The missing step - el progama de internado del Servicio de Administración de Minerales - TT: the internship program at the Management Mineral Service

Stay in school! Go to college! Get a good job! These are the messages students hear from concerned parents, teachers, friends and the public from the earliest days of school. However, a step is missing between college and a good job; a new message must tell students how to fill in that blank.

A college education provides students with skills, knowledge and a strong work ethic. Unfortunately, it alone does not provide a direct connection from the graduation stage to a high-demand, good-paying job. To succeed in the competitive job market, a student must actively seek hands-on experience before stepping into the work force. Internships do just that: give work experience, build a resume and prepare a student for life after college.

Four students sought such an opportunity and found it in California.

Here was the offer: leave home for ten weeks, work at an interesting place, meet new people, learn more than your classes at school will teach you, get practical experience, explore a new city and get paid. Or, stay at home and spend the the summer hitting the books. Not exactly a difficult decision.

So, the four geographically-diverse students boarded planes in early June to participate in the Department of the Interior's (DOI) Minority Internship program with the Minerals Management Service (MMS) Pacific Region.

The DOI participates in the program through a cooperative agreement with national educational organizations such as: National Association of Equal Opportunity for Higher Education (NAFEO), Haskell Indian Nations University (HINU), Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU), and the Student Conservation Association (SCA). Each organization submits applications from its most qualified students to DOI agencies for consideration. MMS supervisors nationwide examine the applicants' qualifications to match an intern's, interests, locality preferences, and skills with the tasks required for the position. In addition to Washington D.C., MMS offers internships in its offices located in Herndon, Virginia; New Orleans, Louisiana; Denver, Colorado; Camarillo, California; and Anchorage, Alaska. Once selected, the interns is offered a position at a designated MMS location and he or she must weigh the options and make the decision. Once he decides to put off summer school for a while, the wheels are in motion.

The MMS Pacific Region selected the four college students from a nation-wide, pool of applicants to participate in a ten-week summer internship in its office in Camarillo, California. The students were Yvonne Bates with HINU, and Christina Alexander, Jorge Meza and Felipe Roman, with HACU. During their internship, the students gained practical experience in their respective fields of study.

Yvonne Bates lives in Lawton, Oklahoma and is a member of the Witchita and Caddo American Indian tribes. She has a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Cameron University in Lawton, Oklahoma and a Masters degree in Adult and Higher Education Administration from the Univemity of Oklahoma where she is continuing her education. Bates worked in the Pacific Region's Office of Program Services, where her duties included organizing the MMS library, assisting in office administration, records management, database development, and data entry.

Through the internship, Yvonne built and improved on organizational skills that will prepare her for a job providing resources to minority students already in college and for those making the jump from high school to college. In addition, her exposure to MMS had relevance to her home state of Oklahoma.

"Oil and gas are a very important subject matter in Oklahoma. I returned home with a remarkable amount of scientific knowledge acquired from working in the MMS library," said Bates.

Christina Alexander was born, resides and attends school in San Antonio, Texas. She is a Junior at St. Mary's University, where she is studying English/Communication Arts. She worked in the Region's Office of Public Affairs. Alexander's duties included writing and editing press releases, organizing and digitizing regional slides and press clippings, assisting in community outreach programs and documenting the internship experience for publication.

Once a student is interested and knows what is available, he or she can find the information. Both HINU and HACU have application deadlines in March. Students may look for the information at their university's departments or career services center, or write to the organizations for an application. HINU is a national center that supports the educational needs of federally recognized American Indian/Alaska Natives. HACU is a national association dedicated to promoting partnerships between it's member colleges and universities and the public and private sectors. Just one of its many goals, HACU strives to give qualified. Hispanic students internship opportunities with the federal government.

Each year, MMS actively participates in the DOI Minority Internship Program by extending interesting and diverse internship opportunities to students from across the United States and Puerto Rico. MMS is the federal agency that manages the Nation's natural gas, oil, and other mineral resources on the OCS, and collects, accounts for, and disburses about $4 billion yearly in revenues from offshore federal mineral leases and from onshore mineral leases on federal and Indian lands.

Recognizing the importance of introducing students to the work force before graduation, the three organizations work together each year to provide minority college students opportunities with the federal government.

Students, you must take the next step: call the numbers, write the letters and fill out the applications. The opportunity is waiting.

The writing and computer skills she practiced will enable Alexander to work in a public relations or other communications position in either the private or public sector. She learned procedures by doing them, rather than reading about them in a textbook.

"The experience I acquired at MMS will make me a stronger candidate when I'm looking for a job after graduation," said Alexander. "The professional, computer and communication skills I developed will follow me throughout my career."

Jorge Meza was born in Guatemala and now resides and attends school in Silver Spring, Maryland. After studying at San Carlos University in Guatemala, he continues his studies in computer science as a sophomore at Montgomery College in Rockville, Maryland. Meza worked in the Office of Automated Data Processing, where his duties included assisting in special computer-related projects including Local Area Network (LAN) installation, software and hardware support, installation and applications.

"Working for MMS gave me the opportunity to learn about and make the best use of different software and hardware applications," said Meza.

After receiving a degree in computer science, Meza's potential employers will recognize that his experience with computer hardware and software goes beyond the classroom. "Among other things, I have worked with some programs that I never would have used in school," he said. "The experience I received from this internship will help me to become a better professional in the future."

Felipe Roman resides and attends school in Mayaguez, Puerto Rico. He is a junior at the University of Puerto Rico, Mayaguez campus, where he is studying Mechanical Engineering. He interned in the Office of Development, Operations and Safety. Roman's duties included database design and data entry for an oil and gas reservoir field study program and downloading production, well and reservoir data for local offshore oil and gas producing fields. He also assisted with data entry for the Pacific Region's pipeline database and, like the other interns, he had the opportunity to visit offshore oil and gas platforms in the Pacific Ocean.

Everyday Roman witnessed the many applications of a mechanical engineering degree through his interactions with MMS engineers. "Not only did I work with some of the best professionals of their respective fields, I enhanced my computer skills, I went on lots o interesting field trips and I learned how the federal government works," said Roman.

"I know I would have never experienced anything like this back home," said Roman. "I thank MMS for giving me the chance to work, learn, and share knowledge with its professionals. The insight attained during my internship will help me make more specific decisions about my career goals and direction."

The common thread among the four students is acknowledgment, initiative and knowhow. They acknowledged that work experience is a necessary prerequisite for the job market and all demonstrated the initiative to seek out opportunities. Most importantly, they knew where to go to learn more about these opportunities.

Unfortunately, many students know what needs to be done, but do not know where to look. A few will have concerned teachers, counselors or administrators who will point out the information, will see the information they need posted on obscure classroom walls and on over-crowded bulletin boards, where only those who are looking will find them.

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