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University of Wisconsin-Stout students have the opportunity to hop on the bus and learn about 300-plus paid internships and co-ops with Northeast Wisconsin Manufacturing Alliance companies.

The fourth annual Internship Draft Day at Lambeau Field in Green Bay is planned on Thursday, Nov. 8, and is co-sponsored by the alliance and the Northeast Wisconsin Educational Resource Alliance.

So far about 22 students have signed up to take the free bus from ���Ͽ�. The bus is being paid for by Parker Hannifin, a company that specializes in motion and control technologies. Students will leave campus at 7:15 a.m., and Parker will provide a company tour and lunch. The bus will then take students to the recruitment event and return them to campus about 10:30 p.m.

“The charter bus is an indication of the value that Parker, the Northeast Wisconsin Manufacturing Alliance and the Northeast Wisconsin Educational Resource Alliance puts on ���Ͽ� and its polytechnic education,” said Bryan Barts, ���Ͽ� director of Career Services.

“These companies recognize the skills that ���Ͽ� students possess and have excellent opportunities for students to take advantage of,” Barts added.

Ann Franz, director of NEWMA, said about 263 students across the state have signed up for the Internship Draft Day from technical, two- and four-year colleges from Wisconsin and Michigan. Only ���Ͽ� and UW-Platteville had buses provided by companies. EMT International of Hobart, a manufacturer of finishing equipment and web transports for the digital and inkjet market, paid for the UW-Platteville bus.

“What’s unique for the students is they actually get interviews,” Franz said. “The students see all the paid internships and co-ops ahead of time and can sign up for one-on-one interviews.”

Students can sign up for six 15-minute interviews throughout the day. They will receive a draft day jersey for participating and can participate in a contest to be the number one draft from their college.

Prior to the event, students receive points for participation in college clubs, relevant work experience and their overall grade point average. At the event, students will receive additional points for how well they interview, and the Most Valuable Interview will receive additional points.

At the end of the day, Mark Murphy, president and CEO of the Green Bay Packers, will announce the top draft pick for each college based on the points the students earned. The top overall draft pick will receive a $1,500 college scholarship for the upcoming college term from the Alliance. The second draft pick will receive a $500 scholarship.

The companies paying for the buses understand students have limited resources, Franz said. “Our companies don’t want that to be a hindrance for students attending,” she said. “They recognize in order to meet their workforce needs they need to engage college students.”

���Ͽ� has a 98.2 percent employment or continuing education rate. The university also offers a Fall Career Conference and a Spring Career Conference, which draw about 400 employers each semester and more than 2,000 students.

The Spring Career Conference is Tuesday, Feb. 26, and Wednesday, Feb. 27, in the ���Ͽ� Sports and Fitness Center. Registration will open in early December. The career conferences are open to ���Ͽ� students, alumni, faculty and staff.

���Ͽ� is Wisconsin’s Polytechnic University, with a focus on applied learning, collaboration with business and industry, and career outcomes.

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Photo

Bryan Barts