AdvisingProgram

The School of Molecular and Cellular Biology

UNIVER5ITyof ILIINoIs AT URBANA-CHAMPAIGN

FINDING STUDENTINTERNSHIPS
Undergraduateinternshipopportunitiesand summerresearchprogramsareoffbredby:
o State and federal governmentagencies
o Private industry
o Nonprofit organizations
o Academic institutions (collegesand universities)
of the
Begin with the UI Career Center (www.careercenter.uiuc.edu)
to gainabasicunderstanding
internshipexperienceand how to makethe mostof it. Hereyou'll find:
o Search instructions ftvww.careercenter.uiuc.edu/internship/default.php)
and
Job/internship databases(www.careercenter.uiuc.edu/sertices/jobDBinfo.php)
to help you think about
"
your goalsand aid your searchfor experientialeducation.In particular,The CareerCenterrecommendsuse
of the I-link system (www.careercenter.illinois.edu/rc/databases/ilink.php
) to exploreyour opportunities,as
well as their
o Career Center workshops(link to: ) andtheir
o One-on-oneadvising (link to: ) to assistyou in finding a programthat'sa goodfit for you.
Check out pre-filtered

onportunities

for studentsin the BiologicalSciences:

o Other institutions that compile and update a list of opportunities. For example,the RochesterInstitute
of Technology(http://people.rit.edu/-gtfsbi/Symp/premed.htm)
offers a listing of internshipsourcesthat have
beenselectedfor their relevanceto biomedicalresearch.
oWebGURU (www.webguru.neu.edr)
-- The Web Guide to Researchfor Undergraduatesoffers a
ProgramListing of summerresearchopportunities.
Look at Federal Student Internships: The federalagencies
and departments
offer many student
internships:
o Watch the Career Center for federal internship events:
. Signup for the Career Connectionsnewsletter:
h@ ://www. careercenter.
illinoi s.edr.r/services/newsletter
. Meet with Tori Tanney Spring, AssistDir. Emptoyer Connectionsand Job Preparation, to talk
aboutyour interests.(vspring@illinoisd; 333-0820)
. View the FA10 webinarhostedby the Partnershipfor PublicService- PCsonly: Federal Internships:
Find and Apply for Summer 20ll (recordedon Oct. 20,2010):
http;//ourpublicservice.
orglOPS/dropbox/livemeetine.
wmv
o Get into the Federal Internship loop by subscribingto: "Hot Jobs and Cool Internships" e-newsfrom
the Partnershipfor Public Service(www.ourpuUticserul
.
o Downloadthe MCB Federal Internship Workshop (pdf) handout
(http://mcb.illinois.edu/undergrad/advising)for a descriptionof stepsyou can take to find a federal
internshipwith a focus on the Biological Sciences.

AdvisingPrograrn
The School of Molecular and Cellular Biology
UNIVEBSITY
OF ILLINOISAT UNSANA.CHAMPATGN

list of student
Search for Industrv Internships: While it would not be possibleto providea comprehensive
internshipsofferedat companies,
below is a list of severalcompuniesin or near lllinois thatoftendo:
Abbott Laboratories
(www.abbott.com/global/url/content/en_US/50,40:40/general_content/General_Content_00l66.htnt)
o Pfi zer Pharm aceu ticals (www.pfi zerrdgr ad.com/ home.p hp?i d : internsh ip)
o Sigma-Aldrich Co. (www.sigmaaldrich.com/site-level/career-opportunities/coop-program.html)
o Monsanto Corp. (www.monsanto.com/careers/getting
started/students.asp)
o Thermo Fisher Scientific(www.piercenet.com/Objects/View.cfm?type=Page&ID:0959E80-49C8-499C968C-4A2A4s2AFFs9\
o Archer Daniels Midland Co. (www.adm.com/en-US/careers/our_careers/Pages/intern.aspx)
o Pion eer (www.p ioneer.com/web/si te/port alI
"

For a partial listing of IL biotechnologycompanies:www.thelabrat.com/jobs/companies/Biotechlllinois.shtml

Consider Non-Profit Internships: www.idealist.org/

And watch

roadMAP,

.ifl l<r.rt ,1ts, rotfl

fatlo
L

the MCB e-newsletter(subscribe:http://mailman.life.uiuc.edu/mailman/listinfo/map)

FAQs aboutfinding internshipsand summerresearchprograms:

1 . Wen shouldI look into an internshipar sumrnerresearch
position? It is not too earlyto beginexploring
internshipsas a freshman- someprogramswill considerthe applicationsof first year undergraduates.
Howevet, internshipsand summerresearchprogramsare typically targetedto the summersfollowing the
sophomoreandjunior years.

2. lflhere do I begin in a searchor internshipsor research?Takeadvantageof workshopsoffered during the

fall semesterby The CareerCenterandMCB Advising program. This is the besttime to gather
information as applicationdeadlinesoften occurin late Januaryor early February. While the MCB
Advising Programwill advertise,via our e-newsletter,roadMAP,informationfor a few specific internships
and summerresearchprogramsof which we becomeaware,your bestapproachtofinding opportunities
will be to take advantageof the searchstrategiesdescribedabove.

3 . How do Ifind out if a particular companyoffersinternships?Searchthe companywebsitewith search

terms suchas "student" and "internship". If you find none,don't hesitateto contactthe companyto
inquire.
4. Who writes my lettersof recommendation?Someprogramswill stipulatethe source(s)of letters- E.g.

professorsand/or academicadvisors. Keep in mind that, sincemost applicationdeadlinescoincide with the

busy start of the spring semester,you shouldrequestyour lettersof supportat the end of the fall semesteror
over winter break. Plan to provide your writers with a minimum of two weeksto submit a letter.