One of the popular features of the Rutgers Professional Science Master’s (PSM) program is our Externship Exchange Program, a cornerstone of experiential learning. On April 16th and 23rd, 2024, Dr. Karen Bemis, Assistant Director MBS Externship Exchange Program, and the team of Advisors hosted the Spring 2024 Externship Lighting Talks. Our brilliant externs took to stage and unveiled their semester-long projects.
Externships are hands-on, team-based projects where students collaborate with companies, nonprofits, and government agencies. These real-world projects are in areas related to our 25 concentrations within the Master of Business and Science (MBS) degree, extending into areas such as business, finance, and marketing.
For 10-14 weeks, our externs work under the guidance of MBS advisors and external corporate mentors. Each team appoints a lead extern to steer the ship toward success.
Externships serve as catalysts for growth, allowing students to dive into new fields, hone existing skills, and explore industries. Students gain valuable insights and experiences that give them real-world skillsets to take on the challenges of the modern world.
The program started in 2016 with just 13 students, and we have grown exponentially. Since its inception, the externship has served:
- 138 partner organizations
- 2100 total students
- 274,700 student training hours
Our externs are students from a variety of areas including the PSM program, Undergraduate School of Engineering, Engineering Honors Academy, Undergraduate Honors College, Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy, Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation, New Jersey Big Data Alliance, and more.
It’s difficult to condense months of hard work into a 3-minute presentation, but each team flawlessly delivered reports of their project. After introducing team members, mentors, and advisors, each team discussed the company’s background, problem statement, concept map, timeline, results, and insights and takeaways.
This year, students partnered with organizations such as Colgate-Palmolive, Ingredion, Wall Street Bootcamp, Bentley Labs, ECPAT, Iron Skillet Coffee, NJCCIC, Collaboratives Solutions, and more.
But the excitement did not stop there. The audience played a pivotal role, voting for the teams that had the best slides and overall presentation.
The night ended as the advisors announced the best lead externs and awarded MBS fellowships to outstanding students and Outstanding Team Lead awards.
To our students: congratulations! The journey does not end here. Whether you're considering fall, spring, or summer externships, our door is always open.
To learn more about externships, visit the MBS Externship Exchange program webpage or attend one of our informational webinars.