MINTernship Program: Students of KIT at the UNCC

Eleven students of KIT, who had passed an internship at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte (UNCC) under the MINTernship Program, presented their good results at a workshop at the KIT in October this year.

(Foto: Laila Tkotz, KIT) — (Photo: Laila Tkotz, KIT)

For a period of six months, from April to September 2017, the students passed a research internship at the Energy Production & Infrastructure Center (EPIC) of UNC at Charlotte. After their return, they presented the results of their research projects at a workshop hosted by the International Students Office – Mobility Programs of KIT and the Reinhard Frank Foundation.

The students wrote their bachelor’s or master’s theses in cooperation with supervisors at the UNCC and KIT and established many contacts to local industry. In addition, most of the KIT students published scientific articles or presented their research projects at international conferences in the USA. So far, two students have been granted awards for their scientific posters. Dr. Anja Schümann, Managing Board Member of the Reinhard Frank Foundation, expressed her full recognition to the participants: “I am very pleased that the group made full use of the time spent in the USA. The large number of scientific publications is rather impressing and reflects the high quality of the research internships. The students successfully and productively took advantage of the time spent at EPIC for both their professional and personal further development.”

Within the framework of the MINTernship Program, KIT students of electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, and business engineering are granted scholarships for research internships at EPIC for up to six months’ duration. The internship also includes an accompanying program with sports events, excursions, and the opportunity to network with industry. Under the same program, ten students of the Queensland University of Technology and the University of Waterloo are currently participating in research internships of several months at the KIT. Since the start of the MINTernship Program in 2015, more than 50 students have completed a research internship.

The exchange is coordinated by Professor Dr.-Ing. Thomas Leibfried, Head of the Institute of Electric Energy Systems and High-Voltage Engineering (IEH), the KIT Energy Center, and the International Students Office – Mobility Programs. The MINTernship Program is funded by the Reinhard Frank Foundation, the Christian Bürkert Foundation, and the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) in cooperation with the KIT Foundation.

INTL, 27.10.2017