By Jill Bruton
Workforce Development Director
Huntsville/Madison County Chamber

Do you remember the stress and anxiety of your first day of full-time work? Meeting all of your new coworkers, immersing yourself in the company culture, and learning all about the work you’d be doing? What if you could have walked into your job knowing your coworkers, excited and informed about the company’s culture, and with a good grasp of your role? How much time and stress would that have saved? Young people from all over Huntsville are getting this opportunity through a very simple but powerful tool – internships.

Internships are a win-win for students and companies alike. Students put their education to work in real-life and enhance their soft skills, making them more employable and better prepared for full-time work. Companies test out potential future hires, provide management training opportunities for current employees, and enhance current work with fresh perspectives and timely support.

Most students find their internships from their schools’ career counselors or other school staff. This means that the availability and awareness of internship opportunities is dependent on knowing the right people. But now, there is a centralized location for local students to search for internships and for their future employers to post internships using the same tool that they already use to post jobs – ASmartPlace.com.

ASmartPlace.com is Madison County’s local job board. Chamber members can post jobs for free; job and internship seekers can search at no cost. If you know a student interested in getting real-world work experiences, encourage them to look for internships at ASmartPlace.com. If your company is interested in hiring a high school or college intern, post your opportunities at ASmartPlace.com.

Let’s keep making Huntsville/Madison County a smart place to live, work and learn!