Noah Pace

My internship this semester as the Staff Writer and Social Media Coordinator for the UTC English Department has given me a new appreciation for the work that goes into every little update on social media, something that most of us (myself included) may not think about as much as we should in our digital age.

My duties mostly centered around maintaining the Facebook and Twitter profiles for the department. This sometimes involved finding articles from other sources about writing advice, study tips, and any other topics that might interest an English major. However, perhaps the most immediately important goal in working on the social media profiles was keeping people informed about upcoming events; if the deadline for writing submissions was coming up, or a professor was planning on participating in a local reading, I needed to make sure that people knew about it.

Harrison Ford spotlight I produced for the Facebook page, emphasizing successful English majors

This isn’t to imply that my only responsibility was to report on the activities of others, of course. Throughout the semester I was given plenty of opportunities to contribute original work of my own. I published two longer articles on the Connections blog during my internship. The first, Internship Ins & Outs: Part II, was a series of interviews with current and former members of the UTC English internship program, highlighting their thoughts on the program and how benefecial it could be for their futures. The second, The Power of an English Degree, recapped a Sigma Tau Delta panel of English alumni discussing the career options available to English graduates who decide not to attend grad school. I was also responsible for producing a short series of alumni profiles to add to the English Department website.

Internship Ins and Outs: Part II, one of the articles I wrote as an intern

As a result of these projects, a lot of my time working as an intern was spent interviewing others. This was a great opportunity for me to meet with other English majors and graduates who had plenty of important advice for me. I greatly appreciated this because as a graduating senior, I definitely had some concerns about what my post-university life might entail. By conducting so many interviews (online and in person), I simultaneously made connections with successful English majors and broadcast their success to others in need of inspiration.

An event notice for the release party of Sybil Baker’s book, “Immigration Essays”

I’d like to emphasize that I’ve loved every single English professor I’ve studied under as a UTC student. They each have wonderfully memorable personalities and I’m very fortunate to have met them. The two that have perhaps most influenced my direction as a student have been Dr. Jones, whose course on rhetoric will be very important for me in my career, and Dr. Hunter, whose Writing Beyond the Academy course initially inspired me to consider how writing in our postmodern age has blended with technology to create new and exciting rhetorical situations. I feel that spending my time as an intern working with Dr. Hunter has been precisely the experience I needed to solidify this skill set.

Laura Coker

*The following is a guest column by Senior English Major Laura Coker.

For my senior capstone project, I earned an internship at the Children’s Advocacy Center of Hamilton County (CACHC).

The CACHC offers services, such as counseling, medical support, and investigative services, to children who are victims of abuse. As their first English major intern, I was assigned the task of creating a manual for their internship and volunteer program. Since the English major doesn’t pertain to child development, I didn’t work directly with the children who were brought to the CACHC. Instead, I created a manual that outlined information and statistics about child abuse as well as about the CACHC’s mission and the services they offer free of charge to children and their families.

Even though I didn’t get a chance to work with the children or families who came to the CACHC, I was able to create a manual that would help interns and volunteers understand child abuse and the different types of people they would be working with.

One of the many manual infographics which describe the demographics served by the CACHC.

Before I started the internship, my supervisor told me that the CACHC often loses volunteers because they don’t understand the role of each position or even what the CACHC does before they accept the position. It was a rewarding experience for me to be able to create something for the CACHC that might benefit their program by informing people about the services offered by the CACHC to victims of abuse while also helping them retain their volunteers. The manual is also going to be used as a teaching tool at seminars and events hosted by the CACHC to help people understand more about child abuse and what we can do as a community to prevent it.

Working at the CACHC gave me the chance to learn what it’s like to write professionally as well as academically. I also now have valuable work experience and a portfolio to show future employers. One career path I’m interested in is law, and I now have a better understanding of how the legal process works for criminal cases. I know that because of my internship experience and my time as an English major at UTC, I have the writing skills I need in order to be successful in whatever career or academic path I choose.

The best decision I made at UTC was choosing English as my major. Despite what some people believe, the English major isn’t easy, and we’re capable of more than just reading books and drinking coffee. I’ve taken many great classes with amazing professors who have challenged me to become a better writer and who have made me realize how much of an asset I actually am to the business world.

“Facts about Abuse and Neglect” gives basic information about identifying the physical signs of child abuse with infographics offering additional statistics.

Some of my favorite classes that I’ve taken at UTC were Dr. McCarthy’s Shakespeare course, Dr. Rehyansky’s History of the English Language, Dr. Jordan’s Romanticism course, and Dr. Hunter’s Publishing in New Media.

Each professor taught me a new lesson.

Performing a scene from one of Shakespeare’s plays in Dr. McCarthy’s class was the most interesting and exciting group project I’ve participated in at UTC. Because of Dr. McCarthy, I now have a deeper appreciation for Shakespeare.

Dr. Jordan is one of the most caring and encouraging professors I’ve ever had. I knew that if I had a problem, whether academic or personal, I could talk to him about it. Dr. Jordan has helped me become a better writer just by sitting down with me during his office hours and being honest with me about how I could improve my essays as well as my overall writing style.

Dr. Rehyansky helped me discover my passion for language. She encouraged me to take on a daunting research project, read many of my final drafts, and even helped me develop this project further a year later when I was no longer enrolled in her class.

Dr. Hunter’s Publishing in New Media was a learning experience in many ways. Not only did I meet an amazing group of people who I’m still friends with to this day, but his class introduced me to new genres of writing and culture that pertain to our ever advancing technological world.

The “What You Need to Know” section of the manual included the standard workplace policies all of which were written by me.

