Meaningful Internship Experiences at Transitional Options
Written by Hannah Fischer, Student Assistant for Employer Engagement
Hannah Fischer, Student Assistant for Employer Engagement, sat down with Mike Carnicella, Founder and CEO of Transitional Options who spoke about the important relational aspects of internships and how at Transitional Options interns are able to successfully build their resume and their careers.
How did you find out about partnering with Chatham University?
“I learned about working with Chatham University from Matthew Spangler who worked in the Career Development Office and got connected to opportunities through her. We have been partnering with Chatham since about 2018.”
What was your relationship with your interns like?
“I do initial onboarding with interns, I get to meet them first. After they are hired I pass them on to the management team, but I stay updated on their experience. I handle interviewing, but it’s more of an open discussion of their long-term goals. We have opportunities out there for a lot of different backgrounds and fields so it’s really about finding what students want to prioritize and learn during their internship.”
What was your favorite part of working with Chatham students?
“My favorite part of working with Chatham students is their willingness to understand the operation and the day to day methods we use. They are also consistent in their efforts and I enjoy watching the atmosphere of their development in their field. It’s noticeable when there is buy-in to the internship and I think a lot of that comes from the fact that it is a paid internship.”
What did a typical day at your organization look like?
“The overall mission and vision of Transitional Options is to allow individuals with disabilities to live a meaningful life. Staff and interns are really focused on helping them hit their personal goals and needs. This could be helping people go to the gym 3 times a week, finding employment opportunities, or participating in social events like going to baseball games.The interactions interns have are typically helping people with day to day and interactional skills and allowing people to reach their goals.”
What do you recommend to students looking for internships (with your organization or others)?
“Personally I think it is important to gain as much hands-on experience as you can get to get that to be a real resume builder. Make sure you are gaining career experience. For Transitional Options, it doesn’t matter if you’re a physical therapist, psychologist, sociologist etc. you will work with people of different kinds of disabilities. Seeing different aspects of people’s life and gaining that hands-on experience is really important.
What advice do you have for someone that does not know what to look for in an internship/site?
“It is important to do initial research. Do a deeper dive into social media and into the sites and roles that are posted. Never be afraid to ask to do more or be more and if you don't think the internship is what you expected don’t be afraid to speak up.
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What is something that you would like for people to know about your internship opportunities or organization in general?
“We offer paid internship opportunities and I think that with that it allows there to be more hands-on experience. It is a resume builder and real job, since you are doing the same thing employees do because college students already have the experience needed for the job. Because of this, 60-70% of the time, students stay longer than their internship. It puts them on a trajectory for employment in the future. Once people feel comfortable with their roles, they start to invite their friends, so it becomes a close community of staff.”
Can students reach out to you for more information about your opportunities and organization if they are interested?
“Yes! We participate in all the events on campus. We’ll be at the job fair in April, we’ve been in the dining hall, and we use Handshake to post all of our jobs and opportunities. It is easy to apply. They can also reach me via our website, or any of our social media. My email is mikecarnicella@transitionaloptions.com.”