Business Internship elective giving students a head start

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Business Internship elective giving students a head start

The Business Internship elective course is a great way to secure an internship and prepare for your future. We spoke to students who reflected on their WIL placements.

Students can use their spare electives to complete a paid or unpaid internship with the Business Internship elective, gaining valuable work experience and skills for your future career path.

Davis McConnel and Timothy Rodgers secured their internships at Cummins and Lort Smith respectively by undertaking elective course BUSM4471.

Here’s what they each had to say about their experience.

What was the highlight of your internship?

Davis: A highlight was the opportunity to learn from and be trained by established practitioners as well as learning hard skills for a corporate job, including professional etiquette, manoeuvring through functions, aligning key stakeholders, and my project management skills.

The most prevalent highlight was the opportunity to lead a project around sourcing and attracting people with disabilities, as well as normalising it into the Cummins’ recruitment process.

Being someone with a disability, I was very passionate around this topic and very grateful for my manager, Meng Kiat Toh, that he was able to recognise this passion and trusted me to work independently under his guidance.

Timothy: To have opportunity to be involved in the setup of a brand-new veterinary clinic from late-stage development to completely operational.

This meant assisting our external vendors with setting up the network room, such as the switches, servers, and other integral Meraki equipment.

Being with the teams installing all the systems and teaching users’ specific processes required a higher level of understanding and skill that I wouldn’t have had the opportunity to discover and learn without this program or company.

What are the benefits of completing a WIL placement subject?

Davis: The overarching benefit of this elective is that it allows you to gain practical experience in the workplace, whilst also having the opportunity to continue your studies at university.

Considering most organisations are seeking entry-level positions that already have industry experience, having an elective available at university that gives you this experience, is detrimental to gaining full-time employment post-graduation.

Student Davis McConnell at his internship sitting in front of computer

Davis McConnell is continuing with Cummins for a longer placement.

Timothy: I had no experience in the corporate world. This has given me a rare insight into how a corporate office or position works.

Doing this internship through Lort Smith gave me the opportunity to learn the differences and essential procedures working at a corporate level that we would not have had access to previously.

All the while also having a safety net behind us to teach us and support us in learning the ropes.

What would you say to someone thinking about enrolling in this elective?

Davis: Firstly, I would say stop thinking about it and enrol.

These experiences can act as a solidification of whether you are in the right industry or whether you actually want to try something else.

It also allows you to establish networks outside of university and/or your part-time work.

Timothy: Do it! The goal of doing this internship should be for you to fast-track your career while learning valuable skills for your next role.

Many students will go into entry-level graduate programs with companies after graduating.

They are a great place to start to help move towards your goals, but this program can give you the skills to progress past this entry-level stage when you receive your degree.

Read more about Work Integrated Learning

01 June 2022

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