Information Science Internships Lead to Jobs

	l-r, Christopher Clemente, Kristen Albright and Kerry Walker in front of the New York State Department of Tax and Finance at the W. Averell Harriman State Office Building Campus in Albany

Kristen Albright, B.A. '02, M.S. '04, believes that students should "take as many internships or employment opportunities as possible. Work experience enables a student to network and gain knowledge."

She should know: Kristen parlayed her summer 2004 graduate internship with the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance into a full-time job with the agency. "As an intern, I assisted in the planning process for the Intranet redesign project, exploring options for such requirements as content management, access, appearance, navigation, and customizable links."

As a Tax and Finance employee since last August, Kristen, who double majored in rhetoric/communication and information science and policy as an undergraduate, has used the skills honed during her internship and in the classroom. "Many of the classes I took at UAlbany apply to my current job," she said, citing such courses as ISP 102 (Networking Tools for Information Management), ISP 602 (Information and Knowledge Organization); ISP 361 (Web Development), and ISP 636 (Systems Analysis and Design) as particularly useful.

For Kerry Walker, B.A. '03, M.S. '04, who earned degrees in information science, ISP 301 (The Information Environment) and ISP 361 (Web Development) were just a few of the courses that "relate to my career as an information technology specialist. Ethics, the importance of accessible Web applications, and attention to detail were standout topics."

A part-time member of the 109th Air National Guard Unit who performs electrical maintenance of C-130 aircraft and "travels to isolated areas such as Antarctica, Greenland, and New Zealand," Kerry completed an internship with the Bethlehem Central School District last year. As part of a team, Kerry helped to "build an area where instructors could share best teaching practices and used a test area to learn how to manage and configure network infrastructure," and now uses those same skills to "administer a secure E-mail system, publish Web pages, and test new applications in different operating system environments."

In addition, Kerry is "helping to shape someone's career" this summer by working with Christopher Clemente, a UAlbany junior interning at Taxation and Finance for the summer. The information science and policy major aspires to "merge the gap between information technology and psychology" through graduate study and career. This summer, Chris's work includes comparing Web pages to ensure uniformity and accessibility for users, and updating the agency's HTML code. Next fall, he will begin teaching a Web development class to students at Giffen Elementary School in Albany. "I'm very excited about sharing my passion for Web design with the students and playing a part in molding their lives, showing them future career opportunities," said Chris.

Taxation and Finance supervisors are pleased with the work UAlbany interns and graduates are doing. Director of Human Resources Deborah Dammer noted: "Kristen brought significant, just-in-time skills to our Intranet redesign project. First as an intern and now as an employee, Kristen has demonstrated an understanding of Web design trends and accessibility issues that has been invaluable to us. Her course work at UAlbany, combined with her work experience, allowed her to become an integral part of our project team quickly. We are now embarking on the implementation phase of our project, and I know that we will have a useful, attractive, and effective tool for our employees."

Related Links:
School of Information Science & Policy
School of Information Science & Policy Internships

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