Photo: The Retriever Weekly

This August, UMBC welcomed its inagural batch of Transfer Scholars in Information Technology and Engineering (T-SITE) Scholars (pictured above).

The brainchild of a team of seven women sprinkled throughout IT and Engineering departments in the College of Engineering and Information Technology at UMBC, the T-SITE scholarship program offers support–financial and otherwise–to help transfer students succeed in careers in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, and Information Systems.

The scholars took part in the Center for Women in Technology's (CWIT) New Scholars Retreat, held August 10-12. The Olympics-themed retreat included a trust-building activity at College Park's ropes course, a traditional business dinner with faculty members, industry representatives, and CWIT alumni, and a discussion of women in STEM fields.

You can read more about CWIT's New Scholars Retreat in a Retriever Weekly article: " CWIT summer retreat welcomes the T-SITE scholars."

Paid interns have a distinct advantage in the job market, according to results of NACE’s 2012 Student Survey. 

Overall, approximately 60 percent of 2012 college graduates who took part in paid internships received at least one job offer, according to the results of the survey. 

The survey also found that unpaid interns fared only slightly better in getting job offers than graduates who had not taken part in an internship. Overall, 37 percent of unpaid interns received job offers; 36 percent of graduates with no internship experience received job offers.  

The advantage of the paid internship is especially true among students performing internships in the for-profit sector: Among those interning for for-profit employers, 64 percent earned job offers compared to 38.3 percent of their unpaid peers. Pay status, however, also favors students in the nonprofit and government sectors. (See Figure 1.) 

Although there are other factors that affect offer rate, the study also suggests that differences in the type of work undertaken by paid and unpaid interns contribute to the discrepancy in job offers. Paid interns spend more time than unpaid interns engaged in “real work,” and thus have the chance to gain more of the relevant work experience employers prize.

Results show that paid interns spent 42 percent of their time on professional duties (analysis and project management) and just 25 percent on clerical and non-essential functions; unpaid interns spent 31 percent of their time on clerical and non-essential work and 30 percent on professional tasks.  

NACE’s 2012 Student Survey was conducted mid-January through April 30, 2012. Nearly 48,000 college students nationwide, including 15,715 seniors at the bachelor’s degree level, took part in the survey. A report based on results from graduating seniors will be available later this summer. 

Figure 1: Offer Rates for Paid and Unpaid Interns 

Source: 2012 Student Survey, National Association of Colleges and Employers

M2M: The Men's Initiative Gets the Spotlight from the Newly Launched BreakingGround!

Read on for more information about BreakingGround. Spread the word! If you're in Twitter, use the hashtag #digUMBC!

As the new semester brings fresh energy to campus, UMBC is launching BreakingGround: a campus-wide initiative to deepen and share our innovative approach to democratic engagement.

In a time of widespread skepticism about the capacity of our democracy to respond to society’s needs, UMBC’s work is demonstrating the power of individuals and collaborative groups as agents of meaningful change and renewal. This work is deeply embedded in a campus culture that builds community from diversity and celebrates ingenuity and resourcefulness.

BreakingGround features courses developed to promote civic agency; incentives to link community service projects with opportunities for deep learning and engagement; opportunities for students, faculty, staff, alumni and community partners to collaborate on campus and community change projects; and a blog for sharing stories and launching community discussions.

The following part-time positions have been posted within the past week to UMBCworks. Login to your account (via the link in the Jobs & Internships topic in myUMBC) and find details and application instructions as well as hundreds of other job postings!

9253379 - Accounts Payable Specialist - Curtis Engine and Equipment, Inc.
9253427 - Administrative Assistant - Towson University
9253314 - After-School Drama Program Teacher - Drama Kids International
9253350 - Beverage Cart Attendant - The Woodlands & Diamond Ridge Golf

The following full-time positions have been posted within the past week to UMBCworks. Login to your account (via the link in the Jobs & Internships topic in myUMBC) and find details and application instructions as well as hundreds of other job postings!

9253214 - Associate Engineer - REQ 12016211 - XEROX Corporation
9253382 - Computer Programmer I - The American Physical Society
9253387 - Accountant - Partnership Finance - New Enterprise Associates, Inc.
9253300 - .NET Developer w/SharePoint Designer - LCG Systems

On-Campus Interviews offer students a chance to conveniently interview for professional positions on campus.  Employers travel to our campus for the specific purpose of interviewing preselected students for currently open positions.  This is a great opportunity to interview with employers specifically interested in UMBC students and offers the advantage of a smaller applicant pool.  Interviews take place during the fall and spring. The logistics (viewing positions, applying, signing up for interview time slots, etc.) are all handled via UMBCworks.

Don't miss out on employers coming to UMBC to recruit YOU this fall! The following is a list of employers coming to conduct on-campus interviews with application deadlines in the next month.

**United Space Alliance
Interviewing on 09/21/12 (Deadline to apply via UMBCworks: 9/7/12)
Positions: Engineering Staff I - ADCO, CRONUS, ETHOS and SPARTAN Flight Controllers
Majors: Physics, Mathematics, Computer Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering

A full list of On-Campus Interviews scheduled this fall is available on our website calendar and on UMBCworks, please check regularly for any updates or changes that may occur.