An Overview of Programs and Opportunities at Michigan Tech

This article was written based on the information and opinions presented by Christine Grotzke, an associate director of admissions at Michigan Technological University, in a CollegeVine livestream. You can watch the full livestream for more info.

 

What’s Covered

• Research Opportunities at Michigan Tech
• Securing Internships and Summer Jobs at Michigan Tech
• Finding a Full-Time Job as a Michigan Tech Alum

 

 

Much like its academics, Michigan Tech University is known for the opportunities that students have outside of the classroom. Students can gain real-life experience through experiential learning, regardless of their academic track. In this post, we will discuss the research, internship and summer job, and post-graduation career opportunities and support systems offered at Michigan Tech.

 

Research Opportunities at Michigan Tech

 

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship allows students to do research alongside Michigan Tech’s faculty, which is a unique and exciting opportunity for students to gain real-world experience. 

 

Within the College of Engineering and College of Computing, students will collaborate on innovative projects directly with companies. Previous projects have included working with Jeep on touchless, motion-activated gate lift technology and helping to design a heart stent for infants. They have also launched two nanosatellites into orbit and are currently working on building a Formula One car, designing a video game, and improving the function of leading-brand snowboards, among others.

 

Michigan Tech also organizes student-led design teams, referred to as “enterprise teams,” that compete annually in a competition hosted by NASA. These groups, which are as large as 125 students, largely work independently, starting from generating their project ideas. Students of all majors are frequently involved. Business and marketing students, for example, are often in charge of managing the team’s fundraising, making the project like working for a mock startup. Teams from Michigan Tech have won the competition three times. 

 

Securing Internships and Summer Jobs at Michigan Tech

 

Approximately 415 companies regularly recruit Michigan Tech students for internships and summer jobs. Much of their recruiting happens on campus at fall and spring career fairs. 

 

To ensure enough opportunities for all students to meet with potential employers, Michigan Tech also hosts industry-sponsored events where companies from a particular industry come to campus on the same day to hold recruiting fairs. Students can talk to companies and corporations about open positions and potential opportunities and ask questions about their work. 

 

The average Michigan Tech student makes about $25 an hour during their internship, so it is a great opportunity to help students pay for college while gaining valuable work experience. 

 

Finding a Full-Time Job as a Michigan Tech Alum

 

Michigan Tech surveys its students six months after graduation to collect and analyze their position and salary information. 

 

This year, the average starting salary of a Michigan Tech graduate is expected to be $73,000. Last year, the school had the 15th highest early career pay in the nation for public universities. 

 

Not only are Michigan Tech alums getting well-paying jobs, but the positions are also in their desired fields. Michigan Tech has a 93% job placement rate for students in the fields that they studied. 

 

Michigan Tech also has on-campus Air Force and Army ROTC for students who want to directly enter service after their graduation.