According to the Texas Education Agency as a P-TECH we must offer:

•  Work-Based Learning in every P-TECH program students must be offered a variety of relevant, high-skill work-based learning experiences at every grade level that respond to student interest and regional employer needs and contribute to students earning aligned industry certifications and credentials

The P-TECH shall provide:

a. Age level appropriate work-based learning for students in the P-TECH at every grade level that includes career awareness, career exploration, career preparation, and career experience

b. Policies and protocols to make work-based learning a viable method for helping students meet academic standards

c. Work based learning experiences that are well-planned and properly sequenced to provide a progression of learning experiences for students— each one building upon the last

d. Work based learning may include, but is not limited to: facility visits, guest speakers, presentations, career information, career fairs, informational interviewing, job shadowing, internships, mentoring, and apprenticeships

What is an Internship?

  An internship is a short-term work experience offered by companies and other organizations for people—usually students, but not always—to get some entry-level exposure to a particular industry or field. It is as much of a learning experience as it is work. 

Ideally, interns spend their time working on relevant projects, learning about the field, making industry connections, and developing both hard and soft skills. Internships sometimes even lead to full-time job offers.

Summer internships are typically 40 hours a week over 10 to 12 weeks. Fall and spring internships vary, but are almost always part time. Some are paid. Some are not. We’ll talk more about that later (Zhang, 2020).

Everything You Need to Know About Internships

Microsoft Certifications 

 The value of certification

Skills have become the global currency of the 21st century economies! In a world where competition for jobs, pay increases, and academic success continues to increase, certifications offer hope because they are a credible, third-party assessment of one’s skill and knowledge for a given subject.

Some of the key benefits of certification include:

• Validation of knowledge
• Increased marketability
• Increased earning power
• Enhanced academic performance
• Improved reputation
• Enhanced credibility
• Increased confidence
• Respect from peers

Certification can improve academic performance¹

• Higher grade point average for certified high school students: 3.12 vs 2.78 (4.0 scale)
• Higher graduation rates for certified high school students: 97.5% vs 78.4%
• Increased post-secondary enrollment: 84% vs 82%
• Reduced dropout rates: 0.2% vs 1.0%

Our 2021 Summer Internships 

Our goal each year is to have a percentage of students participate in internships. Internships are an important way for students to apply learned skills in a real-world experience. We were fortunate to have 35 students participating in Virtual Internships with IBM, PepsiCo, Thomson Reuters, and Dallas Works. With COVID still looming and many still not back in their corporate offices, the internships this year were virtual. After careful consideration, it was decided anyone participating in these internships will come to campus to work. Due to the struggles with online learning, it has been our experience that every student did not have a home environment that was conducive to a work environment. It would also give students an opportunity to get used to getting up, having to get dressed and be somewhere on time daily. They were able to receive immediate feedback on behaviors as well as guidance on how to navigate professional situations. Due to Sunset High School being closed due to construction, the Adamson P-TECH family welcomed us into their home and allowed our interns to have the professional environment needed for success.