The Defense Inforn1ation Systems Agency's Intern Program Creal'ing a Global Info-Sphere Connecting the wo rld thro ugh info rmatio n-that's what we d o at th e Defe nse Info rmatio n Syste ms Age ncy (DISA). Our glo ba l netwo rk consists o f a s hared syste m o f compute rs, communi catio n d a ta, applicatio ns , security, a nd peopl e se rvicing the De partm e nt of De fe nse's info rmatio n needs, us ing vo ice, data image1y, video, and multime dia . DISA pro vid es w ays to connect eve1y thing fro m comm a nd posts and wea ther networks to s uppl y age ncies a nd medica l fac ilities-all b y e lectro ni c communicatio ns . It also suppo rts ma ny o f the De pa rtm e nt o f De fense's info rmati o n processing needs throu g h a netwo rk o f info rmatio n processing megace nte rs . DISA is a combat supp rt age ncy, and o ur miss io n is to suppl y the w a rfig hte r with a n immedi ate, sea mless tra nsfe r o f informatio n , ac ross the contine nt a nd a round the w o rld . Looking l'o l'he Ful'ure At DISA, we be lie ve th e way to meet o ur future goals is to deve lo p a nd nurture to mo rro w 's profess io nal workfo rce tod ay . DISA spo nsors an Intern Progra m fo r coll ege gradu ates who wa nt to pursue ca reers in info rmatio n tec hn o logy, e ng ineering, finance, human resources, o r business administration. We' re sea rching fo r innova tive pro blem-solvers w ith a commitm e nt to publi c service. Inte rns a re hired as full-tim e Fede ral e mpl oyees and ea rn full salari es, be nefits, a nd a nnu a l pro moti o ns whil e in tra ining . This pla nn ed ca reer de ve lopme nt tr~1ining progra m is 3 yea rs lo ng a nd includ es form a l class room tra ining, o n-the -jo b trainin g, rotatio nal ass ig nme nts, and a m e nto r p rog ram . Interns have the o ppo rtuni ty to ho ne the ir tea m-building and interp rso nal s kills in a fast-p::~ced, exc itin g e nvironm e nt. ga inin g exr eri e nce they couldn 't fin d an yw he re e lse. The ""orking Environ-enl' DISA's w o rkfo rce includ es abo ut 3,000 milita1y e mpl oyees from all bra nches of the service a nd approxima te ly 8,000 civilian empl oyees, loca ted at mo re tha n 200 world wide loca tions and fac ilities . DISA pro vid es a suppo1tive, equitable, p ro fess io nal e nvironme nt , w he re employees ta ke prid e in who they a re a nd what they ca n ac hieve. Tea mwork is va lued , a nd emphasis is placed o n de live ring qu a li ty products a nd se1v ices. DISA is a n Eq ua l Opportunity Empl oyer, committed to dive rsity in the workfo rce. The Intern Progra- As p art of its commitment to q ua li ty, DISA believes in develo ping a nd nurturing its workfo rce. DISA created its Intern Program to meet th ese goa ls: • To d evelop future Fed eral lead e rs. • To build the workfo rce required for the 21st centllly. • To foste r new ideas and adva nce technology. DISA is looking fo r innova tive , tale nte d p ople for the In te rn Program . Applica nts must be self-starte rs, committed to th e idea of publi c service and interested in pursuing the fo llowing types of ca reers: Te chnical • Com p ute r Scientist • Computer Specialist • Electronics/ General Engineer • Op e ratio ns Resea rch Ana lyst • Techni ca l Writing • Telecommunicatio ns Sp ecialist Adn~inistration/Managen~ent • Budget Analyst • Contracting • Logistics • Ma nage me nt Ana lyst Ul.J 'r~l.Jvu Ll~• • , I JNIVERSITY AT BUFFALC • Misce ll a neous Admini stra ti on a nd Programs • Pa ra ! ga l NIAY 1 0 1995 • Program Ana lyst OOtA.JI'm.:l~ I\:) Ul:t\.i:::ill d'~' • Public Affa irs IIRRARY 0.1"" • Security • Suppl y T h e back pocket of this brochure h as more informatio n about q uali ficatio ns neede d a nd a ppli catio n procedures . Afte r th e a pplicatio ns a nd res umes a re reviewed , rep resenta ti ves fro m DISA inre rvie\\' those ap plica nts \Ybose education. work experie nce, a nd inre rests best meet DISA's needs. Acceptance into the p rogra m is provisio na l until a security clearance has been comple ted b y DISA. Gro~h Through Educal'ion and Develop-enl' DISA's Inte rn Program is a 3-year o n-th e-jo b program aimed at developing