Generating Work Experience

David Ticzon ’18 provided a first-person account of his internship this semester.

This summer, I began my fall credit internship as an HR intern at General Electric Power headquarters in Schenectady, N.Y., where steam turbines and generators are made to make electricity throughout the world.

The site has been continuously running since Thomas Edison came to Schenectady in 1886. My office is located in Building 273, which houses the factory. The building is one-quarter mile long, covers 27 acres and is more than 1.3 million square feet of space.

I am in charge of staffing of all hourly skilled trades workers. These include everyone from electricians, mechanics, security workers and machinists. Currently, I am in the process of redesigning and implementing a new hiring system to be more efficient and create higher yields.

My responsibilities include scheduling college visits, visiting campuses, interviewing, supervising hiring tests and sending offer letters. In addition to staffing, my GE work includes attendance, onboarding, documenting grievances and approving disciplines.

I have also been able to participate in a communications role by writing stories, creating slides posted throughout the factory and handling all postings of the employee mobile app.

I have been able to participate in fun projects from helping to design GE’s new cafeteria, to organizing a car show to helping create events for GE’s 125th anniversary next year. I am also working on a project locating the lost remains of Thomas Edison’s original buildings when he started the company in Schenectady.