Promoting Student Internship Success
This month, several students who found successful summer internships participated in a panel discussion on who they worked for, how they landed the internship, and helpful hints for other students seeking summer internships. The panel consisting of Lexi Pedersen, Abigail Bies, Alissa Frazier, and Kiara McGinnis all had successful internships this summer. Two of the most crucial elements to students landing internships are connections and timing.
Last semester, the COB reconnected with one of our alumni, Heather Murbach, who is now a hiring manager at Stan Corp Mortgage Investors, LLC. (SMI). Murbach was very excited about the opportunity to hire current Boxers! An accounting student, Abigail Bies and an econ/finance student, Sam Lawrence, both Juniors, were successful in getting hired for SMI’s summer Operating Statement Analysis Internship. Their job duties included reviewing rent rolls, past years operating history, and property inspections and were responsible for analyzing the loans to come up with a current Loan to Value and Debt Coverage Ratio of the property. Both students felt that it was a valuable learning opportunity. SMI had rave reviews for both students and are looking forward to hiring more of our College of Business students for this upcoming summer.
Each September, the Oregon Society of the Certified Public Accountants invites accounting students to a “career showcase” where public accounting firms are invited to “showcase” their internship opportunities. Alissa Frazier was one of the students to attend last year from Pacific University. To prepare correctly for this event, Alissa attended a resume review workshop offered by one of our accounting professors. The workshop focused on resume tips that were specific to the accounting field, and Alissa used these tips to finalize her resume. She also knew that the secret to navigating a career fair where so many firms are represented was to research each of them ahead of time and then identify those firms of interest. Armed with this list, which by the way, she had personalized each of the cover letters for those companies she was interested in, she met with each firm and chatted with their recruiters. When she met with recruiters at Kernutt Stokes, LLP. Alissa immediately knew that she wanted to work at their firm! After multiple interviews and email exchanges, Alissa was hired as a summer intern and spent the summer in Eugene, Oregon. Her internship was so successful; she was offered a full time, permanent position with the firm as soon as she passed the CPA exam. Great Job Alissa!
The College of Business continues to provide resources and networking opportunities through the Placement Services office. The timeliness of the events is crucial. “These kinds of informational events are so important…” acknowledged Dean Jim Goodrich, “…many of these summer internships have employer application deadlines this fall, and students need to apply now to be successful.”
If you have an internship to promote with students within the COB contact the Director of Placement Services, Wanda Frazier, at wFrazier@pacificU.edu.