As part of an effort to retain top technology talent in Maryland, several university students have been selected as interns for the Maryland Department of Information Technology through a statewide education initiative.
The Maryland Technology Internship Program aims to increase the number of paid technical internships available to students in the region through a reimbursement plan that offers financial assistance for technology-based businesses across the state. MTIP is funded by the Maryland state government and administered by the University of Maryland Baltimore County.
To date, the program has provided interns to nearly 200 organizations, according to its website. However, the Maryland Department of Information Technology will be the first state agency to use MTIP.
“The MTIP is important for DoIT and the State of Maryland so that we can take advantage of the wealth of talent that comes from local colleges and universities,” Patrick Mulford, DoIT communications director, told StateScoop.
Attracting and retaining a talented workforce familiar with the aging technologies state government oversees, while also competing with higher salaries offered in the private sector, is a continuing challenge facing all state governments.
The four interns, all of whom are UMBC students, will be working in different fields, including cybersecurity, business intelligence and local-area network solutions, according to DoIT.
“DoIT is very excited to have such impressive and bright students working alongside our Maryland IT professionals and working on some groundbreaking projects,” Michael Leahy, secretary of DoIT, said in a statement. “This program is a great example of how the public and private sector can work together with academia to fuel growth in the technology sector in our state.”
According to UMBC, internships funded through MTIP are available to all college students, who can be recruited through any program or jobs board.
