Well Begun Is Half Done
What Internships Provide the Career Seeker
What Internships Provide the Organization
Helpers
Well Begun Is Half Done (Part II)
Related Links
Well Begun Is Half Done
Eric Patterson is an intelligent and articulate young
blind man who has used internships to set him on a
solid path to a successful career. I met him through
the University of Washington DO-IT Careers program.
DO-IT stands for Disabilities, Opportunities,
Internetworking and Technology. Sara Lopez, Project
Coordinator for DO-IT Careers, says Patterson's career
management journey is a model success story. Not only
has Patterson taken advantage of the opportunities
presented to him, she points out, but he's also done
it very well.
When Patterson began college, he was unsure about
what career he wanted to pursue. While working with
adaptive computer technology, he earned a degree in
Computer Applications at Mt. Hood Community College.
Patterson proactively sought opportunities to explore
the subject (and judge his aptitude for it) through a
number of supportive programs with mixed success.
At first he tried to get experience in broadcast
technology but found that there was little opportunity
to add to his knowledge in the two positions he
obtained. Although one of these jobs had a great deal
of responsibility and challenge, various circumstances
made them no more than a cautionary experience.
Patterson was learning what to avoid.
When Patterson shifted to internships that directly
supported his chosen career, there was a marked
change. An internship at the Oregon Commission for the
Blind, where he taught other blind students how to use
and qualitatively evaluate adaptive technology
products, led to a strong recommendation from the
commission.
That helped him get his second productive internship
at a public library. He found the internship at the
library on his own via the Internet. His role at the
library was considerable because he was central to the
organization's research into the application of
adaptive computer and other technologies as it strove
to become accessible to all library users. And the
library gave Patterson a second recommendation letter --
this one from an employer with the added credibility
of not being allied with an organization for the
blind.
Patterson says both of these recommendations were
essential in getting his current job, where he does
technical support for DSL (digital subscriber line)
customers through Stream International. And, to his
credit, Patterson did not fall into the trap of
regarding his education as finished when he obtained
this position. He admits he felt overwhelmed at first,
just as any new employee does, but he did not shrug
the feeling off. He improved his performance.
In our conversation, he never once appeared to regard
himself as entitled to anything but an even break. And
he knows he "earned" his success because this is
precisely the word he uses when he talks about his
growing marketability as an employee.
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What Internships Provide the Career Seeker
Most college graduates face a daunting task when their
education is finally over and it is time to get out
and start using it. A large number wind up in essence
starting over with entry level positions or, worse,
have a hard time finding work in their chosen field.
While once a college education was a great advantage
to a job seeker, it no longer "gilds a résumé," so to
speak. A Bachelor's degree is just too common.
However, what the nondisabled graduate has in her
favor (besides not presenting a potential employer
with real or imagined obstacles) is that she probably
had a chance during college to gain some pattern of
work experience in summer or part-time jobs. Whether
related to her field or not, this experience provides
the company considering her for a position with
something to assess beyond her academic record. An
employer generally wants to see evidence that the
individual is reliable, hardworking and disciplined.
If the graduate has had a chance to get further
training and experience through an internship, then so
much the better. It gives her applicable experience
and the opportunity to hit the ground running. The gap
between academia and "real world work" is much
narrower.
But for a disabled person the gap is more like a
chasm. She may have less time and opportunity to get
work experience while in college. Schoolwork alone may
hog her available time. Part-time employers may be
reluctant to hire her for service-type jobs. Even
with an ample work record in those types of jobs, she
may face an uphill climb after graduation.
An internship, on the other hand, gives her concrete
evidence of solid, verifiable work and training in a
particular field. It's more difficult to conclude that
she cannot or may not be able to do a job if she
already has been doing the work, provides the
potential employer with internship references or is
even that employer's intern.
