Summer Internship Experience

Internship Experience Leads to Job Opportunity

A summer internship in the Human Resources Department led to a full-time position at Avera McKennan for Ryan Olivier in his chosen field - just days after his college graduation.

Ryan graduated from Washington High School in Sioux Falls in 2004, and headed off to Minnesota State University in Mankato where he majored in human resource management and business management.

In the summer of 2008, he came back to his home town for an internship in the HR Department at Avera McKennan. He was assigned more than "busy work" tasks an intern might expect. "I started by calling references and verifying employment, but then I got to the point of actually doing employment interviews and helping departments at Avera McKennan make hiring decisions," Ryan said.

Seeing concepts learned in the classroom play out in the work setting is a key benefit of an internship. "It's one thing to learn something in a book, and another thing to experience it day to day. It was great to put the two pieces together," Ryan said. "Plus, I really liked the people I worked with. They were friendly, helpful and would go out of their way to explain things and help me feel involved."

Just prior to graduating from Minnesota State in December 2008, Ryan noticed an online job posting for a position in the HR department at Avera McKennan, and immediately applied. He graduated Dec. 13, and started his new job as an HR payroll specialist on Dec. 15.

Graduate Student Experience

Graduate Student Finds Opportunity at Avera McKennan

As a graduate student with plenty of education but little experience, Lindy Hill made "cold calls" to hospitals, trying to land an  internship that might lead to a full-time job opportunity. It was a calculated risk that paid long-term dividends for his career.

Lindy, a native of Brookings, S.D., graduated from the University of South Dakota at Vermillion in 2006 with a bachelor's degree in health administration. He immediately started graduate school, working toward an MBA with an emphasis in health administration. "As I was nearing the end of my graduate work, I realized I didn't have any experience to back up my degrees," Lindy said.

So he called hospitals in the area, hoping to find any type of internship in an administrative role. His ultimate hope was that an internship might turn into a job opportunity.

A call to Avera McKennan led to a foot in the door - an offer for an unpaid internship in clinic operations, starting in August 2006. Driving from Vermillion to Sioux Falls several days a week meant sacrificing personal time, gas money and the opportunity to earn money elsewhere. Yet the experience paid off in other ways.

The internship involved analyzing data and fee schedules, as well as important networking opportunities with Avera professionals. His next assignment was as part of Avera McKennan's clinic LEAN team, helping to redesign work to be more efficient and patient-centered at clinics within the Avera McKennan network.

While many internships end after a few months, Lindy kept working. In April 2007, less than a year after his internship began, Avera McKennan posted a new position for a Process Excellence Specialist on the LEAN team. Lindy applied and was hired.
Although this entry-level position didn't require a master's level education, Lindy had the right experience. He saw this job as the perfect chance to join Avera McKennan full-time and work toward future advancement.

That opportunity came soon. Lindy is now project manager for implementation of the Electronic Medical Record in Avera McKennan clinics. Lindy credits his internship for the position he's in today. "When it came time to interview for my current position, I knew everyone in the room and everyone knew me."

The internship helped Lindy establish expectations of what it's like to work in the "real world" and work hard toward advancement. "It really helped me grow and mature, and prepare myself to become a professional."

Through his internship, Lindy found Avera McKennan to be an organization he'd like to stay with long-term. "I have a lot of loyalty toward the people at Avera McKennan. They took a chance on me, and that meant a lot." He's also come to appreciate the Avera mission, sharing in the healing ministry of Jesus. "You realize how important that is and how it drives everything we do here."