Advising Program

The School of Molecular and Cellular BiologyUNIVER5ITy of ILIINoIs AT URBANA-CHAMPAIGN

FINDING STUDENT INTERNSHIPSUndergraduate internship opportunities and summer research programs are offbred by:

o State and federal government agencieso Private industryo Nonprofit organizationso Academic institutions (colleges and universities)

Begin with the UI Career Center (www.careercenter.uiuc.edu) to gaina basic understanding of theinternship experience and how to make the most of it. Here you'll find:

o Search instructions ftvww.careercenter.uiuc.edu/internship/default.php) and

" Job/internship databases (www.careercenter.uiuc.edu/sertices/jobDBinfo.php) to help you think aboutyour goals and aid your search for experiential education. In particular, The Career Center recommends useof the I-link system (www.careercenter.illinois.edu/rc/databases/ilink.php ) to explore your opportunities, aswell as their

o Career Center workshops (link to: ) and theiro One-on-one advising (link to: ) to assist you in finding a program that's a good fit for you.

Check out pre-filtered onportunities for students in the Biological Sciences:

o Other institutions that compile and update a list of opportunities. For example, the Rochester Instituteof Technology (http://people.rit.edu/-gtfsbi/Symp/premed.htm) offers a listing of internship sources that havebeen selected for their relevance to biomedical research.

oWebGURU (www.webguru.neu.edr) -- The Web Guide to Research for Undergraduates offers aProgram Listing of summer research opportunities.

Look at Federal Student Internships: The federal agencies and departments offer many studentinternships:

o Watch the Career Center for federal internship events:. Sign up for the Career Connections newsletter:

h@ : //www. careercenter. illinoi s. edr.r/services/newsletter. Meet with Tori Tanney Spring, Assist Dir. Emptoyer Connections and Job Preparation, to talk

about your interests. (vspring@illinoisd; 333-0820). View the FA10 webinar hosted by the Partnership for Public Service - PCs only: Federal Internships:

Find and Apply for Summer 20ll (recorded on Oct. 20,2010):http ;//ourpublicservice. orglOPS/dropbox/livemeetine. wmv

o Get into the Federal Internship loop by subscribing to: "Hot Jobs and Cool Internships" e-news fromthe Partnership for Public Service (www.ourpuUticserul .

o Download the MCB Federal Internship Workshop (pdf) handout(http://mcb.illinois.edu/undergrad/advising) for a description of steps you can take to find a federalinternship with a focus on the Biological Sciences.

Advising Prograrn

The School of Molecular and Cellular BiologyUNIVEBSITY OF ILLINOIS AT UNSANA.CHAMPATGN

Search for Industrv Internships: While it would not be possible to provide a comprehensive list of studentinternships offered at companies, below is a list of several compunies in or near lllinois that often do:

" Abbott Laboratories(www.abbott.com/global/url/content/en_US/50,40:40/general_content/General_Content_00l66.htnt)

o Pfi zer Ph arm a ce u ticals (www. pfi z err d gr a d. c o m / h o m e. p hp ? i d : int er n s h ip)o Sigma-Aldrich Co. (www.sigmaaldrich.com/site-level/career-opportunities/coop-program.html)o Monsanto Corp. (www.monsanto.com/careers/getting started/students.asp)o Thermo Fisher Scientific (www.piercenet.com/Objects/View.cfm?type=Page&ID:0959E80-49C8-499C-

968C-4A2A4s2AFFs9\o Archer Daniels Midland Co. (www.adm.com/en-US/careers/our_careers/Pages/intern.aspx)o Pion eer (www. p ioneer. co m/we b /s i t e/po rt al I

For a partial listing of IL biotechnology companies: www.thelabrat.com/jobs/companies/Biotechlllinois.shtml

Consider Non-Profit Internships: www.idealist.org/ fatlo .ifl l<r.rt ,1ts , rotflL

And watch roadMAP, the MCB e-newsletter (subscribe: http://mailman.life.uiuc.edu/mailman/listinfo/map)

FAQs about finding internships and summer research programs:

1. Wen should I look into an internship ar sumrner research position? It is not too early to begin exploringinternships as a freshman - some programs will consider the applications of first year undergraduates.Howevet, internships and summer research programs are typically targeted to the summers following thesophomore and junior years.

lflhere do I begin in a search or internships or research? Take advantage of workshops offered during thefall semester by The Career Center and MCB Advising program. This is the best time to gatherinformation as application deadlines often occur in late January or early February. While the MCBAdvising Program will advertise, via our e-newsletter, roadMAP, information for a few specific internshipsand summer research programs of which we become aware, your best approach tofinding opportunitieswill be to take advantage of the search strategies described above.

How do Ifind out if a particular company offers internships? Search the company website with searchterms such as "student" and "internship". If you find none, don't hesitate to contact the company toinquire.

Who writes my letters of recommendation? Some programs will stipulate the source(s) of letters - E.g.professors and/or academic advisors. Keep in mind that, since most application deadlines coincide with thebusy start of the spring semester, you should request your letters of support at the end of the fall semester orover winter break. Plan to provide your writers with a minimum of two weeks to submit a letter.

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