As we head into summer, I know that many of you are hoping to find an internship. Here to give you some inspiration is a new “Internship Ideas” post featuring senior Communication Studies major Emily Gann! I am excited to feature Emily because she is also in the Dual Degree Teaching Program here at USF, and she was able to find an internship that nicely combined her two interests. Here we go…
Q: Where do you intern and what do they do?
Emily: “I intern at the Stanford Math Intervention Project, which is a research project at Stanford which focuses its attention on second and third grade students who are having difficulties in math. The researchers are also interested in learning more about how math skill develop as well as identifying how math learning difficulties, such as dyscalculia, develop in the brain.”
Q: How did you find your internship?
Emily: “I found the posting for SMIP tutors on DonsCareers (which has a lot of great internship postings!)”
Q: Why did you choose to intern there?
Emily: “I’m in Professor Pabst’s internship class this semester and I wanted to work somewhere that allowed me to combine my two majors, Communication Studies and Education.”
Q: What do you do on a regular basis at your internship?
Emily: “I am a tutor for SMIP, so I execute the scripted lessons to third graders who have trouble with math. We also play math games, do flashcards, and play a math-based computer game, which tracks their accuracy and efficiency in solving math problems. Each student is tutored three times per week and each session lasts about an hour. I tutor two students, so I work about 6-8 hours a week. Both the participants and the tutors (me) get paid for their time!”
Q: What have you learned from this internship?
Emily: “I’ve learned a lot about how to adapt my teaching style to fit the individual student’s needs. Working with two separate students gave me the opportunity to change and adapt my teaching methods to each student’s specific learning styles and needs. I really enjoy working with the students, although it can be challenging to make math more fun for them. I think its great practice for my (hopefully) future career as a teacher to learn how to best meet individual needs in a one-onone setting. Plus, I get to catch up on what’s hot and what’s not with 9 year olds! I think the knowledge and skills that I learned in nonverbal communication have been really helpful. I am more conscious of my nonverbal cues and what those express.”
Q: What advice do you have for other students looking for an internship?
Emily: “Use all of the resources available to you! I really like DonsCareers for searching for internships and jobs because all of the postings listed are really targeted towards students. Professor Pabst also read over everyone’s resume and gave each person feedback. Also, take advantage of the Career Services workshops and events, such as mock interviews. They’re extremely helpful!”
Soon to be COMS graduate, Emily!
Thanks, Emily, for the advice! It sounds like a great program! Hmmm… what is hot with 9 year olds these days?
If you have an internship that you enjoy, contact me at edoohan@usfca.edu to be featured in an upcoming “Internship Ideas” post!
