Kaung Kyi ‘16 (pictured above) is working on watershed restoration and other conservation projects along the panhandle of Alaska. Ashlee Pitts '15 is assisting with project management and communications at one of the largest banks in the Midwest. And Gavin Crowell '16 has been reporting and writing stories about Chicago sports for the Chicago Sun-Times.

Those are just a few of the "real world" experiences that Knox College students have gained through internships during the 2014 summer break. Internships enable students to show off existing skills and develop new ones as they consider what kinds of careers to pursue. Knox students can learn about internship opportunities by contacting the Bastian Family Career Center.

"This internship is beneficial because I see hands-on day-to-day activities and requirements for marketing. Rather than grabbing coffee or filing pages, I am developing communications that thousands of people are reading/viewing," said Pitts, a political science major who is working as an intern with BMO Harris Bank in Naperville, Illinois. "One of the career paths I am looking at post-graduation is a career at a bank and, specifically, in marketing and communication."

Here's a rundown on some of the other 2014 summer internships:

• Kaung Kyi '16, a biology and studio art double major, is a wild salmon conservation and restoration intern with the Sitka Conservation Society in Sitka, Alaska, where he is a field assistant.
• Gavin Crowell '16, a psychology major, is an intern with the Chicago Sun-Times sports department, covering games and other activities involving multiple teams, including the Chicago Cubs, White Sox, Bears, and Blackhawks.
• Carly Berinstein '15, a neuroscience major, (pictured above) is interning at the Oregon Health and Science University, researching the effects of hypothermia on Alzheimer's patients.
• Chanda Harrell '15, an economics major, is interning as a credit analyst with the fixed income division of Mesirow Financial in Chicago, Illinois.
• Brian Tanaka '15, an economics and music double major, is interning at the State Farm Research and Development Center in Champaign-Urbana, Illinois, in the Strategic Resources Department.
• Micaela Rodriguez '15, an economics major, is the marketing intern for Downstate Immigration LLC., a firm in Galesburg, Illinois, that provides immigration services.
• Cody Sehl '15, a computer science major, works as a creative intern at NGP VAN, a political software company in Washington, D.C.