Autism Society Recognizes New Internship Program
Kate Elliott, left, executive director of the Autism Society of Southern Arizona, presents the Starfish Award to Terry Matsunaga; David Hahn; Wendy Parent-Johnson, executive director of the University of Arizona Sonoran Center for Excellence in Disabilities; and Noel Hennessey.
The Autism Society of Southern Arizona recognized the UArizona Sonoran Center for Excellence in Disabilities and the College of Engineering for creating a new internship program. The society’s Starfish Award honors those who contribute to the autistic community.
Engineering Professional Internships for College Students with Autism (EPICS with Autism) helps engineering students with autism secure summer placements likely to lead to job offers after graduation. The first two EPICS students began internships this summer – one at Raytheon and one at Texas Instruments.
The Sonoran Center, the College of Engineering, and Terry Matsunaga collaborated to create EPICS with Autism. Terry Matsunaga is a professor of medical imaging, an adjunct professor of biomedical engineering and a close partner of the Sonoran Center.
Matsunaga’s search of the literature showed that 80% to 85% of college students with autism are unemployed or underemployed.
“That spawned some ideas in my mind,” he said, particularly because he also found that employers extend post-graduation job offers to the majority of student interns they hire. In Raytheon’s case, he said, they make offers to at least 85% of summer interns.
Throughout the program development, Wendy Parent-Johnson, executive director of the Sonoran Center for Excellence in Disabilities, provided her expertise to set up the program with best practices, such as pre-interview training and pre-employment/internship transition services with the interns and the company supervisors.
For more information on EPICS with Autism, contact ucedd@arizona.edu
A version of this article was originally published by the University of Arizona College of Engineering.