Northwestern State University of Louisiana equips students for success beyond graduation with professional development opportunities through internships.
Tiffany Killian, director of Career Services, explained the numerous services NSU offers to help students prepare for their professional careers. Some of these offers include résumé building and reviews, interview preparation, career fairs, workshops, presentations and internship courses.
“We do not place students into jobs,” Killian said. “We empower them to build the skills and confidence to pursue those opportunities themselves.”
NSU already encourages the use of Handshake, a free platform that helps students connect with employers. Killian shared that Career Services recently launched a new initiative, Career Conversations, which invites employers on a monthly basis to engage with students virtually. These sessions will provide tips on obtaining a career in the professional world and highlight internship opportunities.
Killian emphasized the importance of internships and the professional skills they teach students.
Whether it is nursing clinicals, an office internship or student teaching, the hand-ons work experience allows students to apply classroom knowledge in a real-world setting.
Curtis Penrod, director of the School of Business, explained that while the School of Business does not require internships, it strongly encourages students to seek internships to understand the professional world.
Penrod teaches an internship and field experience class for business students that allows students to engage in real-world learning on the professional level.
“As part of the internship class, students must reflect on the relationship between concepts they have learned in the classroom with what they are doing in the internship,” Penrod said. “These are designed to make them think about what they previously learned and see how it is reflected in the real world.”
One company that has partnered with NSU to provide internship opportunities is RoyOMartin, a family-owned forestry and wood products manufacturer based in Alexandria, Louisiana.
Since 2018, RoyOMartin has offered internships in areas such as engineering, forestry, supply chain, accounting, IT operations, marketing and communications and human resources.
Jessica Stewart, workforce development manager at RoyOMartin, said that internships offer students valuable benefits before they enter the professional world.
“The most valuable takeaway for students is exposure to real-world expectations,” Stewart said. “Internships allow students to apply what they’ve learned in school to practical situations, while developing essential soft skills such as communication, teamwork, problem solving and accountability. They gain clarity about career pathways, workplace culture and the qualifications needed to succeed in a professional environment.”
Through the collaborative efforts of Career Services, academic programs and employer partnerships such as RoyOMartin, NSU is bridging the gap between education and employment by offering students the opportunity to intern in their prospective career fields.
