Author Topic: Weird and Wonderful World of Internships  (Read 4578 times)

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A.S.S.R.

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Weird and Wonderful World of Internships
« on: September 22, 2007, 09:23:42 PM »
Some of you may remember that earlier this year, I was busy looking for an internship/job placement for the summer (Sarge, who does some amazing applied work in the field of nuclear energy, even offered his help, but I somehow didn't get a chance to see his post until after my first offer came in).

My uni has a mandatory co-op program for most science/engineering degrees, which has me spending summer/off-school terms doing work marginally related to my chosen field for academic credit (like internships, only decently paying and typically in industry, rather than just in-school labs - and there's a big application/interview processes). I have another such term coming up in January, and today the first postings appeared on the atrociously designed school job-search system. Amidst pages of low-level, code monkey work and inventory management gigs, I've found some real gems:

1) Technician at a weather station. Nice electrical eng. gig, with some applied science thrown in, right?. The caveat: The station's run by the Canadian armed forces in Alert, the northern-most constantly inhabited community in the world. Winter in the high arctic, anyone?

2) Chem lab tech. at all-girls prep boarding school. Well, I am still in my late teens, and single :P, and these posh places may pay very well. Of course, I'd rather do something a little more involved than setting up bunsen-burners for months on end.

3) Another armed forces gig, this time testing "safety solutions" against "chemical threats." I'd have to relocate for this one. I could also potentially die painfully during some of these tests.

4) Campell's soup - batch preparation. Large scale cooking disguised as industrial chemical engineering. I've already applied, despite no practical knowledge of cooking.

5) Lab tech. at this company testing various radioactive materials. I've applied to this one too, hoping to score some super powers (or, at the very least, some sexy danger pay).

I've also sent my resume to more conventional jobs, including 7 separate positions at this one major company that I would kill to work for (and was apparently ranked in the top 10 of applicants the last time around, when they had one position open). Fuck, on my first co-op term, this past summer, I just tested digital cable boxes (read: watched TV) all day.

Anyone have some good college internship/summer job experiences?

Doombot

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Re: Weird and Wonderful World of Internships
« Reply #1 on: September 22, 2007, 09:34:14 PM »
Anyone have some good college internship/summer job experiences?

During the summer, I worked at Universal Studios and got to see one of the top stars of the day: Fred Savage.

I also got to be a Battlestar Galactica crew member warning people to avoid the Cylons.
Will I get Night Owl points for quitting but not as much for getting fired?
Will I still be a member of the Owl's Pals? I'd hate to turn in my card. It's got a real owl feather under the lamination and everything.


Night Owl: Oh, indeed. I quit many a job ...better than being fired. You can keep your card... in fact, you get double points for quitting!


The SysMan

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Re: Weird and Wonderful World of Internships
« Reply #2 on: September 25, 2007, 11:17:30 PM »
I like being a scientist.
I'll probably end up with cancer or die in an explosion.
If I get cancer first, then Hello Dangerous Experiments! :P
"This man seems to possess a dangerous animal cunning... The kind of cleverness to rip off your arms to crush you at chess!"

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"When God gives you lemons, you find a new God."
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BlueCross

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Re: Weird and Wonderful World of Internships
« Reply #3 on: September 25, 2007, 11:26:13 PM »
And if you die in an explosion first...?
"for the record, I'm not some kind of psychotic provincialist." - Than (ed: Cit. required)
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The SysMan

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Re: Weird and Wonderful World of Internships
« Reply #4 on: September 25, 2007, 11:42:56 PM »
Then the whole thing is moot :)
"This man seems to possess a dangerous animal cunning... The kind of cleverness to rip off your arms to crush you at chess!"

TSM: A member of the UV since March 1999.
"When God gives you lemons, you find a new God."
Moo.

