Florida State University’s (FSU) Information Technology Services (ITS) recently reached an unprecedented milestone that has impacted the lives of hundreds of students and increased productivity on campus throughout the last several years. 

During Fall 2024, FSU ITS is mentoring more than 100 interns throughout various disciplines. These interns support teams in areas such as cybersecurity, communications, user research, app development and networking, assisting 56 different supervisors across almost every ITS team. 

“Reaching our goal of more than 100 technology internships this semester is more than just a number…it is a testament of our commitment to supporting student success inside and outside the classroom.” -Jonathan Fozard, Associate Vice President and Chief Information Officer 

In the fall of 2021, the ITS Intern Cohort started with 12 interns and by Spring 2023, ITS leadership set an ambitious goal to reach 100 interns in a single semester as part of its RISE 2030 campaign. The strategic goal of the RISE campaign is to advance technology projects in four key pillars: research and instruction, innovation and modernization, security and compliance, engagement and student success. The cohort represents the engagement and student success pillar because it provides students with the chance to broaden their professional skills and help them achieve future success. 

The intern cohort represents all school years, from freshman to graduate-level students. Those participating work in various settings, including in-person, hybrid and virtual, to accommodate the students' diverse needs. Excitingly, the team consists of 23 returning interns and 77 new cohort members. 

The cohort offers a unique opportunity for interns, providing both practical hands-on skills and additional valuable experiences. Interns gain field-specific expertise such as leading projects, coordinating and leading meetings and designing new interfaces. In past cohorts, a team of six research interns investigated the challenges of hybrid learning and proposed potential solutions. Additionally, an intern from the User Experience team designed a power app for the FSU Career Center's InternFSU application. This semester, a group of interns is currently working with the ITS Application Development team and a group of interns to create a web application that will streamline the processing of supervisor applications for our internship program. These projects allow ITS interns to tackle real-world challenges and gain practical experience. 

ITS interns are invited to networking events, professional development sessions and workshops. They can also attend monthly coffee hours with special guest speakers and participate in bonding events to celebrate their hard work. These events are designed to contribute to the interns’ success, both during and after their time in the program. This success is evident, with multiple interns receiving offers for full-time employment from ITS upon graduation. 

Brayden Poorvin's intern journey began in Fall 2022 as an ITS solutions architect intern. His dedication earned him a promotion to team lead, followed by a transition to a user experience research intern in Summer 2023. After graduating, Brayden secured a full-time role with ITS as a Service Desk level 2 team lead. 

“Being an intern for ITS opened a lot of doors for me. I gained experience working in a professional environment with diverse teams and received mentorship from knowledgeable people who are dedicated to helping FSU have a healthy relationship with technology,” states Brayden. “Additionally, working for FSU has provided me with many opportunities to grow as I move on from being an intern. My internship helped me secure a full-time position with ITS that I am now working in, while working towards a master's degree that is being paid for by the school.

"I highly recommend people of all backgrounds look at the internship opportunities offered at ITS. They can take you far.” -Brayden Poorvin, Service Desk Level 2 Team Lead 

Alongside Brayden, Johnathan Weiss joined the ITS team in 2023 as a PeopleSoft security intern before working as an enterprise document management intern. Upon graduation, he started in his full-time role as IT services coordinator.  

“Being an intern for ITS was an enriching experience that felt like a continuous investment in my professional growth. As an intern, I felt empowered to take risks and lead large-scale projects like user acceptance testing for the OnBase 22.1 upgrade,” reflects Jonathan. “Honestly, I knew I wanted to do something on this scale for ITS but was nervous. That was short-lived, as my mentor, Darla Shrum, encouraged me to take up the project in stride. I won’t forget when I launched the UAT initiative and the massive support I received from my peers. I feel indebted to each person I interacted with, as they treated me with respect and compassion. I was thrilled to be offered a full-time staff position after graduating with my degree in August 2024.” 

Previously, ITS has partnered with renowned companies like Microsoft, Accenture and Fan Data Insights, providing interns with valuable experience with top-tier brands. We are excited to broaden these partnerships this semester and offer even more opportunities for our interns. 

“The future of our cohort program is extremely bright. We are looking to expand our efforts with external partners and secure sponsorships from external companies so we can continue to provide new and exciting opportunities for our students.” -Sara Mischler, Outreach Coordinator, ITS 

Ultimately, reaching 100 interns is a significant milestone and achievement for the ITS Intern Cohort, celebrating this success as a pivotal moment in the program’s journey.  

If you are interested in applying for a future ITS internship, keep an eye on NoleNetwork when Spring 2025 applications open in September!