UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — The Penn State College of Information Sciences and Technology (IST) requires all undergraduate students to complete at least one internship before graduation. The students intern around the world in a wide range of industries, applying the knowledge and skills they gain in the classroom to real-world workplaces.
More than 60% of IST students complete multiple internships, and nearly 85% receive a job offer from a previous internship provider. This summer, IST sent interns to hundreds of different organizations, including Amazon, Apple, the CIA, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Comcast, Dallas Cowboys, Estée Lauder, Sheetz and every branch of the U.S. military. Here, four of these students share their internship experiences.
Mia Pugliano, Dick’s Sporting Goods
Since May, Mia Pugliano, a fourth-year student in security and risk analysis (SRA), has worked as a cybersecurity intern at Dick’s Sporting Goods in Coraopolis, Pennsylvania. The internship has provided her with an opportunity to experience different cybersecurity and digital trust areas, such as threat intelligence, disaster recovery, vulnerability management and business continuity.
“I wanted to do an internship near Pittsburgh and found out about this opportunity online,” Pugliano said. “I love sports, so this was a perfect fit.”
Pugliano said she polished her resume with the help of an IST career solutions adviser.
“I also had been in contact with the recruiter from Dick’s Sporting Goods and met him in person at the career fair,” she said.
Pugliano identified two SRA courses — risk analysis in a security context and overview of information security — as the IST classes that best prepared her for her internship.
“With this internship, I learned about the platforms that Dick’s Sporting Goods uses to help with business continuity and disaster recovery,” she said. “The experience definitely affirmed by choice of major and helped me choose a career path.”
Pugliano offered advice to IST students seeking internships.
“Keep in contact with recruiter and always follow up with them so they remember you,” she said.
