Written by: Daniel Hayes, U of M Student
During the summer of 2016, I was a crop scout intern with United Farmers Cooperative (UFC). Growing up working with UFC, I was familiar with their agronomy program. I heard about the internship from past interns, and I thought it would be an interesting position for me to pursue. Working at the agronomy department at UFC was a great experience. There was an orientation day in April to prep interns for the upcoming summer, including forklift training and certification, safety certification, and general company information. Once the spring semester was over, I started working at the Winthrop UFC location, along with four other interns. We started the week with a training session with the head agronomist on identifying corn, how to complete stand counts, and how to use the Winfield R7 and Scoutpro tools on the iPad. That afternoon, we began scouting fields and taking stand counts. Along with that training, we were taught to stage corn and mark anything that a farmer or agronomist should know about the field at the time. Throughout the summer we collected stand counts, standard deviations, scouted weeds, scouted diseases, and collected tissue samples. Each intern was given a project, and we were able to choose our trials. We toured all of the UFC locations, learned about the precision division in the UFC agronomy department, and at the end of the summer, we presented on projects and experiences with the company. I was taught to be more proactive and stay ahead of the workload, which helped me be organized in my professional and personal life. On a handful occasions, I got to talk with farmers about what was happening in their fields. There were two days where we went to our local Winfield Answer Plot, and the Winfield region agronomist would talk about what was going on in the area. I also gained valuable connections, and these relationships helped me learn about myself and how I can progress professionally and become more knowledgeable about agronomy. Each intern brought something to the team that helped us get all the scouting done in a timely manner. Brett, our supervisor, was great to work with. All the interns helped me learn about myself and how I work with people. I built some great friendships that will last a lifetime. The biggest highlight with my summer internship was working with the agronomist. He gave me some tips for finding my next internship, and helped me with my Winfield Wrap-Up PowerPoint. I got to ride around, meet with growers, and discuss what was happening on their farms. Those days were rewarding to me because we were working on solutions to help the growers, and I’m considering this to be a career option after college. The other highlight was gaining knowledge from the Winfield R7 and Scoutpro applications. Both applications helped me learn about the different weeds, diseases, and nutrient deficiencies, which make it convenient for scouts, agronomists, and farmers to identify problems. I cannot replace the opportunities that I had this past summer!
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Written by: Chelsey Daly, U of M Student
Last summer, I had the opportunity to intern at a company called White Coat Wealth Advisors. During my internship, I had the opportunity to communicate with clients regarding new applications and other service related issues, and prepare proposals and other materials as directed for client meetings. I also created and managed the White Coat LinkedIn page, including connections, content and postings, and I generated monthly FIO mailers and email campaigns. At the beginning of my internship, I was very excited for what was to come. I wanted to learn the “ins and outs” of the company, while also learning more about what it took to be a valuable member of a team. I was able to accomplish that by meeting with my bosses every week to discuss effective ways to reach their market, which includes residents and fellows from the University of Minnesota. Using the knowledge I gained from Professor Swenson’s course last semester, I created a marketing timeline for the company and showed them how it could help them increase contacts by being active on social media. I was also able to demonstrate different ways to reach their target market without bombarding them with too much information at once. Throughout this internship, I was able to learn a lot about the financial services industry. I also got to learn more about myself as an individual and what my ideal work environment and career path could be. I appreciated the ability to make professional connections, gain communication skills, and learn that it is always important to stick up for your ideas because you never know when one of them could be successful! Written by: Breannca Bussert, U of M Student
Last summer, I worked for Renville County Extension as their intern. I had the opportunity to learn a lot of new things, as well as improve my skills. When I accepted this internship, I wasn’t expecting to do a lot of summer enrichment programs; I thought that my role would involve getting ready for the summer, chaperoning the overnight camp, and maybe going to an ambassador meeting or two. As it turns out, I did most of those things… but I also did a lot more! My main duties, and the area where I learned the most, involved planning and running the summer enrichment sessions that were held for youth grades K-5. Each week, I was in charge of planning a new activity that would teach a new skill or scientific concept. I would meet with the Extension Coordinator (my boss, Lisa), and together we would put on these sessions for the youth. We reached over 200 youth in four different locations. I also spent time preparing for the fair by working on flyers, programs, and back tags, labeling awards, and completing other tasks. Because I was in 4-H and had seen the results of that kind of work - but had never been involved in preparing all those things - I found this to be exciting. Overall, I learned quite a bit about Extension. I learned the importance of planning things out ahead of time, and while working on the enrichment sessions, I also learned about making adjustments through trial and error. Sometimes you have to improvise! I was able to work on team, and also work independently. I really did enjoy my experience and I can see myself possibly working in Extension Services some day! Written by: Jacob Roerick, U of M Alumnus
Throughout my internship with Cardinal Homebuilders as a Supervising Assistant for new construction sites, I had many great learning experiences that helped me develop into an effective employee in a professional environment. My responsibilities grew exponentially as I learned more and more about the business and its inner workings. My primary responsibilities involved soil sampling potential building sites through proctor compaction tests, and learning the characteristics of soil that were best suited for laying home foundations. I also learned about establishing grades through land surveys, and how to map out the overall drainage system that would route irrigation and rain runoff to sewer systems and drain basins that we established in each development. Every day on the job site presented a new learning opportunity that helped mold me into an asset for the company. The most difficult learning aspect was operating all of the different types of machinery on the job. From completing soil compaction tests using proctoring tools, to learning how to excavate using a front end loader or a backhoe, I obtained skills that will help me progress in this field. By the third month of the internship experience, I was able to coordinate schedules with subcontractors, meet with city inspectors and engineers to establish approved land surveys, manage the construction of a new housing site, and pass the final inspection that enabled the builders to start erecting homes. The communication skills that I developed through these professional encounters have proven to be extremely beneficial. Over the course of this extensive internship, there were many highlights. We nearly completed our Oakdale housing development that we began in early spring. By mid-August, I had been given almost complete management control over the development of the remaining eight housing units. As we began our North St. Paul development, my job supervisor spent much of his time at that development preparing new surveys, therefore I was able to hone my management skills even more, while still being able to ask questions over the phone. We set the foundations for the final homes, and finished up any landscaping projects before the winter hit. I am amazed at how far I came through this career-forming process, and I am excited to pursue a career in this line of work. Every day on the site was extremely entertaining and interesting, as I continued to learn more and more about the trade from contractors and city officials. It is extremely rewarding to look back at my contributions towards making each homeowner’s experience a positive one, and through that, I will continue to work to develop a great reputation for not only myself, but for the company as a whole. |
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January 2020
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