The other day Malcolm and I had lunch with two faculty members from Lebanon Valley College (LVC) and a Director from JPL in Harrisburg. It was an opportunity to host a casual business and academic discussion with folks  interested in the same topic. In this case, what makes a quality intern in a design/creative environment?

The pair from LVC are both energetic faculty and not afraid to try new ideas in the classroom. They are two of the three professionals involved in the Digital Communications Group at LVC. Meeting JPL’s Director gave us all a chance to hear more about what an entrepreneurial organization looks for in young talent. She was well versed in many aspects of JPL and understood the corporate culture they continue to foster.

As part of the discussion, the Director shared that JPL values students who can cross multiple departments with strong collaboration. Even better if they have cross discipline training; some expertise in both communications and graphic design, for example.  According to her business feedback though, this is rare. For their part, LVC is working on just such an endeavour inside the Digital group. Faculty from Art, Business and English are leading the effort to bring business skills into the artistic, digital, creative space.  

After years of developing a well-known, well-respected intern program, JPL has the luxury of attracting and hiring mostly seniors, and is willing to pay for top talent. It was apparent that part of this has to do not only with the candidate’s skill set but in JPL’s ability to evaluate what candidates have learned  from their successes and mistakes. What changes did the student made to a project? Why? What’s the thought process? How did they react to constructive feedback, someone who didn’t love their design? It was a valuable conversation and I credit LVC and JPL for the willingness to sit down and hash out a few ideas around the table.

Imagine what we can accomplish if more meetings like this take place: Faculty interested in hearing what the business community wants from graduates. At ITN, we’re willing to shell out a few bucks for a cheap lunch  or coffee in the spirit of helping our network members connect with business, and we plan to do more of it.