The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current, September 04, 2002, Image 3

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The Battalion
Page 3A • Wednesday, September 4, 2002
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Some jobs suck. Some don’t.
: Internships help students evaluate, and reevaluate, their career choices
By Kendra Kingsley evaluating what part of the internship is causing early in the internship. ity” Shanks said. “After doing a couple of
THE BATTALION
For most students, spending summer vaca-
I tion surrounded by relatives is a recipe for tor
ture. But for Brady Herrin, a junior accounting
major, a summer internship with his family’s
business was exactly the type of experience he
wanted.
Herrin has worked at Lonestar Computer
Corporation, a company specializing in restor
ing battery backups for computers, since he was
in high school.
“Since my dad is the president of the compa-
! ny, and my brother is its CFO, we all appreciate
the business as a family," Herrin said. “I defi
nitely take my job a little more seriously since I
know I’ll be working there one day.”
Herrin is not allowing his family connections
to finalize his immediate career plans, however.
He said his summer internship has encouraged
him to work for an outside company before
returning to Lonestar Computer Corporation.
“I don't want to fall into working for my
dad’s business,” Herrin said. "I'd feel better
with a taste of the real world, which 1 can get
from working other places first. I think that
type of experience will give me an outside view
that 1 can bring back to the family business.”
Like Herrin, many students are testing the
waters with an internship before making any
final career moves. According to Dale Pracht,
assistant director of internship programs at the
Career Center, 3.314 students registered to
search for internships through the Career Center
during the 2001-2(X)2 school year.
While many students pursue an internship
relating to their major, Pracht said several addi
tional factors should be considered before
interning with a company.
“Students should decide what their values
are,” Pracht said. “The culture of the company,
its size and what you’ll be doing on a day-to-
day basis are all important factors to consider.”
Even less-than-perfect internships can be
valuable experiences, Pracht said. But before
changing majors completely, Pracht suggests
the student to second guess his or her future.
"Students should decide
whether the day-to-day tasks
they are doing for a company
are enjoyable or not,” he said.
‘‘If they’re not, then you may
want to consider other
types of fields - just : Jjjm
don’t base your view
of a career on one
bad experience.”
To avoid this, a
Pracht suggests
communicating
with a supervisor
When you’re first with a company, sit down
with a supervisor and determine what the com
pany’s expectations are of you and what you
expect from them.”
Brad Shanks, a senior management informa
tion systems major, said his internship as a
computer programmer with J.C. Penney
left him with a clear vision of what he
Igb, does and does not want to pursue in
the corporate world.
“I worked with COBOL, an
\*\ ancient computer language that is
very structured and has no flexibil-
COBOL programs, I realized 1 wanted to go
into a job where I would be working with newer
technology.”
Shanks said in spite of the job’s low points,
he gained a sense of post-graduate life.
“The internship gave me a taste of what cor
porate life is like and how things get done in
the industry," he said. “It let me decide what
types of computer programming I liked and
didn’t like in a real environment, instead of in
a class.”
In addition to serving as a valuable resume
builder, internships can help students specify
which particular field they want to pursue. Kim
Yerby, a senior marketing major, said her
internship with Meeting Professional
International gave her direction into the type of
marketing she wants to practice.
“There are so many different things you can
do with a marketing degree, like public rela
tions, advertising, marketing research and inter
national marketing,” Yerby said. “Before I start
ed my summer internship, 1 had absolutely no
idea of what type of marketing 1 wanted to go
into. I thought I’d try an internship because I
just wanted to get answers.”
According to Pracht, the Career Center helps
students find such answers throughout the year.
“Many companies will hire interns two
semesters in advance,” Pracht said. “For that
reason, the Career Center offers workshops and
advising throughout the year, to help students
land the kind of internship that they want. It’s
never too early to start looking - especially if
you want to find the best fit for your major.”
For Yerby, finding her passion was apparent
by the end of the internship. After designing the
layout for a media kit, controlling traffic for the
company’s magazine and sending advertise
ments to printing companies, Yerby knew what
she wanted to pursue.
"Working with the company made me like
my major even more,” she said. “Eve made so
many connections through clients, sales repre
sentatives and employers. Now, I definitely
know what 1 want to do.”
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