Contact: Phil Hearn
STARKVILLE, Miss.--Two Mississippi State electrical engineering majors are among only 32 students nationwide selected for a prestigious summer internship program of the U.S. Air Force.
Nicole C. McGee of Muscle Shoals, Ala., and Theodore R. "Ted" Copeland of Olive Branch will participate in the Air Force Officer Accession and Training Schools Summer Technical Recruiting Internship Program. The juniors were nominated for the honor by Kirk Schulz, dean of MSU's Bagley College of Engineering.
"This internship affords me an opportunity to gain experience in electrical engineering and to witness ongoing Air Force research," said Copeland, the son of Dennis Copeland and Elizabeth Rahe.
Collegiate interns selected for the May 25-July 27 program will work for the Air Force Research Laboratory, a part of the Air Force Material Command, during summer months between their sophomore and junior years.
They are paid a salary of $4,500 for the 10-week program, plus round-trip airfare, lodging, living expenses, and rental vehicle costs. Upon completion of the training, many interns are offered $15,000 scholarships to participate in the Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps.
"They pay for everything, I get to travel somewhere that's not in the Southeast, and I get to do research as opposed to typical co-op work. What's not to like?" said McGee, the daughter of Ted and Ruth McGee.
Capt. Ken Ethridge, unit admissions officers for Detachment 425 of MSU's Air Force ROTC program, said interns get hands-on experience working at various at highly technical, state-of-the-art Air Force research labs where they explore such topics as laser technology and robotics.
He said the program was initiated as an Air Force recruiting tool. It allows students in the fields of electrical, aeronautical, computer and environmental engineering to explore military career opportunities without enlisting in the service.
For more information, contact Julie Lemons at (662) 325-3442 or jlemons@engr.msstate.edu.