Internship Frequently Asked Questions

Application Submission Procedures

The application deadline is February 1. Does that mean I need to have it postmarked by February 1 or in your hands by February 1? 

It means that HumRRO must have in hand a complete application package for each applicant no later than the specified deadline. That is, all application materials must reach HumRRO on or by February 1.

May I mail in some portions of my application and submit other portions electronically?

Yes. However, complete application packages must arrive to HumRRO on or before the deadline. We prefer official transcripts to be mailed in sealed envelopes, if possible.

May I submit portions of my application at separate times?

Yes. However, complete application packages must arrive to HumRRO on or before the deadline.

I realize it is after the deadline, but I just saw your advertisement. Is it too late to apply?

If it is after our deadline, then it is too late to apply for the summer internship. We encourage you to apply next year if you will still be an enrolled student at that time. You also may want to check the SIOP website for suggestions of other companies that offer internships.

Applicant Eligibility

Am I considered to be “currently enrolled” in my graduate program if my program does not offer classes during the summer or if I do not take summer credits?

Yes. As long as you are enrolled in a graduate program during the spring and fall semesters surrounding the internship, you are eligible to apply for the internship.

I am graduating with my Master’s degree in May. Am I eligible for the internship?

It depends. If you are graduating from a terminal MA/MS program and will not be enrolled in a Ph.D. program in the fall semester, then you are not eligible. However, if you are graduating with your Master’s degree and you have been accepted to a Ph.D. program in the fall, then you are eligible to apply. If you are a current Masters student and applied to a Ph.D. program, but you do not know if you will be accepted yet, you can apply anyway. However, by the time we make our selection decision in March, you will need to have a letter of acceptance.

I am graduating in August and all I have left to do is defend my dissertation. Am I eligible for the internship?

Technically, yes. However, we suspect that you are more interested in full-time permanent employment rather than an internship. HumRRO’s internship is designed to be a developmental experience for the student to learn from and use as they continue their graduate studies. Therefore, while you are eligible to apply and we will review your application, we tend to select students who have a minimum of one semester left of their graduate program.

I’m an international student, will you consider my application?

Yes. We have had international students in the past as interns. As you know extra paperwork is involved and you must meet requirements to work in the United States. HumRRO is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Therefore, all qualified applicants will receive consideration without regard to race, sex/gender, age, religion, national origin, marital status, veteran status, or disability. 

I am enrolled in a Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Program specializing in Dynamics, Systems and Controls. Am I eligible to apply for the internship?

While we appreciate your interest, our field is different from the field you are pursuing. Our area of research is relevant to graduate students in Industrial-Organizational Psychology (or related fields).

Application Package

Resume/CV

Should I submit a curriculum vitae (CV) or a resume; or should I send both?
You should send either a detailed resume or your CV, but it is to your benefit to send the version that has the most information. For some reason, many applicants omit relevant information from their CV/resumes, including technical reports, conference presentations, or descriptions of their research activities (e.g., topics of study and role in research teams, research assistantships, thesis or independent research topics, or applied research experiences).

Transcripts

Do I need to send a transcript from my previous graduate work from another program?

Yes. We expect a graduate transcript from each program/institution where you have taken graduate coursework.

Do you want me to include my undergraduate transcript?

No. If you attended the same undergraduate program as your graduate program, we will only review the graduate portion of the transcript to compare all applicants on the same requested information. However, be sure to identify undergraduate programs and/or degrees on your resume or CV. 

What if I can’t get you an official copy of my transcript by the deadline?

Although an official transcript(s) is preferred, we will accept an unofficial version(s) for consideration of your application. However, if you are selected, you must send an official copy of your graduate transcript(s) before our Human Resources Office can extend an employment offer to you. It is suggested that you acknowledge this understanding in your application and that you request your official graduate transcript(s) early to meet our deadline.

Personal Statement

Does the cover letter need to be separate from the personal statement of career interests and goals for the internship or may I combine them?

The cover letter is one item and the one-page personal statement is a separate item. You need to submit both.

I understand that applicants must discuss both career goals and internship interests in the personal statement. What do “internship interests” refer to?

We want to understand what you are looking for in an internship and what you hope to gain from the experience at HumRRO. Therefore, internship interests may include a variety of things such as your goals for the internship, the types of projects you would like to work on, staff with whom you would like to work, knowledge/skills you would like to develop, and so forth.

We encourage applicants to review our website to make sure they are a good match for HumRRO. Some applicants also discuss why they would be a good match in their personal statement.

References

When you request references, do you mean you want me to send in letters of recommendation?

