In an effort to attract college-age members for possible future employment, East Lansing, Mich.-based MSU Federal Credit Union (MSUFCU) welcomed 24 interns to its inaugural Financial Innovation and Education Center (FIEC).
"One of the key reasons for this initiative is for exposure for the credit union and to promote all the different jobs that are available in the financial services industry," said MSUFCU's Vice President of Sales and Financial Education Whitney Anderson-Harrell. "And over the next five to 10 years, a big portion of the working community will be retiring, and ultimately we want our interns to accept full-time offers to work here."
With 225,000 members and nearly 700 employees at 15 locations, the $3.2 billion MSUFCU provides financial services to Michigan State University and Oakland University faculty, staff, students and alumni association members.
Peer-to-Peer
The FIEC intern program officially kicked off May 16 and provides workspaces for 24 interns and 12 full-time employees working in the member relations and financial education departments. The paid interns will work on MSUFCU's financial 4.0 website and companion mobile app for college-age students as well as with the Financial Peer Education Program.
"From the first day, there has been a strong sense of a family and community. Everyone is friendly and easy to get along with," said Amanda Rospond, an intern and sophomore studying marketing and advertising at Michigan State University. "I've already learned so much about the services the credit union offers and about my own finances. Plus, we get to help other college students have this knowledge as well."
Anderson-Harrell explained that the college-friendly app was created in-house with the help of student interns, some of whom work directly with the CU's IT department, which is comprised of 54 employees.
"The app is for students and written by students, so we try and keep all the topics current, and we are always updating the app," said Anderson-Harrell, adding that along with games and links to financially themed articles, there are tools such as a budget tracker.
Rospond's fellow intern, Mathew St. Germain, a junior studying communications at Michigan State University, also contributed to the app.
"I submitted a couple of articles for the app, one of which was about how to budget after you leave college. The great thing about the app is that it covers many different subject matters—from how to budget for spring break to how to budget for your first job [out of school]," said St. Germain. "This program is giving us the tools to succeed in all the different areas of MSUFCU and learn about financial products and features associated with the credit union."
Anderson-Harrell hopes the new intership program grows, providing forward-looking experiences that touch all aspects of credit union operations.
"Ultimately we would like our interns to have the chance to shadow at all the different departments here at headquarters and then come to work at headquarters," said Anderson-Harrell. "This has been a great beginning, and we are really excited about the program."
As St. Germain approaches his senior year of college, the internship program has already had a significant impact on his future plans. "Michigan State University is so dear to my heart that it would be great to continue on here after I graduate."
