Unit 2 On the Job

Lead In

1. Read the entry of the word ‘ intern ’ from the Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary and discuss the questions below.

Intern [……] – n[C] esp. Am a)A student or new graduate who is getting practical experience in a job, for example during the summer holiday

· What do you think a job of an intern involves doing?

· Do you think it is well or badly paid?

· Where would you like to work as an intern?

· What valuable practical experience can you get working as an intern?

Reading

1. Read the article and check your guesses about internship.

The experience that is shaping the rest of my life By Hannah Hoag Every spring millions of university students look for summer work. Some work in retail, others in the service industry, but those curious about science careers can find themselves redesigning mirrors for the Hubble Space Telescope, developing drugs or testing components of a particle accelerator. Internships exist in all sectors, from academicand research institutions to government laboratories to industry campuses. A summer internship is a great way to get experience in a variety of settings. Students make valuable contacts, learn about lab culture or alternative careers, and may even get published. Moreover, undergraduates get a chance to try out academia or industry before taking the leap to graduate school. Undergraduates often use the chance to explore research. Most research vacancies are found in academia or at centres such as the Harvard Stem Cell Institute or the Department of Energy's Fermilab in Batavia, Illinois. These programs are mostly intended for undergraduates in their third and fourth years. "It tells them whether or not they are interested in doing research in astronomy or astrophysics, or whether they are interested in research at all," says the director of the summer internship program at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Students there may spend their summer analyzing data from X-ray satellites or looking for gas emissions from galactic clusters. At NASA, summer students can participate in lab work at different research centres across the country. "One of NASA's missions is to inspire the next generation of explorers," says Dave Rosage, director of the NASA Academy and the NASA Robotics Academy at Goddard Space Flight Center, near Washington DC. Undergraduates in the summer research program have a chance to conducthigh-riskcutting-edge research. Interns work on research problems three days a week, with Thursdays and Fridays set aside for lectures, group project work and field trips to other NASA centres. Abbott Laboratories in Illinois also brings graduates and undergraduates to its campus each summer to identify talented individuals, with the intention of hiring them as full-time employees. “Students leave with meaningful and transferable work experience”, says Christi Lehner, director of college relations. In addition to research experience, summer internships are full of perks, which students may want to consider when choosing a program. Lunch-and-learn sessions offer students a chance to interact with principle investigators, program directors or vice-presidents. "You can navigate your way through the organization once you have got through the door as an intern," says Lehner. "It opens up future positions throughout the company." Most internships provide a window into research culture. At the end of the summer, the majority of students must present the fruits of their labours. It might be a poster for staff and parents or a presentation for board members. Students often find themselves as co-authors on journal articles. Besides, choosing a supervisor for the final-year thesis is significantly easier when they can go into a meeting and talk about their summer research, list the techniques that they know and give a presentation. An internship may provide a chance to try out an alternative career. At Jackson Laboratory, science students with an interest in writing can join the lab's public-relations staff for the summer. “They enjoy communicating and translating science to the general population," says Geiger. All in all, the experience and relationships gained from an internship can bring young scientists closer to achieving their dream jobs.

(Adapted from the http://www.nature.com/naturejobs/2006/060126/full/nj7075-504a.html)

2. Work with a partner. Look back in the text. Find the expressions in bold and work out their meaning from the context. Use a dictionary if necessary.

3. Look back in the text. Match the verbs in A with their complements in B. Translate the phrases into your native language.

A	B
1) make	a) a window into research culture
2) try out	b) research problems
3) sign	c) students a chance
4) analyze	d) the fruits of their labours
5) inspire	e) valuable contacts
6) work on	f) a presentation
7) offer	g) the contract
8) provide	h) data
9) present	i) academia or industry
10) give	j) the next generation of explorers

What do you think?

Ø What are the benefits of internship?

Ø What kind of opportunities does it provide?

Ø Do you agree that internship is equally important to all university students?

Ø Are there any internship programs available for students in your country? If not, do you think they would be popular with science students? Why?/Why not?

Дата добавления: 2015-10-30