Doombot

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Re: Weird and Wonderful World of Internships
« Reply #5 on: September 25, 2007, 11:48:44 PM »
I like being a scientist.
I'll probably end up with cancer or die in an explosion.
If I get cancer first, then Hello Dangerous Experiments! :P

... and superpowers. Radiation blesses us with super human abilities.
Will I get Night Owl points for quitting but not as much for getting fired?
Will I still be a member of the Owl's Pals? I'd hate to turn in my card. It's got a real owl feather under the lamination and everything.


Night Owl: Oh, indeed. I quit many a job ...better than being fired. You can keep your card... in fact, you get double points for quitting!


The SysMan

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Re: Weird and Wonderful World of Internships
« Reply #6 on: September 25, 2007, 11:52:11 PM »
If I ever get superpowers and I can control them, I'm telling NO ONE.
With great power comes great responsibility? Only if people find out! XD
Besides, knowing my luck I'll have the superpower to turn invisible only in the presence of limberger cheese.
"This man seems to possess a dangerous animal cunning... The kind of cleverness to rip off your arms to crush you at chess!"

TSM: A member of the UV since March 1999.
"When God gives you lemons, you find a new God."
Moo.

Doombot

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Re: Weird and Wonderful World of Internships
« Reply #7 on: September 25, 2007, 11:55:54 PM »
If I ever get superpowers and I can control them, I'm telling NO ONE.
With great power comes great responsibility? Only if people find out! XD
Besides, knowing my luck I'll have the superpower to turn invisible only in the presence of limberger cheese.

Could be worse. Your invisibility could work like this...

INT.  INVISIBLE BOY'S ROOM - DAY

A teenage boy's room, decorated to the max with models and posters of
the great superheroes: Batman, Spiderman, Captain Amazing, etc. 
INVISIBLE BOY, about fifteen, is being interviewed by the Raja, Mister
Furious, and the Shoveler.

               FURIOUS
      So, let me get this straight.  You have the
      power to become invisible.

               INVISIBLE BOY
      Yes.

               RAJA
      But... only when no one is looking.

               INVISIBLE BOY
      Yes.

               FURIOUS
      If someone looks at you, you immediately become
      visible again.

               INVISIBLE BOY
      Yes.

               RAJA
      So you're only invisible... to yourself?

               INVISIBLE BOY
      No.

               OUR HEROES
               (hopefully)
      No?

               INVISIBLE BOY
      If I look at myseif, I become visible.

               RAJA
      So you're only invisible, when absolutely no
      one is looking at you?

               INVISIBLE BOY
      Yes.

               FURIOUS
      So how do you know that you've ever been
      invisible?

               INVISIBLE BOY
      I just know.
Will I get Night Owl points for quitting but not as much for getting fired?
Will I still be a member of the Owl's Pals? I'd hate to turn in my card. It's got a real owl feather under the lamination and everything.


Night Owl: Oh, indeed. I quit many a job ...better than being fired. You can keep your card... in fact, you get double points for quitting!


The SysMan

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Re: Weird and Wonderful World of Internships
« Reply #8 on: September 26, 2007, 12:04:22 AM »
I love that movie XD
"This man seems to possess a dangerous animal cunning... The kind of cleverness to rip off your arms to crush you at chess!"

TSM: A member of the UV since March 1999.
"When God gives you lemons, you find a new God."
Moo.

Starseeker

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Re: Weird and Wonderful World of Internships
« Reply #9 on: September 26, 2007, 08:48:57 AM »
If I am still in the industry, I can probably get you a job.  :P

I was on and off in that industry for almost 6 years.  It's mostly medical laboratory stuff though, not the fun stuff like nuclear physics.  You know, the usual testing for transplantation, stem cells studies, cord blood studies, new tests for old diseases and so on.  The only cool equipments are probably the DNA sequencers, giant liquid nitrogen tanks/storage cells, automatic blood typing machines, gene chips, and some of the new liquid based testing machines for all the old stuff. 
Starseeker, signing off.

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