All of these professors gave me a new appreciation for literature and writing, and they have all helped me build my confidence as a writer. In fact, I didn’t realize how much my English classes and past professors prepared me until I earned a writing intensive internship. At the beginning of the internship, I was told that I wouldn’t be working at the CACHC’s office under supervision; instead, I would be working completely on my own and was only required to check in with my supervisor once every few weeks to discuss the work she had given me to complete for the deadline she had set. I was terrified.

But, because I was used to working in a fast paced academic environment where I was forced to meet firmly established deadlines while also completing multiple projects and essays at a time, I adapted quickly to working on my own and to the writing intensive work I was assigned. Prior to my position as an intern at the CACHC, I’d also never written anything in a professional style. It was different at first and less complicated than academic writing which is the type of writing I’m accustomed to. But I was prepared, and after a few critiques from my supervisor, I quickly adapted to professional writing.

I can say without a doubt that my time as an English major at UTC has been a rewarding experience, and I can’t wait to see what opportunities are in store for me.

As we’ve already seen, faculty explained that internships give students an edge in the job market, and teach a wide range of skills that can’t be learned through coursework alone. Internships also look really impressive on a resume, demonstrating to employers that potential hires have the drive to apply themselves in a non-academic environment.

It’s clear that our English faculty sees the value in pursuing an internship, but what do interns themselves have to say about the process? I reached out to current and former UTC English interns to get their thoughts on their time in the program.

David Haynes

The interns I talked to generally expressed some surprise at the range of projects they were involved in during their internships. As David Haynes, recent UTC alum and Programs Intern for the Southern Lit Alliance remembered, “I was responsible for coming up with social media content for a lecture series featuring up-and-coming authors. Then, I started branching out to writing press releases, assisting with event coordination, obtaining information for fundraisers, and much more!”

Haynes emphasized the importance of his professional writing and communications skills, both of which were thoroughly honed during his time as an intern. He had the chance to practice these skills doing something he loved, too, because the Southern Lit Alliance supports the Chattanooga community by sponsoring major literary events in the city. “It was amazing just to work with an organization that I genuinely believe can help change its sphere of influence for the better.” Following his graduation, Haynes decided to continue his work for the organization as a volunteer with SLA.

Trevor Harper, current Media/Writing Intern for Chattanooga Organized for Action (COA), is learning a skillset just as broad, explaining, “My duties include writing publications such as blog posts, grants, and press releases as well as designing their website and newsletters. There’s a lot more diversity of work than I had originally imagined; things I never thought would fall into the scope of an English major.”

COA is a community-based nonprofit centered in Chattanooga that promotes grassroots political movements in and around the Scenic City. Harper’s responsibilities also include contacting local politicians to hear their stances on certain issues. Because of his direct involvement with COA’s work, Harper feels like an integral piece of the puzzle, stating, “I actually feel like a part of the organization and that the work I do makes a difference.” English majors in UTC’s internship program seem to have a certain passion for their work.

“I actually feel like a part of the organization and that the work I do makes a difference.”

Each intern also highlighted the amount of on-the-job experience they gained as part of the program. Conni Boykins spent her time as an intern working with the Patten Group, a Chattanooga-based investment firm. She spent much of her time working with Portfolio Managers (PM) who would indicate the names of publically traded companies which Boykins would produce reports on, sometimes determining whether the Patten Group should or should not invest in them. Valuing her internship as a learning experience, Boykins said her favorite aspect was being able to combine her love of language and rhetoric with the finance industry. “I was initially an accounting major in school, but later switched to English, which had always been a passion of mine. I guess the biggest challenge is that, despite my minor accounting background, the finance industry was one that I was largely detached from when I started work here. I knew the basics, but have never really delved into the industry with the seriousness and depth that this work required.” Boykins made it clear that her time as an intern provided valuable real-world experience she would not have received otherwise. She now works for the Patten Group full-time as the Grant Development and Research Coordinator.

Haynes candidly revealed that working professionally in a non-academic environment can be a little nerve-racking at first. “When asked to write a press release for the first time, it was very easy to panic,” he said. “But, my bosses were supportive, encouraging, and offered some of the greatest advice.”

Ashley Branam

Ashley Branam showed that some experience can be earned even before joining the internship program, however, and then cemented with the proper internship. Remembering her time as a student, she said, “I knew I didn’t want to teach English, so I was mostly excited for the opportunity to investigate other career options. I had taken Dr. Lauren Ingraham’s Grant Writing class the semester before, but I wanted additional experience in the field to see if I enjoyed grant writing enough to pursue it as a career. And as it turns out, I did.” As an intern, Branam worked as a Grant Communications Intern at the fund development firm Skye Strategies, researching census reports and other data, creating profiles for prospective clients, and editing documents. Her grant writing experience from Dr. Ingraham’s course transitioned well into her internship position. This shows how important it is for students to choose courses that interest them and develop that interest with on-the-job experience. 

Reflecting on the internship program itself, Harper expressed thanks to Dr. Lauren Ingraham for helping him find a position he loves at COA. “I actually didn’t really know what internship I wanted to do starting out. I just needed one.” It’s clear that students don’t need to have a specific career in mind to benefit greatly from an internship; it is always possible to match the right intern with the right position. Given the chance to offer advice to potential interns, Harper encouraged looking into the program as soon as possible. “If I could do it again, I wouldn’t have waited till my last semester to start my first internship.”

Boykins shared this enthusiasm. “If you’re thinking about joining the internship program, then do it. The experience will be invaluable. At the very least you’ll get real life job experience to put on your resume, but I truly believe you’ll get so much more out of the program.”

The English Department offers all of its students who have a minimum 3.0 GPA in their major a chance to apply for an internship. You can find more information about internships here.

Noah Pace is an intern serving as the English Department’s Staff Writer and Social Media Coordinator. He is a senior English Major with a Minor in Communications.