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:
Annaleese Rasanen
She is: a senior in Environmental Biology from Baraga.
Her Internship: Is with the United States Fish and Wildlife Service in the Biology Department with the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge. “I have done so much learning thus far in my internship. We have been monitoring invasive plants and wildlife, focusing on the usage of underpasses by different species. I have also been working with fire ecologists to assess the burn severity of the burns on the peninsula from last year, along with monitoring some burn areas from 2015. I have obtained a great deal of experience with the vegetation here and have found it all very useful and interesting. There is a lot to learn, and I am ready to take in as much as I can in the short time I am here. By monitoring invasive plant species, we can better understand where they may be coming from and treat the land they are on in hopes of them not returning. By assessing burn severity in areas, we can gather enough information to make a very accurate estimate of how ‘hot’ the fire burned in that area.”
Future Plans: “My post-degree plans are not defined yet. With this internship, I hope to have the experience, knowledge, and skills for a career in this field, doing what I love. If that is not the case right away, I plan to attend graduate school and absorb as much information as possible, to continue doing something in the environmental field.”
Advice To Other Students Seeking Internships: “Don’t think that any opportunity is too big for you. I was lucky enough to intern with my top choice for my internship. The entire time I was applying for internships, I had absolutely no confidence that I would actually receive an offer. Ask questions and be ambitious; the opportunities are endless.”
Ferris Cole Value Annaleese Relates To: Opportunity. “I have been fortunate enough to have one of the biggest opportunities
of a lifetime, to live and work in Alaska for an entire summer is a dream come true.
Not many people make it to Alaska in their entire life, let alone get the chance to
see the raw beauty of it firsthand while doing an internship. Opportunities are everywhere
if you are determined enough to find something you love.”
MEET THE INTERNS HOMEPAGE