Students start hunt for internships

There will be an Internship Fair from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. today in Alumni Hall of the Indiana Memorial Union for students seeking internships in professional fields.

Sponsored and organized by the Career Development Center and Arts and Sciences Career Services, it has been arranged for 46 businesses and organizations to participate, offering students the chance to interact with recruiters for possible internship opportunities nationwide.

“Internships are an important part of the educational experience here at IU, and having the professional experience gained through a quality internship is one of the best ways students can increase their marketability,” said Joe Lovejoy, assistant director of the CDC.

Participating companies include those in the fields of retail, finance, media, government and more. The most recent additions to the list of businesses that will be present are Discover Financial Services, Amazon.com, Cook Inc. and American Greetings Corporation.

“It’s nice that there’s such a variety of businesses that we can talk to in one place,” sophomore business major Adam Klingenberger said. “I currently do not have a summer job lined up, and I’m hoping that through this I can find a paid internship in
the business field.”

These companies will each be equipped with their own booth and recruiters, filling Alumni Hall with the chance for students to choose which employers they would like to talk to individually.

“As a Hudson-Holland Scholar student it’s required of me to have an internship before I graduate, so I’m hoping to find one at the Internship Fair, preferably in my hometown of Nashville,” freshman Courtney Woodard said.

To prepare for the event, Lovejoy suggests that students should visit IUCareers.com to view the full list of participating companies and to come to the event prepared to explain the benefits they would bring to each company of interest.

The Internship Fair is open to students of all ages and majors looking for connections in the professional world that could someday lead to a future career.

“In today’s increasingly competitive job market, it is the students who have sought our opportunities to gain professional experience that are most successful in the job search,” Lovejoy said.