Thomas Szpila, Computer Science Intern at GS Precision

“This internship was incredibly valuable to me as a student and as a professional as it allowed me to connect these years of studying to a real-world environment in which I was tested. While not my first working opportunity, this was a professional setting where I got to work full time with coworkers and deadlines for projects. While I was under supervision by my boss, I was still free to work and think independently through trial and error and therefore was able to gain a better foundational understanding of many concepts that I will use even after my time working here.

Now, as I return to college, I hope to be able to use these experiences to narrow down what technical fields I’m looking to specialize in through my classes and future jobs. I was incredibly proud of the work I accomplished through this opportunity and count the lessons and confidence I gained from working alongside others in a professional environment as invaluable. I am very grateful to BDCC for bringing this opportunity to me that I would have otherwise never known about.”

– Thomas Szpila, Brattleboro Resident, Champlain College Student

Lucy Smith, Pathways Intern at USDA

“I had a great experience overall, and learned so much about work in my field as well as etiquette of working in an office and understanding chains of command in the workplace. Jon and I worked to convert me to full time, and even looked at the possibility of conversion into another jurisdiction because I expressed a desire to travel! He and the state director were very supportive and eager to help myself, as a young person, accomplish my goals.

I would recommend that BDCC continues to be in touch with the USDA for internships; Jon expressed that students that qualify for work study would be more than welcome to come to them for internship opportunities. On top of that, Brattleboro is such a great work environment, and for students from New Hampshire could be a great permanent fit if they are a Pathways Intern interested in converting.

Thank you again for thinking of me when the opportunity to work for the USDA came your way last year. It is an experience I won’t soon forget, and will enjoy applying the skills I learned there to work places in the future.

– Lucy Smith, Keene Resident, Keene State College Student

Carley Wainwright, HR Intern at The Richard’s Group

“The learning experience that I received from this internship is immeasurable. I have worked for a handful of years, in a variety of departments and environments, but none could compare to the level of education and real-life practice that I had received from The Richards Group. As mentioned before, I carried no experience under my belt as I walked through those doors. Yet by the time I had walked out for the final time, I had gained more than just HR experience. I had learned confidence, I strengthened my communication skills, and I learned to manage the stress of other employees to make them feel at ease and comfortable. In conclusion, this internship offered me a “crash course” in all things HR. I had been trained to recruit, perform onboarding, handle a complaint, enroll employees with benefits, how to offer COBRA, and I had even learned how to organize an entire event on my own for 145 attendees. It’s easy to list all the things I’ve done at The Richards Group, but it’s nearly impossible to truly explain how much I took away from this opportunity. I am forever grateful to have been given the chance to prove my abilities and assist such a great company.

Now that my internship has come to an end, I can confidently say that I walked away with a wonderful, educational, happy experience. My resume has thoroughly been strengthened by the skills I hope to master one day, and I owe everything to the BDCC, Kristin Brooks, and my lovely supervisor that I admiringly call my friend and mentor. I would suggest this internship to anyone looking for not only a great learning experience, but a fun one. This is probably the most flexible, understanding, and caring company in Vermont. Once graduated from Quinnipiac, I hope to be given the chance to work full time for the HR department.”

– Carely Wainwright, Putney Resident, Quinnipiac University Student

Caleb Paasche, Project Intern at BDCC

“My contact with the internship program came last year when I worked over the summer as an intern with the BDCC. When the time came to look for summer employment, I decided to return to the organization owing to the great experience I had last summer. Last year I spent a fair amount of time learning about the Windham Region but in order to provide a new experience, I spent much of this summer learning more about the work that goes on within the BDCC in order for the organization to function and provide the services it does. That included things like working on the website to remodel old pages, gathering data to be used in the annual report, and working with contact management software to keep it up to date.

My favorite thing about my work this summer was really the office itself and all the great people I got to work with at the BDCC. I felt like I was trusted to do work that was going to be public and mean something (ie. the website) and that really helps make the experience meaningful. Doing work like that also gave me experience in programs like WordPress and Excel which are certainly transferable to future employment. I would absolutely recommend the BDCC’s internship program to anyone looking for work in the southern Vermont region; the program really allows you to do meaningful work with professional organizations, rather than simply getting an entry level job that you’ll leave only with rather transient skills that ultimately aren’t transferable.”

– Caleb Paasche, Guilford Resident, Bucknell University Student