Virginia Space Grant Consortium’s (VSGC) Commonwealth STEM Industry Internship Program (CSIIP) team met with Old Dominion University students during a job fair event at Chartway Arena on October 19, 2021.
CSIIP links companies and students in STEM majors, including but not limited to high-need areas such as Computer Science, Cybersecurity, Data Science (Data Analytics, Data Visualization, etc.), Information Technology, Engineering, Physical Science and Financial majors (Finance, Economics, Accounting, Statistics), and helps place students in paid internships to explore career goals, apply classroom theory in the workplace, and hone their skills on real-world projects.
The event gave students an opportunity to talk with our staff about the many internship opportunities offered through our CSIIP program.
Nicole Shaw, a program coordinator with the Virginia Space Grant Consortium, spoke directly with students about how to take control of their future success.
“It is personally gratifying to watch a student get the opportunity to build their confidence and take control of their future,” said Shaw. “It is always a great feeling to provide a resource to students that will help them fine-tune real-world skills and help shape new leaders in STEM fields.”
Abhiram Kankipati, a computer science major at ODU, was one of the many students who spoke with the CSIIP team in search of internship opportunities.
“What really drew me towards CSIIP was the fact that they are facilitating paid internships for undergraduate students,” said Kankipati. “I am excited to see if I can connect with one of the many leaders in STEM industries through this program in the future.”
An added benefit of participating in the fair was the ability to establish connections with a diverse group of students en mass said Shaw.
“It is important for us to provide as diverse an internship pool as possible so that we can improve the STEM workplace with unique ideas and different background experiences,” said Shaw. “This representation is vitally important to us because we want the STEM industries to accurately reflect both our local and national communities.”
Scott Bellows, technical programs coordinator with VSGC, also attended the event in hopes to inform students about the impact CSIIP can have on a career in STEM industries.
“It gives them real-world experience in their chosen field,” said Bellows. “Additionally, it exposes the students to experiences that will help shape their career goals moving forward.”
For more information on the many internship opportunities through CSIIP visit https://csiip.spacegrant.org/
The Commonwealth STEM Industry Internship Program is a program of the Virginia Space Grant Consortium.