Ferris State University students gain valuable work experience through internships. Internships also can confirm or redirect career decision-making, provide marketability, develop people skills and enhance classroom learning. Many academic programs require one, but the experience is encouraged regardless to provide students with a better understanding of what will be expected of them in the workplace.
Many students are participating in myriad internships this summer. Meet:
Robert Watson
He is: a Welding Engineering Technology major in the College of Engineering Technology. Robert writes: “I live with my wife in Rodney, east of Big Rapids, but this summer I am completing an internship in the Welding Execution Group at the General Motors Global Technical Center in Warren, Michigan.”
How he got the Internship: “We are required to seek out and acquire our internships ourselves. However, Ferris and the WET faculty provide several resources to help that along, like the career fair. Personally, I secured my internship through an information session that was arranged by our WET faculty.”
What the Internship Has Taught Him: “What the day-to-day life of a welding engineer in the automotive industry can look like. I get hands-on experience with many different types of welding and weld-testing technologies while learning the importance of high-quality welds to accomplish the goals of business and industry.”
Previous Internships, Affiliations: ”I’ve had an internship every summer I’ve been a Ferris student. This one is my fourth. I am an active member and former officer of the American Welding Society Student Chapter on Ferris’ campus.”
Future plans: “My intention is to use the relationships and experience I gain from this internship to move into a full-time position within the same company after graduation. They have treated me very well, and I’ve found the work exciting and stimulating.”
Ferris Core Value Robert Relates to: “I think I relate most to opportunity. I came to Ferris because the Welding program
offered a level of opportunity I couldn’t find anywhere else: the opportunity to pursue
an industry I like in a unique and fulfilling way.”