STEM Internship Opportunities

Preparing and retaining highly-skilled workers is essential if we are to build a strong future for Northeast Ohio. One of the best ways to achieve this goal is to expand internship programs. Bill Ravlin, associate director of the Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center in Wooster, shares this example of an exciting new internship program available in the region:

OARDC has created an exciting new opportunity for high school and undergraduate students. It has established a new summer research internship program (ORIP) targeted to provide research experiences for incoming junior and senior high school students and undergraduates. The goal of this exclusively faculty-driven program is to substantially expand research opportunities to area students and to significantly enhance their interest in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) by inculcating critical thinking skills through rigorous laboratory and field-based research experiences, seminars, group discussions and symposia.

In addition to promoting STEM another possible impact is workforce development in the NEO region.  We have a huge response to the first year of this program and have about 30 students taking part.  The GPA, ACT/SAT scores for these students are very good.

We are currently supporting the program on a student-by-student and year-by-year basis.  OARDC providing the initial dollars and some companies and other programs have stepped up with funding as well.  Our goal is to develop a program that can sustain itself through an endowment that will provide students with scholarships.  For more information see: www.oardc.ohio-state.edu/orip.