The Minnesota High Tech Association (MHTA) has launched the SciTechsperience internship program for the ninth year.
Since 2012, SciTechsperience has connected nearly 1,700 college students to paid science-and-tech internships at small Minnesota companies.
Designed to build and retain Minnesota's STEM workforce, SciTechsperience provides employers with a 50% percent wage match up to $2,500 per intern. At least 200 wage matches are available on a first-come, first-hire basis in the 2019-20 program year. To be eligible, businesses must have fewer than 250 employees worldwide.
By offering students access to lesser-known businesses, SciTech is creating science-and-technology internship opportunities that benefit Minnesota students and employers alike, according to MHTA.
"The SciTechsperience program is a "win-win" for both students and companies," MHTA CEO Jeff Tollefson said in a prepared statement. "Students benefit from the impactful work-based learning opportunities provided by employers. Host companies not only benefit from the work performed by students... they gain early access to new pools of tech talent that will help drive their future business success."
Sina Kassaw, an intern at Gausman and Moore, said that before this internship experience, "I was pretty unsure of what the engineering industry looked like. SciTechsperience really brought that perspective and helped me landscape the industry here in Minnesota."
"SciTech... gives us access to college students and future colleagues," said Hugh Zeng, principal engineer at HZ United. "It was really helpful because we're small and don't have the same bells and whistles as a big company. But through this program...we're able to take on some big deal projects. The internship program gave us a leg up, with access to talented students. It's been very helpful.
SciTechsperience is administered by MHTA through a grant from the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development.
