Growth Of The Alliance For Industrial Internships

Abstract

The Alliance is a network of coordinators and faculty from Biomedical Engineering units that place undergraduate and graduate students in industrial internship experiences. This network provides tools that aid in placing students in opportunities nearer home, in industries specializing in work that matches particular interests, in positions that were obtained through the national effort, and in local positions that would go unused. The Alliance web and phone-based support system enhances each unit's individual efforts by offering additional opportunities and resources. The Alliance has evolved from a small group of 16 initial trial participants, to the current state of over 30 active participants. Evolution of the software and web sites that support the Alliance has occurred through feedback from coordinators, students and companies. A formal survey of our constituents allows for continued improvement of the system and development of a true value-added Alliance. Such feedback is being used to simplify the methods for collecting and distributing student applications. We will explore examples, statistics, and initial results of the first of the full year of the Alliance and address its future direction and growth.