Living, Learning and Internships
 There are few places
where students can get hands-on experience while gaining college
credits. Students from across the United States are honing their
skills on the range at University of Nevada’s S Bar S
Teaching Ranch Facility. “The internships pay little, but
housing is free and the students leave with an understanding of
Great Basin’s range ecosystems and ranching that they won't
likely get elsewhere,” says Assistant Director Don Kennedy.
The traditional
route to becoming a registered dietician takes four years in the
classroom plus a yearlong internship. The ”Coordinated Program
in Dietetics” at Washington State reduces time spent by
9 to 12 months by integrating courses with internships. However,
students who complete Arizona's dietetics “traditional”
coursework have a 90 percent placement rate for internship
programs, compared with the national average of 60 percent, with
all passing the American Dietetic Association exam.
 The Early Veterinary
Student Dairy Experience Program at the University of
California-Davis offers students the opportunity to intern
over the course of two summers, working on dairy farms and with
dairy veterinarians. Students report that in-depth experience
kindles interest in food animal courses, improves animal handling
skills and confidence, and familiarizes them with aspects of food
safety and veterinary business. Participating practitioners
report that students who complete the program have a practical
knowledge of the opportunities and challenges of careers in
medicine for food animals.
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