least a couple of years of relevant work experience and solid references, internships have become an essential part of many students’ career preparation. We asked the experts at USF, UT, and HCC what employers can do to ensure they get the most valuable work from their interns, and in exchange provide their interns with useful projects, opportunities, and mentoring that will help them in their careers.

Dr. Ginger Clark, Vice President of Workforce Training at HCC, says “All students and all internships are not created equal, but there are specific steps that can be taken to ensure a positive outcome for everyone.”

For Dr. Clark, successful internship programs share three major elements:
1) Front-end planning around key stakeholder objectives
2) Establishing an assessment or evaluation metric that serves the needs of the student and employer
3) Agreeing upon a formal system of feedback that will inform continuous improvement in the overall internship program.

Dr. Cyndy Sanberg, Internship Director for USF’s Muma College of Business, says that today’s business school students head to college with a specific goal: getting a meaningful job upon graduation. “They still want and need the traditional parts of business programs, but they expect more when they sit down — or log into —classrooms. And they want internships to help them apply their newly learned skills,” she explains. Dr. Sanberg notes than more than half of the students surveyed in the recent Millennial Branding study said that access to paid internships and mentoring opportunities was very important to them. These students understand that their degree programs provide the training to do the job, but internships help them to develop real-world skills and mentors help make connections.

This is why USF is making a concerted effort to connect more employers with its students for internships. According to Dr. Sanberg, a 2015 study by the National Association of Colleges and Employers found that the focus of most corporate internship programs is to convert students into full-time, entry-level employees. With nearly 250 major employers responding, NACE found that more than 51 percent of interns became full-time employees. "Interns come in with new ideas and new solutions,” Dr. Sanberg says. “They can help with backlogged tasks — or tackle the jobs that employees WANT to start but never have time to begin.”

Internships also provide students with needed college credit, so it’s important for employers to reach out to the appropriate contacts at each institution to make sure the necessary approvals are obtained and prospective students can receive course credit. At the University of Tampa, for example, the internship approval process starts with completion of an Internship Request form (IRF), which is available online or via email. Once completed, the form is forwarded to the appropriate faculty members for credit approval and to increase the visibility of the opportunity among the student population. The approval process typically takes one week from the date that the IRF is returned for it to be processed and posted in HIRE-UT, the University of Tampa’s career management system.

Interested in learning more? These individuals can assist you:

Dr. Ginger Clark
Vice President, Workforce Training
Hillsborough Community College
813-253-7144 gclark@hccfl.edu

Dr. Cyndy Sanberg
Internship Director Muma College of Business at USF Cyndy@usf.edu /813.974.9033 http://www.usf.edu/business/student-success/employer-relations/internships.aspx

Mark W. Colvenbach
Director, Office of Career Services
The University of Tampa
mcolvenbach@ut.edu
813.253.6236 http://www.ut.edu/career/employerservices

(re-posted from Tampa EDC newsletter)

Executive Director Discusses National Perspective on Supply Chain for Middle-Skills Jobs

Last month the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) Engineering and Medicine hosted a symposium focused on The Supply Chain for Middle-Skill Jobs: Education, Training and Certification Pathways. The half day event took place

in the National Academy building on Constitution Avenue in Washington, D.C. The symposium was part of a research project commissioned by the NAS Board on Science, Technology and Economic Policy to investigate a number of different aspects of middle skill jobs. First, there is the question of how we define middle skill jobs. Next, an ad hoc committee is exploring the attributes and aspects of these jobs. Finally, current labor workforce needs that impact the coverage, effectiveness, flexibility, and coordination among the nation's programs to prepare Americans for technically oriented, skilled positions in the workforce demanding non-routine problem-solving skills, but requiring a baccalaureate degree was examined. The education and training systems under study include: apprenticeship programs offered by schools, unions, and employers; high school career and technical education (CTE) programs; advanced technical education and training in community colleges and for-profit colleges; employer-financed and provided training; federal education and training programs; state learning exchanges; public-private employment training partnerships; and licensing and skills certification. 

