College interns gains valuable work experience at local companies

Pauline Bell

Friday, July 25, 1997 | 11:02 a.m.

UNLV senior Yvonne Chan isn't lounging around the swimming pool this summer.

Instead, the 21-year-old is gaining valuable career experience and making $10 an hour as a summer intern at Bank of America Nevada.

"This internship with Bank of America is helping me better understand the real world of business and banking, while at the same time learning what is expected of me when I enter the work force on a full-time basis," said the 4.0 student.

Chan, who is pursuing a double major in accounting and economics, is currently working on profit and loss analysis in the bank's trust department. She said she gets college credit while gaining the experience that will give her an advantage over other candidates when pursing full-time employment in a highly competitive job market.

At companies all over Las Vegas, college students like Chan are wrapping up summer jobs designed to make them more employable once they graduate. The internships are designed to be beneficial for both employers and students.

Employers get educated, temporary help at lower-than-normal costs. College students obtain valuable work experience, make contacts and learn how to function in the corporate world.

Bank of America Nevada employed eight college and 27 high school interns in its Southern Nevada offices this summer, more than triple the number of summer interns the bank has had at one time.

"It's this kind of on-the-job training that will help these students become more marketable when they begin entering the work force on a full-time basis," said George Smith, Nevada area executive for the bank.

But, if you think these interns perform menial tasks all day long, talk to Peter Cunningham, director of International Trade for the Nevada Commission on Economic Development.

His is essentially a one-man show and if he takes five interns a year for 15 to 20 hours a week, this gives him the equivalent of two extra full-time people. "This allows me to do double the amount of projects we could (otherwise do)," he said.

His interns do everything from planning itineraries for and accompanying visiting delegations to managing projects for the lieutenant governor, who chairs the state's Economic Development Commission.

"I give them a huge amount of responsibility for their age and experience," Cunningham said. "I have found that 90 percent rise to the occasion and do a great job."

The program benefits the state, it helps the student and it assists the office's international business clients, he said.

One reason Cunningham believes so strongly in the intership program is because of his own experience, which he called "incredibly valuable." Cunningham, 36, interned at the White House where he worked for David Stockman in the Office of Management and Budget.

"The experience was incredibly enriching and it helped pay some of the bills," Cunningham recalled.

Some interns receive pay and college credit; some are for credit only, some are for pay only.

When she first heard about the position in Cunningham's office, Sue Chung, a 23-year-old senior at UNLV who is majoring in international business, thought it would be a "glorified secretary" position.

Once she interviewed for the job and spoke to previous interns, she realized that she could gain some valuable experience from the job for which she receives compensation as well as college credit.

Chung has met with consuls general and delegations from other countries. "Peter gives me a lot of insight into how business is done (in and with other countries), taught me about the etiquette of other countries, how to speak to people and what not to say. It's been a great experience and I would recommend this to anyone, really," Chung said.

"One of the things we hope it (the internship) does for them is it takes the classroom learning experience and allows them to see how it is applied in the real world," said Al Izzolo, assistant professor in the College of Hotel Administration at UNLV.

This one college alone places 300-350 students a year in internships, most of them during the spring and fall semesters, Izzolo said.

"In the hotel college, a student is expected to complete at least one internship. Some students opt to take a second one," he said.

For students concentrating on the gaming aspect of hotel administration, the age restriction of 21 usually isn't a problem because their internship is done during their senior year and they usually have reached 21 by then, he said.

UNLV hotel management major Chris Roache, who is specializing in restaurant management, has worked his way through college as a waiter at Emerils, an upscale restaurant at the MGM Grand. When it came time for his internship, it seemed logical for him to do it at Emerils.

His waiter shift started at 4 p.m., so he would go in several hours early and perform managerial tasks. He knew about the serving function, so he tried to work in all other restaurants departments to get a good overview of the operation.

Roache graduates in May of 1998, but he isn't waiting until then to further his career with Emerils. He's applied for a management position with Emerils and is waiting to hear whether he gets it. He thinks the internship gives him an inside track.

"Even if I don't get the job, just the knowledge I gained gives me a better feeling for what goes on," Roache said.