Posted on May 7, 2018 by Joanna Carver
No longer relegated to just summers, UTSA business students are gaining valuable experiential experience by participating in internships all year long.
“Internships are the gateway to successful careers,” said Nancy Scott Jones, associate director of employer relations in the college’s Center for Student Professional Development. “It’s never too early to get an internship.”
National surveys report that a paid internship doubles the probability of students graduating with a job and increases the level of starting pay by 34 percent.
Mariah Taylor, a senior management science major from Houston, just completed an internship with C.H. Guenther & Son, Inc. as a product specifications intern. Taylor completed her internship during the spring semester.
“Going into an internship it is okay not to know everything,” said Taylor. “Don’t be afraid to ask questions and use other resources to be successful in your tasks.”
Taylor was charged with analyzing quality assurance production data for all of the products at each of C.H. Guenther’s manufacturing plants.
“The experience was amazing,” said Taylor, who was vice president of the UTSA American Statistical Association. “I could take topics that I’d learn in class and apply them to my job. I also learned how to work in a professional environment.”
Upon graduation this May, Taylor wants to continue her education at the graduate level, earn her Certified Project Manager certification and eventually work as an IT project manager.
“Even if the internship is not directly related to your dream job, it will allow you to explore other career options and teach you unbelievable skills that you may not know you need,” said Jones. “Take the first internship; go into it with an open mind and be willing to take on any tasks you are assigned with a smile and a “can do” attitude.”
Catelyn Vasquez, a graduate student in the Master of Science in Business program worked this spring as an intern in H-E-B’s Global Sourcing Department.
Vasquez did qualitative research analyzing the sourcing partners of H-E-B’s competitors in addition to several smaller projects.
“They treated us like H-E-B partners,” said Vasquez, who is a member of the Professional Businesswomen Society. “We were never introduced as interns, and they welcomed me to their team. This internship opened up a whole new skill set for me.”
“Every class I’ve taken culminated to help me in this internship,” said Vasquez, who will travel this summer with the college’s international immersion program to Australia.
If you’re a business student who has recently accepted an internship or job offer, please share your success with us.
For companies who are looking for internship candidates in the College of Business, contact the Alvarez Student Success Center.
— Joanna Carver
