Internship: A Journey of Discovery

Jobila Williams, ’07 talks about the summer higher education internship she participated in during the summer of 2006.

Where was your internship?
I had three internships: Office of Academic Advising at W&M, Access Center at J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College, and the Summer Transition Program at UVA.

Give a brief description of your duties, activities, etc.
In the Office of Academic Advising here at the College, I assisted with advising incoming transfer students, compiling the faculty advising manual, and creating all of the advising presentations for orientation.

At J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College, I had the wonderful opportunity to get experience at a two-year institution. I worked in the Access Center, which they referred to as students’ “one-stop shop.” In the Access Center, I did academic advising and admissions, as well as financial aid.

At the University of Virginia I was an assistant to the director for the Summer Transition Program. This program was designed to assist students who the University feels need more preparation before the Fall semester. I conducted their diversity training, planned fun activities for the students, helped advise, and taught a seminar on preparing for exams.

What was the most interesting thing you got to do?
The most interesting thing I did was conduct the diversity training for my students at UVA. I feel as though the experience really touched them and it felt great! It is important to get students to think about these issues early on.

What was your favorite part?
My favorite part was just having the opportunity to get experience at three VERY DIFFERENT institutions. As a student in the Higher Education Administration program, I think it is important to get exposure to all kinds higher education institutions. There is always something new to learn when you step off your usual path.