Spears Business works to fill Boeing internships

Thursday, March 7, 2019

The Boeing Company has hired six Oklahoma State University business students as summer interns who will work in facilities in Oklahoma City and Washington state. The number of business interns hired and Boeing’s continued interest in recruiting OSU students to work for the company are signs of strong education programs at the Spears School of Business and a close relationship between the company and the Eastin Center for Career Readiness.

“We’re interested in bringing to the table as interns and employees those students who are well-rounded and not just with strong business and technical skills but who are also well-rounded individuals,” said Joy Cox, Boeing finance manager in its Oklahoma City office who works with the Eastin Center on student recruiting. “There’s no better way to attract and retain that talent than to recruit locally at Oklahoma universities like Oklahoma State.”

Cox worked with the Eastin Center to fill the six 10- to 12-week internships for Boeing in the areas of finance, HR, supply chain demand and business operations.

Lauren Eberhart, a junior economics major, will work as a procurement financial analyst intern at a Boeing office near Seattle. It will be the first time the Michigan native has been to the Pacific Northwest.

“I don’t know where I want to end up, so I wanted to travel someplace I hadn’t been to before,” said Eberhart, who said she is excited about applying what’s she learned in classes to actual working situations. She’s also interested in meeting other interns from around the country and learning more about the aeronautics industry. “We’ll do a lot of networking with groups of interns from other Boeing offices and attend seminars and tour their facilities.”

According to Eastin Center Director Abbey Davis, a strong relationship between Boeing and the center means students have more opportunities to meet company representatives at a variety of events along with campus career fairs.

“Boeing is engaged with Spears Business in lots of ways like at resume days and mock interviews,” Davis said. “They’ll bring groups of students to their offices to watch things like contract negotiations, and this year they’ll be at Women in Business Week. Their willingness to work with us makes it easy for our students to connect with people at Boeing who want to engage with them.”

And what does Eberhart want to bring back from Washington state after her summer at Boeing? “I definitely wouldn’t be opposed to an offer once I’m in my senior year and I’m looking for that first job.”