As a non-profit organization the Lymphoma Canada team set out to assist in preparing students for the workforce by implementing an internship program.
As a non-profit organization the Lymphoma Canada team set out to assist in preparing students for the workforce by implementing an internship program. Recruitment began in March and with the help of Charlene Ragin, Marketing and Communications Coordinator and the Lymphoma Canada team, 5 candidates were successful in obtaining internship positions for varying time periods.
Lymphoma Canada is proud to present the successful 2013 Lymphoma Canada Interns:
Connor Immonen– Videographer Intern
Joshua Lobo– Marketing Intern
Russell Sabio– Journalism Intern
Aetka Patel– Social Media Intern
Peter Ha– Marketing Intern
Many students graduate with unrealistic expectations of the professional landscape and although they are equipped, and sometimes overflowing, with theoretical knowledge of work and industries, it is imperative to partner those skills with practical experience to succeed. After a career as a full time student the transition can be overwhelming to say the least.
Charlene Ragin experienced this first-hand and credits that experience to the development of the new internship program, “I’ve developed a program that allows students to get valuable experience and leave with a strong portfolio.”
As students entering a somewhat intimidating role, these candidates tackled each task with confidence and creativity. Although they were each assigned different positions, one commonality between the interns is that they all enjoyed collaborating and working together as a team which is an essential skill in every aspect of the professional world. Immonen says he gained “a sense of teamwork. You can’t be the guy holding the camera and the microphone at the same time, you need a team.”
The values of the organization and “the passion and commitment of every facet of Lymphoma Canada to educating and supporting and ultimately eradicating lymphoma” Lobo says, motivated him throughout his internship experience. This internship was an important facet to identifying fundamental skills for each role. From his experience, Ha says “Bad time management and boring ideas are definitely destructive”. Knowing which skills are vital for each position, and those that are detrimental allows students to evaluate whether they are travelling down the right path to reach their goals. This is made clear in Sabio’s recollection of his favourite part of working as a Journalism Intern: “Learning about someone’s hopes, fears, trials and successes and telling that story in hopes that someone derives meaning from it is what journalism is all about and I’m happy to do this work “
Ragin created this program on behalf of Lymphoma Canada to mentor students and strengthen their current skills so they can be ready when they start applying for jobs, and based on the positive feedback from the first group of interns, it seems this program has accomplished that goal. Teaching them the importance of time and project management, respect, accountability and teamwork in the workplace has strengthened their skills. The 2013 interns illustrated dedication to the cause and passion for their work which, together, are a formula for success. Congratulations to all the interns for successful completion of the term, and thank you for all of your fantastic work. Next year’s interns have big shoes to fill!
