Mark Bilotta discusses the importance of internships.
Worcester Consortium to Launch Online Internship Database
Talent retention. Brain gain. Call it what you like. If Central Massachusetts is to ensure tomorrow’s workforce, we need to collectively devise strategies that will encourage more young graduates of our local colleges to stay in the area after graduation.
In a survey conducted in the spring of 2005 by The Research Bureau for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Executive Office of Economic Development and the Central Massachusetts Regional Competitiveness Council, some 5,000 graduates from our local colleges and universities were asked their plans for post graduation career and location decisions. The report issued in May 2006 found, in part, that the more engaged students are off campus, the more familiar they become with the community and the more apt they are to remain in the region following graduation.
One meaningful way of engaging students is through internships. Internships, whether paid and/or for academic credit, provide students with exposure to possible careers in countless industries, help to establish professional relationships, and enhance their resumes. For a number of employers, it provides an opportunity to gauge the skills of a potential new employee.
This past October, several focus groups convened to discuss the creation of an online database that could be used by both employers to post internship opportunities and by students to search those opportunities. These focus groups were comprised of representatives of the business, nonprofit and higher education communities.
Although three challenges to launching such a site were noted in the discussions, including cost, ownership and promotion, the Colleges of Worcester Consortium accepted those challenges and has quickly moved forward to launch such a site. Through our Career Services Committee, a number of nationally recognized vendors who specialize in such web sites were interviewed. In mid-December, the Committee selected a seasoned vendor who will work closely with the Worcester Consortium to customize its new internship database site, with a launch date of early February. Once the site is operational, employers will be able to post internship opportunities directly to the site. Our plans call for populating the site with internship opportunities first and then directing student traffic to the site starting in March.
To help subsidize the cost of maintaining the site, the Worcester Consortium will seek a small number of companies that wish to take advantage of banner ads on the site.
Creating an online database for internships is just one strategy. While our individual college and university members continue to negotiate their own unique partnerships and strategies to tackle talent retention, the Worcester Consortium will use its industry strength and status to work with the Central Massachusetts region in other meaningful ways to ensure our workforce for tomorrow. Stay tuned.
About the Author
Mark P. Bilotta is the new CEO of the Colleges of Worcester Consortium. With a B.A. from the College of the Holy Cross and M.B.A. from Clark University, Mark has been in higher education for more than eighteen years, holding various administrative positions at Holy Cross and Worcester State College. Most recently, he served as Executive Assistant to the President at Assumption College where he oversaw the college’s marketing efforts, public affairs, government and community relations and served as secretary to the Board of Trustees. Mark is a member of the Board of Directors at the United Way of Central Massachusetts and active with a number of committees with the Greater Worcester Community Foundation.
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