Internships
Every student coming through the AECT program must complete at least three internship credit hours. Internships provide students with opportunities to apply what they are learning and to network with potential employers and professionals in their area of interest. The AECT Department believes in the benefits of applied teaching and requiring internships is just one way that we better prepare our students for life after graduation.
Students will enroll in our internship class.
Internship Stories
Macie Kelly - Senator Boozman's Office
Macie Kelly, a senior studying Agricultural Communications with a minor in Agricultural
Leadership, spent part of her summer in Washington, D.C. interning for Senator Boozman’s
office. During her time there, she worked on communications, creating materials, policy
advocacy, and constituent relations. Kelly said she utilized skills that she learned
from the AECT department such as video editing, leadership, and general agricultural
knowledge. These valuable skills helped her interact with the leaders of our country,
creating solutions to problems that agriculturalists face, and assisting with a campaign
that honors Arkansas veterans. Kelly said she thinks this internship opened new doors
for her future and provided her with transferable skills for any career in policy.
Gabrielle Luney - Tyson IT Solutions
Gabrielle Luney is a senior majoring in computer science with a minor in Agricultural
Systems Technology Management. She interned with Tyson Foods in Springdale, Arkansas
as the IT Intern-Solutions and Delivery. Her main focus was coordinating meetings
for IT projects, running reports, creating and managing spreadsheets that monitor
application inventory, and working with other departments to ensure information is
up to date in the database. Her AECT classes gave a dynamic knowledge base that helped
her in her internship. “I’m able to create better work by understanding how the company
operates,” Luney said. Luney says she has learned a lot about working with people
of different backgrounds, work environments, and where she wants to be in the future.
Bailey Corwine - American Farm Bureau
Bailey Corwine, a senior studying agricultural communications, gained experience this
summer in Washington, D.C. as a communications intern for the American Farm Bureau
Federation. In her internship, Corwine was responsible for writing press releases
and feature stories, researching social media demographic information, collaborating
with her fellow interns to create a DC Ag Intern Network Event, and developing educational
information for the organization. She said her experience in the AECT department was
just what she needed to be successful with her job load. “I can't say enough how prepared
I was for this internship experience. Not only did I have the technical skills, such
as writing and editing, I needed to succeed, but I also had the soft skills, such
as networking and time management, to be able to contribute real, valuable assets
to the communications team at AFBF,” said Corwine. Corwine also said that she enjoyed
not only being in Washington, D.C., but the young professionals that she met there.
She said that she would be able to confidently return to D.C. upon graduation.
Katie Gardner - White House Press and Communications
Katie Gardner is a junior agricultural communications and agricultural business double
major and served as a White House intern in the offices of press and communications.
Gardner said it was a once in a lifetime opportunity to work in the White House and
network with staff members of the Trump administration. "My favorite part of the internship was taking the opportunities that the Executive
Office of the President allowed me to have," Gardner said. Gardner was able to interact with staff of the White House, help set up press briefings,
experience the history of the executive branch and meet the president, which she said
was one of the highlights of the internship. Gardner said that the annual Made in America event was another highlight of her summer,
where she was able to see Arkansas businesses featured.