EPA offers internships throughout the year in Bonn, Cologne, London, Madrid, Paris and at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France. Interns work three or four days a week during the fall and spring and take two classes related to their field of interest, for which they may receive academic credit. Internships are usually for one semester. Full-time internships are also available for 10 weeks during the summer. EPA places 80 to 100 interns annually.
There is a fee for each program, ranging from $1,780 to $5,470, depending on how long the stay, where the internship is and what U.S. university is awarding credit. These fees include room and board. Students are not paid for the internship work, although some receive financial aid from their undergraduate school.
Prospective interns should be juniors, seniors or graduate students with a GPA of 3.0 or above. Fluency in German, French or Spanish is required for internships in, respectively, Bonn, Paris or Madrid. Applications are accepted throughout the year and should include a transcript, two reference letters and an essay outlining career goals. There is a nonrefundable application fee of $25.
FMC Corporation
Chicago, IL
FMC produces machinery and chemicals for industry, agriculture and government, with 107 manufacturing facilities and mines in 26 states and 14 countries. FMC is involved in five broad markets: industrial chemicals, petroleum equipment and services, defense systems, performance chemicals and specialized machinery.
FMC offers a summer internship program for students who have completed their first year toward an MBA. About one-quarter of the internships are in the international department, in which interns work on international marketing projects and international competitor analyses. Interns, who are sometimes hired as full-time staff after graduation, are paid a competitive salary, and are usually employed in the main office in Chicago. There is no fixed number of interns employed annually.
General Electric Company (GE)
Fairfield, CT
GE groups its business into three areas: core manufacturing, technology and services. It manufactures lighting, major appliances, motors, turbines and transportation and construction equipment. Technology businesses include medical systems, aircraft engines, aerospace equipment, materials (mainly plastics) and factory automation. The service businesses are financial, construction and engineering, nuclear and information services.
GE is large and decentralized, with no formal internship program. Some of its divisions hire interns at various offices around the country. Basic qualifications are that students-graduate and undergraduate-have a high GPA; background in a technical field, such as engineering, mathematics, or science; and an interest in GE's operations. GE offers its interns competitive monthly salaries.
International Business Machines Corporation (IBM)
Armonk, NY
IBM, ranked fifth on the 1986 Fortune 500 list, is one of the leading corporations in the field of information-handling systems. It produces information-processing products and computer systems, telecommunications systems, typewriters, copiers and educational and testing materials. Its products are widely used in business, government, science, space exploration, defense, education and medicine.
Through IBM's CO-OP and Summer pre-professional Programs, college students are hired to work at IBM locations around the country on engineering, programming and marketing projects. Because the program is large and decentralized, the number of students participating varies with location.
Undergraduate and graduate students with backgrounds in engineering, mathematics, science or computer science; who are interested in IBM's fields of operation; and who have a good GPA and oral and written skills are preferred candidates. Former interns are often hired after graduation.
Interested students may submit a resume and cover letter to either an IBM Central Employment office (located in major U.S. cities) or a local IBM office.
International Paper Company (IP)
New York, NY
IP's principal business is the manufacture and sale of pulp, paper, paperboard and packaging products. It also makes lumber and plywood products, is involved in the development of mineral and real estate properties and manages and sells timber and agricultural products.
IP has an established undergraduate summer internship program. Most interns are employed at the central office, although some positions are available in branch offices around the country. In 1986, IP had about 50 openings nationwide for undergraduates between their junior and senior years, although in the past IP has hired as many as 150 interns annually. Interns work in engineering, marketing, accounting and human resource management. Prospective interns should be majors in engineering and electrical engineering, mechanical and chemical disciplines, accounting or, occasionally, liberal arts. No prior work experience in the field is necessary. IP, which pays interns a competitive salary and offers fringe benefits, sometimes recruits interns as full-time staff after graduation.
Monsanto
St. Louis, MO
Monsanto sponsors a summer corporate internship program for under-graduate students between their junior and senior years. It places emphasis on employment of minority and female students, to whom it offers approximately 30 out of a potential 35 internships. Interns are integrated into a variety of ongoing projects. Monsanto provides a competitive monthly salary and, in some cases, travel expenses to the work site.
To qualify, a student must have a high GPA and a relevant major, such as engineering, computer science, a life science or accounting. Monsanto recruits on college campuses, and also accepts resumes with cover letters.
United Technologies (UT)
Hartford, CT
UT, designer and manufacturer of high technology products, employs 184,000 people at 300 plants and at sales and service offices in 57 countries around the world. UT concentrates on three main businesses: aerospace and defense, building and automotive. Among its best-known products are Pratt & Whitney aircraft engines, Sikorsky helicopters and Otis elevators.
UT has an internship program for college seniors. The internships-a few per semester-are available in the fall, spring or summer. Interns must be available to work 5 days and 20 hours a week in the Hartford office. They are paid an hourly wage and work on data analysis, using a personal computer, or on writing projects in the public relations department.
Candidates must have superior academic standing and a major in communications, English or computer science.
International Consulting
Beijing-Washington, Inc.
Bethesda, MD
Beijing-Washington is an export consulting firm that represents about 40 American, Canadian and European firms in the People's Republic of China (PRC). Beijing-Washington specializes in marketing and selling electronic and electrical production equipment to the PRC. In addition, it supplies installation and service for the production and assembly line equipment sold to China.
The firm uses an average of two interns every year for a period of four to six weeks in the fall, spring or summer. The internships are not paid but can often lead to employment with the company. Interns start with clerical duties such as typing, word processing, filing and mailing. Later they may assist project managers in writing Chinese addresses and researching and responding to requests from customers in China.
Interns should have an active interest in China and speak and write Mandarin Chinese. The internship is open to college juniors or seniors. No previous experience is required, but interns should have good typing and writing skills and be familiar with word processing.