bo th the techni ca l and the leade rs hip skills of its p articipants . The prog ram provides a broad exposure to the different o rganizatio ns within DISA and e nsures that inte rns receive challe nging assignments. At the b ginning of the p rogram, inte rns develop individual deve lopment plans that meet both the needs of the curre nt assig nments and personal career goa ls. The program features four differe nt compo nents designed to give pa rticipants the best possible combinatio n of training and on-the -jo b experie nce : • Core training • O n-the-job training • Rota tio na l ass ignme nts • Ass ignment of a me nto r CORE TRAINING includ es in-de pth orie ntations to DISA and the Intern Prog ram, classroo m training . orga nizatio nal briefin gs , and individu a lized graduate work or technica l training. Brown-bag lunch sessions with supervisors and me nto rs are als o part o f core training. Here are just a few examples of the types of classroom tra ining offered: • Overview of Informatio n Systems • Network Mana ge ment and Control • Open Systems Inte rconnections (OSI) • Principles o f Contracting • Effective Writing • Negotiating Skills • Effective Briefing Techniques ON-TilE-JOB TRAINING gives interns plann ed , o nsite work assignme nts that intro du ce them to differe nt o rga nizations and pe rso nnel. Inte rns work closely w ith supervisors a nd coworke rs to accomplish the mission. Inte rns have the opponunity to improve their skills and prepare for more responsibilities late r in the program. ROTATIONAL ASSIGNMENTS all ow inte rns to work o n an excitin g vJriery of pro jects in diffe rent a reas of the o rga nizatio n. Each rorarion lasts from 2 to 6 mo nths. These ass ignments give the inte rn a cha nce to develo p new skills and bring new experie nces a nd kn owledge hack to the o rga ni zati o n where the inte rn is ass igned . The intern 's indi vid ual skills and ca reer goa ls ;u e taken into account when making the rotatio nal ass ignmen ts . Here is a sa mple of th e kinds of pro ject<> interns have worked on during ro tatio nal assignments: • Developing and supporti ng a n inte rnal contract management data base. • Establishing an automated a nd integrated he lp desk to handl e custo me r ca lls. • Sutveying the use rs of a De partme nt o f De fe nse-w ide data base system. • Developing an integrated de mo nstrati o n of fo ur compute r software tools. A MENTOR IS ASSIGNED to each inte rn to p rov ide guida nce throughout th e inte rn ship . Th e mento r works with the supervisor a nd the inte rn to develop the indi vidual develo pment pla n. The mentor setves as a n ad visor and gives the inte rn objecti ve advice an d suppo n. The me nto r is a lso a source of info rmati o n a bo ut the o rganizati o n, ne tworking o ppo rtunities, a nd J evelopme nta l activities. Inte rns a re re quired to panicipate in eac h compo ne nt of the inte rn program , meet th performance crite ria, a nd successfull y compl ete all o f the activities d scribe d in their indi vidual develo pment plans . Co--iHed to Your Future DISA is committ d to d eveloping the careers of its interns. The combinatio n of classroom a nd o n-the-j o b training allows inte rns to deve lo p th e ir skills and gives them work experie nc that's hard to bea t anywhe re e lse. The re are man y o the r benefits ~ r the interns in this progra m . They ca n ea rn p romo tio ns and incentive awa rds at DISA. Best of all, they will be offe red a continuing pos itio n with DISA w he n they successfull y comple te the p rogra m. DISA gives interns a competitive ala ty and b nefits p ackage, including: • Full-time Fed e ral e mployee sala ty (inte rns gene rally e nte r at a GS-5 o r GS-7 level a nd ad va nce to GS-12) • Paid vacation • Paid sick leave • Paid ho lid ays • Hea lth and life insurance • Retire m nt plan • Thrift Savin gs Plan If yo u 're a tale nted , motiva te d pe rso n with a lot o f initiative a nd you think that th e Inte rn Program sounds exciting , the n DISA wa nts to talk to you! Please see the bac k pocket of this broc hure fo r mo re info rmatio n a bo ut how to a pply .