(Alex Krausse, shown in the OSP Forensics Division lab, is currently conducting experiments to help analysts find better casting techniques for processing evidence | Photo by Alex Krausse, OSU-Cascades)
“Experiential learning, including internships, has always been an integral part of Career Services at OSU-Cascades,” said Cynthia Engel, the department’s director. “It’s a core component of who we are and what we do.”
Internships, as she explained, “provide the opportunity for students and participating businesses to ‘try each other on.’ Sometimes students start out on one career path, and subsequently choose an entirely different major as a result of this experience — which provides a really important piece of feedback.”
In “coaching students and helping them identify their goals,” Engel and her colleagues emphasize that “you don’t have to know everything at first; the whole process is one of exploring and growing,” she said.
“One student, for example, thought that she wanted to be a veterinarian, but as a result of interning, realized that she didn’t care to spend her career working with sick animals. She is now working with Guide Dogs for the Blind. Interning is a great way to understand the difference between the idea versus the reality,” Engel said. “To see what really happens in a job, and explore those fields that demand additional schooling before making the commitment.”
“Feedback from participating organizations and businesses shows that they love working with students from OSU-Cascades,” added Engel. “We hear that a lot. Rather than just being an add-on, our students really make a difference, and the internship becomes a valuable two-way experience.”
“OSU-Cascades students are amazing — deeply committed to what they’re doing, passionate and excited,” she said. “For them, becoming an intern is not just a matter of checking off a requirement, which makes the outcome even more impressive.”
According to Engel, 207 students across 13 different majors completed internships for credit in 2024-2025. (This number does not count those students engaged in not-for-credit internships that are more difficult to track). And more than half of all OSU-Cascades graduates say that an internship got them a job.
Below are several examples.
One of My Key Players
Internship host Stephanie Camara, a 20-year veteran of the hospitality industry who previously worked at Walt Disney Resort World and described herself as having been “raised by the mouse,” joined Tetherow Resort in January as banquet operations manager.
She emphasized that “I rely on OSU-Cascades intern Miroslav Lysak (one of five employees she inherited upon assuming her new job), who is one of my key players. He brings tribal knowledge of how events are executed at Tetherow (including corporate meetings, retreats, weddings and golf tournaments), and is a really integral part of my 20-person staff.”
Camara added that “Miro has a hunger to learn more about the industry and always wants to be the best version of himself. Miro also offers a different cultural perspective on the world, which is valuable in bringing the team together to deliver great service to our guests. I just love him.”
A Wonderful Opportunity
Admitting that she had “hit a wall on the kind of care I could deliver” after 14 years as a massage therapist, OSU-Cascades kinesiology major Raylen Peets “fell in love with the science of the human body” during previous studies at a massage school in her home town — and developed a “passion I wanted to share with others” that was reinforced after the rehabilitative side of physical therapy “gave me my life back.”
“I got really lucky when offered a wonderful opportunity” to intern at Therapeutic Associates,” she said, “which has given me a great perspective,” and the impetus to become certified as a strength and conditioning specialist.
Peets, who described herself as “innately curious and hungry for knowledge,” plans to open her own business that “won’t be just a clinic,” but rather will combine various modalities (or therapeutic tools) in a tiered subscription model where patients have access to massage and manual tissue work, and sets of exercises customized to their specific needs.
Based on her own experience, Peets is also “interested in sharing insights that could be encouraging and educational for future OSU-Cascades interns.”
A Step Ahead in Getting a Job
After spending eight years in the U.S. Navy, Alex Krausse enrolled at OSU-Cascades with the goal of entering the field of forensics (which applies scientific methods to analyze objects or substances such as DNA, fingerprints, ballistics and toxicology that were involved in crimes). Initially planning to take courses in criminology, she was persuaded to instead get a degree in the natural sciences (she chose biology) by a long-time trooper with the Oregon State Police (OSP).
Now a summer intern with OSP, Krausse has “enjoyed all of it,” and has “yet to experience the ‘ick’ response” to any of the work involved — which has included fingerprinting, criminal scene photography, drug analysis and impression casting (a technique used to preserve three-dimensional impressions, like those from footwear or tires). In fact, she is currently conducting experiments to help forensics analysts find better casting techniques that will “really capture the 3-D image that is brought before the judge and jury during trials.”
The internship “has really solidified my passion for forensics,” Krausse said. “I’ve learned the importance of taking your time to process evidence correctly, and better understand why each element (such as thumbprints) matters. It’s exciting to be doing this.”
Director of OSP’s Forensics Services Division, Brian Medlock, is currently overseeing three interns, Krausse among them. “Alex is great,” he said, “and it warms my heart to get eager, smart students like her in our program — which is mutually valuable for them and for OSP. This experience really puts the students a step ahead in getting a job here.”