No. We just need the contact information for two references. That is, the name, title, address, phone number, and e-mail address of each reference is sufficient for our needs. We will not consider letters of recommendation.

May I send in letters of recommendation even though they are not requested?

No, we recommend that you do not send in letters of recommendation because we don’t ask for them. Out of fairness to all applicants, we will judge each candidate based on the same information we request.

Internship Details

When does your internship start and end?

The dates vary slightly based on the student’s availability in relation to the graduate program’s academic schedule. Traditionally, the start date is between mid-May and the beginning of June and the end date is usually mid-to-late August or early September. Although there is flexibility in the start and end dates, longer internships (e.g., 3 to 4 months) are of greater mutual value than shorter internships (e.g., 2 months).

What specific projects will I work on as an intern this summer?

Specific project assignments are not typically known until closer to the internship start date. This is due to factors such as the contractual nature of our work, the student’s ability in relation to the available projects, and the timing of current projects. However, typically our interns work on an interesting variety of different projects and find the experience to be very rewarding.

What HumRRO program areas am I most likely to support during the 2012 internship?

Interns will have an opportunity to assist researchers in a variety of our program areas (typically 3 or 4 program areas), but the most common I-O psychology related program areas that interns support are the Personnel Selection and Development Program and the Assessment Research and Analysis Program.

Do interns lead the projects they work on or do they play more of a supporting role?

Interns play a supporting role and will not direct a project. However, interns may be responsible for certain parts of projects. Some of the level of responsibility depends on the timeline of the projects, the type of work we have available during the summer, and the abilities and experience of the intern. Also, many of our projects are of a duration that is longer than the 3-month internship so interns may not be involved in a project from start to finish; however, we aim for that opportunity when possible.

I wish to apply for a 6 month or longer internship. What can you tell me about it?

Our typical internship is a summer internship. In the past, some of our interns started as summer interns and continued working for HumRRO during the school year. However, the offer to extend the internship was not made until toward the end of the summer.

Any non-summer internship applications will be considered on a case-by-case basis based on the student's qualifications and the type and amount of work available during that time frame. The same application materials would be required as for the summer internship.

Characteristics of Strong Applicants/Applications

The job requirement says the candidate has to have strong technical skills. What specific technical skills are you referring to?

In external consulting, "technical skills" generally refers to demonstrating an ability to conduct research. Specifically, we are looking for applicants who have a strong background in research methods and have some experience conducting research (e.g., as part of a research team, independent project, applied project, thesis). Strong applicants demonstrate that they are capable of basic research activities, such as writing literature reviews, collecting data, analyzing data, working as part of a team, managing their time, and showing initiative. We don't expect internship applicants to have an IT background or experience conducting all of the types of research that we conduct. Interns will get hands-on experience during the internship by contributing to our applied projects.

What are the characteristics of a strong application package?

Our internship is extremely competitive (often with a ratio of 40- 70 applicants per position, so we use stringent criteria to narrow down our list of candidates to a manageable number for the interview stage of the selection process. We offer the following suggestions based on strong applications we received in the past.

• Prepare your materials in an organized and logical manner.
• Proofread your application package for errors in spelling, grammar, and syntax.
• Do not wait until the last minute to submit your application.
• Be courteous in your e-mails and telephone communications to HumRRO staff.
• Demonstrate a clear interest in working with us and thoughtfully consider mutual fit between yourself and our company.
• Clearly demonstrate your ability to conduct research independently and/or as part of a team. 
• Err on the side of inclusion when discussing your academic and applied research experiences. If you are a first year student and your experiences are limited, be sure to also describe your undergraduate research experiences (e.g., honor’s thesis, research team) and/or class projects that involved applied research (e.g., job analysis or test development project).
• If it is not apparent on your transcript, it is often helpful to include a summary of your relevant research methods/statistical experience or coursework on your resume. Some course titles are vague on transcripts.
• On your resume/CV, list the statistical/computer packages you have used.
• Include your memberships in professional associations on your resume/CV.
• Include any awards/honors and professional service on your resume/CV.

Do I really have a chance at the internship if I am a first year student given the competitiveness of the internship?

Yes. We have received applications from strong first year masters/doctoral students who demonstrated initiative and research experience as undergraduates and first year students. Conversely, we have also seen applications from fourth year doctoral students who were not very productive.

Several of our prior interns were first or second year students. Selected applicants tend to be highly productive in relation to their stage in their graduate programs (as evidenced by research activity, conference presentations, and/or publications). Selected candidates also had a firm grasp of research methods and experience with analyzing data.