Merriam Webster Collegiate Dictionary defines intern
as "an advanced student or graduate usually in a
professional field (as medicine or teaching) gaining
supervised practical experience (as in a hospital or
classroom)"
An internship not only levels the way where the
employer is concerned. It can offer the career seeker
with a chance to see what work in a field is like. It
gives her a chance to build knowledge and skill so
it's easier for her to excel in the "real job." In
many ways, an internship is a time to practice just
having a career: It gives one a place and circumstance
within which to practice the discipline and
interpersonal relationships that are, in many ways,
the larger challenge in work life than simply being
able to perform the tasks.
Eric Patterson is very clear about what he believes
his internships did to help him find his career path.
First, he says, "They gave me a good idea of the kind
of work I wanted to do." Through the sum of his
experience, positive and negative, he was able to rule
out work in broadcasting and embrace, with more
confidence, helping others make decisions about
Internet technology.
Plus internships gave him a passport into the
field. "The internships helped me earn two
recommendations, which helped me get my job," he
points out. "When I earned my recommendation from the
commission, I used it to apply for my job at the
library, where I got a chance to apply what I learned
at the commission. I got my second recommendation when
I completed my internship at the library, and I think
that both recommendations helped me get my current
job."
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What Internships Provide the Organization
Those employers who include interns in their
workforces and who actively make these positions
inclusive of disabled people are largely enthusiastic
about them, and that's encouraging. Perhaps this is
because they knew the benefits for the company from
the outset. Or perhaps it is a case of, "Whew! This
was easier than we thought it would be."
In either case, there appears to be no downside to
having disabled people in internships as far as an
employer is concerned. The fact that these employers
realize that and share their realization with other
organizations within business leadership programs,
such as the Washington State Business Leaders Network,
is a major step toward increased opportunities for
disabled career seekers.
Mylene Padolina, a diversity consultant at Microsoft,
says having disabled interns as well as regular
employees who are disabled is essential for its success.
She points out that it's important to have a workforce
which mirrors a company's market. "What we're
finding is that our employees with disabilities
provide us with a great perspective," she explains,
"as we work to ensure our products are usable by
everyone." And, I might add -- purchased by everyone.
Padolina goes on to describe how internship programs
in general benefit high-tech corporations. "An
academic degree alone just is not enough," she
maintains. "In a fast moving industry like computer
technology, things change too fast for colleges to
keep up." By taking a promising candidate in as an
intern, a company such as Microsoft is able to provide
practical experience in a work environment and
exposure to the latest technology that supplements her
academic training.
Learning Microsoft's way of doing business also
includes learning about the corporation's
organizational culture and expectations. This is a
plus for any company which is looking for the best job
candidates. Any candidate is more or less "a pig in a
poke." An internship is a reliable means of getting to
see the "whole pig" before offering an individual a
full-time position.
In many cases, an added benefit to the company is not
having to pay an intern or paying an intern at a much
more modest rate. The opportunities are either
considered part of the intern's education -- in fact,
students often actually pay tuition for the
internship -- or the intern is supported through
special programs that place them at cooperating
companies. Some intern positions are really volunteer
jobs. The intern's "pay" is not cash but in the form
of experience and networking opportunities.
Microsoft, which is unique because it does not bat an
eyelid about providing accommodations, seeks high
school students as interns and actively recruits
people with disabilities for regular employment.
Padolina expresses her appreciation of Microsoft's
partnership with DO-IT Careers: "Their efforts in
providing students with exposure to technology greatly
contribute to our future workforce. Also, their
expertise in working with students with disabilities
has helped us improve our outreach programs."
Lopez adds that Microsoft offers mentor volunteers for
DO-IT Careers in return.
Illuminet's Curtis Bryan also feels disabled workers
add to the skill sets needed for a business to
succeed. Of Randy Hammer, the young blind man he met
while Hammer was an intern and later hired for his own
team at a new company, Bryan says, "Randy looks at
problems differently than the rest of us and often his
insight is the key to solving a puzzle."
