Ava Chapman

Major: Anthropology (Forensic Concentration)

Wildlife Rehabilitation Intern at The Lindsay Wildlife Experience

How did you learn about this internship opportunity?

I volunteered with this organization throughout high-school and middle-school. I grew up visiting the children's museum.

What is a piece of advice you would give someone in your major looking for an internship?

I would recommend asking professors about internships they may recommend. Anthropology is all about getting involved and anthropology professors are happy to help connect students with internship opportunities.

What key responsibilities or projects have you taken on during your internship?

I took on responsibilities such as compounding medicines, testing patients for parasites, drawing and administering medications, managing feeding times, and maintaining daily patient well-being.

How has your internship helped build your skills and clarify your career goals? How did being a Liberal Arts student at Purdue apply to your internship?

My internship helped me understand the frameworks involved in working with wildlife medicine. I learned about organizations such as Fish and Wildlife that oversee rules and regulations put in place to maintain patient and vet staff safety. I worked with a variety of animals and learned about different treatment approaches pertaining to reptile, amphibian, and avian species. My experience as a Purdue liberal arts anthropology student provided me with a baseline understanding of skeletal anatomy for all animal species after my experiences learning about the human skeleton in my forensic courses and labwork. This helped me communicate with the veterinarians when discussing patient injuries and when examining patients. This experience showed me that I want to continue working in wildlife medicine in my future career.

In what ways has the College of Liberal Arts at Purdue University supported your internship journey? How has your participation in our Job-Ready program specifically aided your professional development?

The support provided to me by my College of Liberal Arts professors motivated me to explore new career pathways. My research professor in forensic anthropology supported me in getting this internship by writing a recommendation letter for my application. My professor taught me lab skills that were helpful in my abilities to compound medications for the vet hospital and taught me many aspects of faunal skeletal anatomy. She encouraged me to apply for the Job-Ready program which greatly helped me to pursue this internship. The Job-Ready program provided me with resources to get transport to my internship on a daily basis. This support means a lot to me as my internship was unpaid. I was given the opportunity to work so closely with my professor and access a program like Job-Ready because I am a Purdue College of Liberal Arts student.

Could you highlight a standout aspect of your experience in the Job-Ready program that you find particularly noteworthy?

I loved the experience of learning about the internship opportunities of other Job-Ready award recipients. I met other liberal arts students pursuing internships in a wide variety of career fields.