Careers built on connection

Careers built on connection

Feb. 21, 2022LA GRANDE, Ore. –A bit of initiative goes a long way when building a foundation for a career. For one Eastern Oregon University student, all it took was a single email from their professor to kickstart the journey into the professional world.

EOU business major Emilee Burch earned a competitive internship at Boise-based auditing firm Myers and Stauffer after hearing about the opportunity through College of Business faculty.

“I’m getting ready to graduate so I was looking for a job. I thought that it would be a good chance, because it’s an internship, to get a feel for what it was and that if I did like it then it was something I could do after I graduate,” Burch said.

In fact, the firm invited Burch to join their team full-time following her graduation this spring.

与大多数商业活动一样，俄勒冈乡村大学(Oregon’s Rural University)广泛的导师和同事网络确保了学生们有机会获得这样的机会。该行业的校友联系了他们的母校，向院长和教职员工告知了这一久负盛名的实习机会。会计学助理教授布鲁克·斯托特去年秋天鼓励她的旁听课学生申请。

Burch began the internship on Jan. 10. Her work consists of a variety of projects meant to introduce her to the business, mostly related to auditing and reviewing Medicare and Medicaid information.

“Most of what I’ve been doing is auditing people’s Medicaid and Medicare for different hospitals, mostly in Utah. So, we go through how much they say providers are paying for Medicare and audit that and make sure it matches up,” Burch said.

The internship was open to students at a host of universities throughout the Pacific Northwest.

“I would definitely recommend it for any student. They’re very good to work with, very flexible. They want to make sure that my school comes first. They are very willing to work around me if I have things to do as far as school, so it’s been really nice that way,” Burch said.

Burch’s experience is not unique to business students. Faculty across the university connect and advocate for their students, offering guidance as soon-to-be graduates seek job experience in their desired field.

“我认为，让学生参与进来或得到通知的最简单方式是联系我们教授，说，‘嘿，我正在积极寻找一些东西’，然后我们可以直接向这些学生发送东西。我和其他会计教授会在课堂上大肆宣传，这样他们就会收到这样的通知:‘嘿，这家公司正在招聘实习生。如果你想试一试，那就去申请吧，’”Stout说。

EOU’s Career Services Center is a hub for jobs, internships and professional help for students of any major. In the College of Business, Stout said faculty are ready to lend a hand.

“We’re always very willing to help with applications and with resumes. Being proactive as a student and taking the opportunity to apply for those things is huge. Emilee said it’s hard when you’ve been passed over for one in the past. It makes it even more intimidating to apply, but you definitely need to just keep at it,” Stout said.