Among the questions the committee hopes to answer are those pertinent to current gaps in coverage and market failures in this part of the labor market. Topics addressed include the current and preferred public and private sector roles in financing, and providing employment training and skills certification as well as the incentives and information for individuals to improve their work skills. Several employment preparation practices in other countries and those of foreign-headquartered firms and their relevance to the U.S. labor market are included in the study. 

The symposium format was a series of short presentations on these topics by individual researchers. FLATE was invited to participate as part of a panel of experts and working professionals who responded to the report from their own work and experience perspective. The presentations and input from the panel discussants seeded lively audience question and answer periods after the panels. The goal was to provide additional input and resources for the researchers to explore and include in their reports. The entire event was webcast and recorded and should be available soon on the National Academy website, with the final consensus report summarizing the findings available in 2016. The ultimate goal is to provide definitions and background for national strategies to support the current and emerging workforce needs for these middle-skill career pathways. 

The event was a great experience for me. It was also a wonderful opportunity to share the “Florida Plan,” and the

Sen. Tim Kaine (VA)
addresses the Middle Skills NAS symposium

work FLATE has done in Florida embedding industry credentials into high school and 2-year college technical programs and providing multiple flexible, strong pathways into and out of workforce education for manufacturing. On the flip side, I do have some concern about researchers and policy professionals in our capital and elite research institutions that seem to have little to no experience in the “field” proposing national policies based on their understanding from an academic perspective. Lastly, never having been to the National Academy building, I was captivated by its history, its elegance, and its important niche in our Federal Government. It is open to the public and has some awesome facilities, art, and information to share. I totally recommend it as an additional “bucket” list stop when you visit the National Mall. 

…And now I’d like to invite you to read the rest of the stories in the July edition of the FLATE Focus. Our robotics and the energy camps are off to a good start—do read a recap from the ones we’ve had so far and follow us on our social networking platforms as we push forward with the rest of the robotics camps this month. Curriculum and professional development is never far away from our bigger mission to stay connected with industry and educators…take some time to read the stories about our Nanotechnolgy camp for teachers and also the summer institute for teachers which was great hit with educators and local manufacturers. Do congratulate the STEP awardees for their remarkable accomplishments, and read up on the new ET program at Lake Sumter State College. Don’t forget to sign up for the educator workshop at FACTE coming up later this month and check your answers to last month’s sTEm puzzle. This and many more stories in this edition of the FLATE Focus! Do write to us at news@fl-ate.org, or post your comments and stay connected through our social networking platforms on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.

FLATE Wins National Career Pathways Partnership Excellence Award

……..if we may toot our own horns, but we would like to share this good, no make that GREAT news with

all our stakeholders and partners. FLATE—the National Science Foundation Regional Center of Excellence in Florida was named winner of the National Career Pathways Partnership Excellence Award. Sponsored by Kuder, Inc. (www.kuder.com), the Career Pathways Partnership Excellence Award emphasizes the importance of career guidance and advising, professional development for educators and employers, and the employer role in providing work-based learning opportunities for students.  Dr. Marilyn Barger, executive director of FLATE will receive the award at the annual National Career Pathways Network (NCPN) conference in Dallas (www.ncpn.info). 

The National Career Pathways Network (NCPN) assists its education and business members in implementing, evaluating, and improving Career Pathways initiatives by providing a communication network. NCPN strives to compile and share information on exemplary practices; collaborate to develop implementation resources; and foster communication about Career Pathways and other workforce education programs. For more information about the award visit www.kuder.com and www.ncpn.info.  For information on FLATE and it’s state-of-the-art, award winning programs visit www.fl-ate.org and www.madeinflorida.org. 

Nano Nano! Workshop for Educators Looks at the ‘Science of Small Things’

Think small! Perhaps this isn’t a phrase that you hear very often these days, but when it comes to

nanotechnology, thinking small, very small, in fact at the atomic level is just perfect! At a time when everyone looks at the big picture, at mass structures, why give the time of day to a study of atoms? “The more we understand the world at the atomic, or the nano scale, the better understanding we have of how things work” says Deb Newberry, principal investigator and director of Nano-Link, the National Science Foundation Center of Excellence in Nanotechnology in Minnesota.