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Helpers
Colleges and universities have long been well aware of
the benefit of work experience for students. They have
provided that experience themselves by way of graduate
student assistantships and, as they recognized and
nurtured relationships with corporations and
government entities, they have encouraged internships
within the workforces of these partners.
Many schools are committed to inclusion and have
initiated or become partners with organizations such
as DO-IT Careers to include disabled students in these
programs. I gained experience, for example, through a
teaching assistant position at Northern Michigan
University, thanks to the support of several
professors who were confident in my capabilities and
knew my low vision was no impediment. Where the
internships have been part of a successful transition
into employment for students in general, they often
prove to be central or even vital to a disabled
student's success.
Microsoft's Padolina recommends looking for corporate
recruiters on campus. She reports that Microsoft has
an entire team of recruiters on the University of
Washington campus alone -- not to mention the dozens
of other Microsoft teams on other campuses. They are
on campus for most, if not all, of the school year.
And Microsoft, in particular, goes so far as to have
recruiters who focus on increasing the diversity of their
candidate pool.
DO-IT's Lopez reports, "(Padolina) has been terrific
in working on many of the recent events and programs
Microsoft has hosted. They supported a DO-IT Summer
Study field trip, coordinated a Career Day for
Students with Disabilities, offered 27 students with
disabilities a chance to participate in Job Shadow Day
and offered technical scholarships for students with
disabilities this year." Each of these opportunities
to make contact with employers with intern programs
has a counterpart at most other campuses, involving
many corporations in many fields.
The very best supporting programs provide, as does DO-
IT Careers, mentors. Mentors are the icing on the cake
of an effective internship. Mentors share their
experience, knowledge and contacts and act as sounding
boards for ambitious students.
Off campus, similar programs exist for non-academic
career advancement. For example, the National Statler
Center for Careers in Hospitality Service in New York
State helps blind job seekers get experience in the
hospitality field. Participants gain experience in
various aspects of hotel and motel management, travel
services and other related industries. Programs like
the one offered by the Statler Center as well as labor
union apprenticeship programs extend the benefits of
internships to job seekers who do not pursue post-
secondary education.
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Well Begun Is Half Done (Part II)
Simply getting an internship is no guarantee,
however, of success. Like any other tool, it is of
little value unless it's used skillfully. If an
internship is a leg up when done well, it is crippling
when done poorly. A student must learn and exercise
excellent work habits and perform very well to gain
the advantage an internship offers. This is simply
twice as true for those with disabilities. Here are
some tips for making your internship successful.
- Clearly the first step is to learn and do the
job well. If you have not been a diligent student, you
may not be able to perform well on any job in your
field. Start right away in school, striving to be a
top student with an excellent grade-point level. Take
every opportunity to go beyond coursework and to be
better than just "good enough."
- Take responsibility for yourself. I recently
overheard a conversation where one man chalked up the
failure of a mutual acquaintance to his "not taking
care of business." That is -- the subject of this
dialogue had not acted in his own best interests, had
made poor choices and "whenever anything doesn't work
out, it's always someone else's fault." Be sure
you "take care of business." Rely primarily on
yourself to get and use the tools and experiences you
need.
- One of those useful tools that appears to be a
staple of an intern's success is a mentor. A mentor is
a teacher, a cheerleader, a confidante and a resource.
She can give you tips and advice with the safe haven
of a no-pressure relationship. Hearing what you are
doing wrong from a mentor means you may not hear it
from a boss. The mentor can help you avoid detours
that she has taken and found to be dead ends. And, if
your mentor is a successful disabled person in your
chosen field, you have an ample career "bank account"
on which to draw for insight, advice and
understanding.
What does the mentor get in return? Besides a chance
to make those dead ends useful, she is able to succeed
on a whole new level of making her struggle
unnecessary or easier for you. The best way to thank a
mentor like this is to succeed and then become a
mentor yourself. DO-IT Career's Lopez says about
former DO-IT Scholar Eric Patterson, "He frequently
solicits advice from mentors and shares tips with
younger students on the DO-IT e-community."
