Go west, young psychologists…
July 10th, 2007
Being from an east coast psychology program with deep–no, really deep–ties to Washington, D.C., I’m always saddened to see otherwise strong human factors students complaining about having to take internships at less-than-stellar Beltway companies.
No, people. Go west.
If you’re at some military contractor doing work that isn’t rewarding simply because you think it’s the only way to get money for school, think again. With enough ambition, diligence, and a better grasp of the field than the next guy (honestly, not as hard as it seems), you can land a summer job in the Silicon Valley that pays two or more times what a Ph.D. stipend covers in a year.
And what looks better on your resume, Blah Blah User Systems or, say, IBM?*
Here’s what ACM has to say about it:
Microsoft, for example, offers students extensive benefits, even going so far as to fly students to its campus for interviews. It also offers to pay new intern hires for relocating, and gives them the choice of a housing stipend or subsidized corporate housing with free transportation to and from work. Microsoft also offers a number of standard perks, such as tickets to baseball games or invitations to the house of Bill Gates.
If it’s true for dudes getting bachelor’s in computer science, it’s truer for human factors grad students.
* Caveat: If Blah Blah has some well-respected psychologist who will mentor you, and you like the work, by all means go there. Otherwise, subscribe to the job listings at SIG:CHI and elsewhere.
Image from the Museum of Western Art.