More often than not, most people’s introduction to nano science actually starts while learning about atoms and molecules, and how the composition/arrangement of atoms defines the physical, biological, chemical, electrical properties of everything we see around us. But there is much more to learn about this ‘all things small’ science than meets the eye. From electronics, paints, windows, to self-cleaning energy to material science, or biotechnology, “there isn’t a single industry that isn’t impacted by nano science!” says Newberry. Indeed, nano science influences many different disciplines. There is a huge need to educate students about the applications of nano science and technology in real world settings, and even more imperative for educators to be conversant about nanotechnology.

Given these parameters, FLATE—the Florida-based, National Science Foundation Regional Center of Excellence recently partnered with Nano-Link—to host a nano workshop for educators in the sunshine state. The workshop is part of a network of educator workshops offered by Nano-Link to raise awareness and educate educators by helping infuse nanotechnology concepts into everyday classes/curriculum. “Teachers need to have the confidence to be able to know the subject thoroughly and be able to do the activities and experiments so they can teach these concepts to their students” said Newberry.

In essence, the workshop is using teachers, like Deborah Seto, as vehicles to reach students and make them

aware about nanotechnology and related careers. Seto, who is a science teacher for Ferrell Girls Preparatory Academy in Tampa, says she attended the workshop  because she wants to learn more about nano science and technology. Activities for the workshop were targeted predominantly for high school and college educators, and were based off of 20 modules created by Nano-Link. It covered a broad range of topics that encapsulated everything from chemistry to polimer science, forces and interactions, light and defraction gradings to laminar and turbulent fluid flow etc. Even though the curriculum was designed at a higher level, Seto’s interest in the workshop was spurred by the tremendous amount of research on the topic. “These are the very concepts I am trying to introduce as part of my curriculum to teach middle school students about the science of ‘small things,” Seto said.

Indeed, there are several real-world applications to nano science and technology that few know about. Deborah Newberry points to the abalone shell as an example of nano science/technology at work. Using nano science, Newberry says, scientists have been able to learn and understand the architectural structure of an abalone shell and translate that in real world settings to make earthquake proof buildings, or light weight bullet proof vests. The news is all exciting for teachers like Aimme Randol, a language arts and mathematics teacher at Venice Christian School, who is a proponent of independent research guided learning. She says the workshop gave her an arsenal to develop analysis and critical thinking skills through reading and attention to details. She hopes to use this resource and skill to “help make learning authentic for her students.”

Another positive attribute of nano science is also its positive job outlook. Deborah Newberry says she has more

companies calling her wanting to hire students than the other way round. “I get calls from companies based in California, New York, Indiana etc., looking to hired for skilled workers and technicians.” Current position openings primarily center on product development and research, with many nano technology students and technicians working with scientists and engineers to develop and test new products like new coatings for teeth, or new shingle coatings that don’t mold. Given the job outlook and skill set requirements, even at start-up companies looking for technicians who can understand the nano scale, Deborah Seto is convinced “nano is the wave of the future and where everything is headed,” and that it is important to generate students’ interest at an early stage so they can be exposed to some of these concepts.

The “Workshop for Educators” module has been highly successful not only in terms of being implemented across the United States, but also in its outreach to students. “What we are doing is working” said Newberry. To date, Nano-Link has reached over 33,000 students through educator workshops and other modular approaches,” and boasts of an 83% implementation rate from teachers who have attended the workshop. At the conclusion of the workshop all attendees were also provided with a thumb drive containing PowerPoint slides shared at the workshop that they could take back to review and/or use in class.

The post workshop survey conducted by FLATE indicates an overall satisfaction ratio in the workshop, with an

impressive 4.6 out of a possible 5 where 4 is very good and 5 is excellent. One hundred percent of the participants said they planned to contact Nano-Link through its website www.nano-link.org, and use information presented in the workshop. The same percentage of participants (100%) also stated they would recommend the workshop to others.

For more information on Nano-Link and nano-related workshop for educators contact Director & PI, Deb Newberry at dmnewberry2001@yahoo.com. For information on FLATE’s educator resources and professional development toolkits visit www.madeinflorida.org and www.fl-ate.org, or contact Executive Director/PI, Dr. Marilyn Barger at barger@fl-ate.org, or at 813.259.6578.