Training Interns & Partnering for Success (TIPS)

“There are lots of things I am hoping to achieve. For example, I want to learn more about communicating, understanding, and dealing with people. Everyone is different and has different reactions to things and how they handle situations. This will be an important quality for me to learn if I want to move forward.” -TIPS Student, Oxbow High School


What is TIPS?
TIPS is a student internship program developed to connect high school students with employers and real job opportunities. TIPS provides youth with an opportunity to learn pre-employment skills, participate in an internship with a local business, earn high school credit and gain summer employment.

In 2007, Linking Learning to Life decided to expand its successful TIPS program to impact a greater number of students and businesses in Vermont. UVBEP is collaborating with LLL to bring TIPS to students here in the Bradford and Upper Valley regions. With funding from the Vermont Department of Labor, 20 students locally and over 100 state-wide will gain knowledge in workplace development this year.

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How does TIPS work?
TIPS is designed to transition students through three phases of workplace readiness preparation. The first phase is a 20-hour pre-employment skills course. The curriculum includes interactive student activities, site visits with businesses and classroom presentations by employers. Ultimately, students learn soft job skills to prepare for an internship. Students receive a 1⁄2 academic credit towards high school graduation. The second phase includes a 40-hour internship with a local business where students learn valuable job skills. The third phase involves paid summer employment, most likely with the employer that accommodated the internship. An Internship Coordinator, with the help of school staff, tracks and supports students throughout the entire TIPS program.

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UVBEP's Internship Coordinator provides:

  • program planning
  • outreach and recruitment
  • pre-employment skills course
  • on-site internships
  • job placement & follow up
  • evaluation

Benefits to Students

  • developing job skills while earning school credit
  • learning work terminology, work climate and business/industry protocol
  • understanding how academic skills can be applied to the workplace
  • making informed choices about their futures
  • working with adult role models
  • acquiring a paid summer job
Thoughts from a TIPS student.

Benefits to Employers

  • ability to assess each student’s “fit” within the business
  • seamless transition from internship to paid employment
  • ongoing support from the Internship Coordinator
  • positive publicity and community involvement

Thoughts from a TIPS employer.

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What is the cost to our school?
Thanks to a grant from The Vermont Department of Labor, UVBEP is piloting TIPS at two schools from November 2007 - August 2008. As with other established UVBEP programs, participating schools and communities need to provide matching funding for TIPS or other programs to continue. Please contact UVBEP for details.

 

Participating Schools:

  • Hartford High School
  • Oxbow High School

 

“In order to buy stuff or to have things like an apartment, I need a job that I am interested in and happy at. TIPS, as I understand, will give me the option to to experience a job that I think I might want. Maybe I will like it and maybe not, either way it will be a good experience for me, and I will find out things about myself.” -TIPS Student, Hartford High School
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