I am working as the Grant Administrator Intern in the Office of Grant Management and Assistance (OGMA) at the Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR).  I assist grant administrators in database management who handle the Grant Accountability and Transparency Act (GATA) via the State of Illinois portal.  I also work on frequent changes/enhancements to both internal and external facing IDNR webpages by working closely with the Illinois Department of Innovation & Technology (DoIT).

I like my role at the agency.  My supervisor and other staff are very friendly, helpful, and exceptionally professional.  There is a lot to learn and a great opportunity to apply and improve my skills and work on professional development.  Teamwork, business perspectives, and communication are the qualities that I learned during my MBA coursework.  Pursing my MBA with specialization in IT Project Management and simultaneously getting an opportunity to apply them in the real world would have never been easy without my internship.

I recommend getting the MBA degree from UIS for anyone who would like to chase their dreams and make use of GPSI opportunities to gain real-world experience by working for an Illinois state agency while studying.