- You are not the only one who needs to be
responsible and capable for an internship to succeed.
Remember that employment is a two way street. The
employer gets good work out of you, but you also need
to get something in return. While it is arguable that
being paid is the exchange in full time work, this is
not the case with an internship -- or for, that
matter, a volunteer project. The employer's
responsibility is to give you the work and support you
need to make the work meaningful. If the employer is
not up to making the work an educational experience
for you - one that provides you with the means to a
better future -- then he should not receive the
benefit of your labor.
Eric Patterson recounts his internship at a community
radio station, where he received make-work tasks that
taught him nothing about broadcast technology, simply
because the people involved were unable to give his
internship the time and attention required. Yet they
were reluctant to admit this, wasting everyone's time
(including their own). He recommends that, before
accepting an internship, you should gain a commitment
that your employer will do its part. If you don't get
that commitment and you find yourself doing make-work,
you may be missing out, among other things, on another
opportunity that could be a key stepping stone in your
career.
- Having a passion for your chosen field is a
huge benefit. You will virtually always do better at
something you love. Plus this enthusiasm is obvious to
others. One lesson I have learned in 30 years of
employment and running a business is that others trust
and respect you most when you exude confidence and
success in dealing with others.
Learn how to job hunt. Learn how to interview
well, including giving self-assured answers about how
your disability will impact your performance. Take
advantage of every tool at your disposal. The same
skills will ensure a smoother search for an
internship.
- Don't get discouraged if, after four or more
years of becoming a top-level student, you find
yourself starting over in an entry-level job. I knew a
young woman who blamed her entry-level job on the fact
she was blind and female. She had not paid attention
to the fact that pretty much everyone has to start at
square one after school. The better you perform the
faster you will advance. And, in the meantime, you
will have had time to practice skills and gain
knowledge for the greater challenge of higher-level
positions.
Eric Patterson adds his own trio of recommendations:
- "I have several words of advice that I would give
visually impaired people:
-
- "If your college has a program that allows
students to do internships for credit, you should take
advantage of it. You will get both work experience and
college credit. You will want to make sure that the
work you are doing will qualify for college credit. I
found this out the hard way. The program advisors at
the college didn't want to count my work at Oregon
Public Broadcasting for credit because it didn't
include enough computer-related activity. I tried
telling him that troubleshooting the automation system
was considered a computer application, since it was a
computerized system. He still did not want to count my
internship for credit. It is important that students
check with their program advisors to make sure that
they will get credit for the work they are doing.
- "If you receive a recommendation for an
internship, always keep it on hand so you can use it
to apply for future jobs. You should keep a print-out
of your recommendations as well as save copies to your
hard drive.
- "If you are volunteering for an organization and
getting employment through an organization like the
job council, make sure you know what forms need to be
filled out and what you need to do to receive
employment. I found this out the hard way when I
didn't receive employment for my work back in 1993. If
I had all my forms filled out and knew what I needed
to do in order to receive employment, I would have
gotten paid."
One mistake you can make is to treat the internship
as less than a job. This is something nondisabled
students can do just as well as those of us who are
disabled. I knew a young intern, Grant, who was rather
cavalier and earned no respect from his employers. He
disappeared for hours, disregarded assignments, and
spent time on work he decided to do on his own. His
work habits and relationships were sloppy. And all
this in spite of the fact he was bright, capable and
extremely likeable. On top of his irresponsibility, he
worked in an organization in which people not only did
not make him aware that he was failing in their eyes
but were themselves poor at managing all its staff. So
no good at all came of Grant's experience in spite of
his relative lack of hurdles.
Successful internships are, at heart, a simple
equation. A good student plus a smart employer added
to a responsible performance by each equals a great
first step on the road to a successful internship.
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