Raul Cruz

The Department of Justice’s United States Attorney’s Office is where my internship was done. I must say that it was an absolute honor to work for such an organization, and the learning experience was second to none. It is amazing how directly related the work that is done in their Systems Department is to the coursework done under the Technology Support and Training Management degree program at USC. I felt that a majority of the situations that I was faced with daily while working there were situations that were covered in lectures or were case studies in one of the textbooks, and it was good to finally put that knowledge to practice in a real environment and show them that I was the right man for the job. Landing permanent employment with this organization is definitely on my priority list. As I mentioned above, many of the tasks that I was given to do at work were tasks that I had already learned how to do at USC. Examples of such directly related topics are the following: Oracle, Access, RDBMS, macros, switches, routers, printers, IIS, SMS, user profiles, Windows Server 2003, Active Directory, memos, letters, business communication, etc.

I was required to use an Oracle based program called LIONS to update the organizations database with information on federal cases. Access databases were used to for inventory purposes, which allowed us to keep track of the computers in all branches along with other devices such as handheld devices. Macros and forms were used for quick access to timesheets, leave slips, r eimbursement forms, and mainly for legal forms. Knowledge of switches, routers, cat5 cables, and RJ45 plugs were necessary for troubleshooting purposes when computers went off line. A lot of time was spent on printers, and how settings could be changed on printers along with helping users with computer problems located in the branch offices without having to be there. Then, knowledge of Active Directory, user privileges, and OU’s was necessary when working with the server that was recently upgraded to Windows Server 2003. Some aspect of everything learned in this program is used at the US Attorney’s Office. It was a privilege to be able to represent USC in this office, and show what good of a program the University has developed for this field.

I then earned a lot of respect from the administrative officer when he saw that I had knowledge of writing proposals, business letters, and memos. There were a couple of minor things that are specific to their office that are not taught by the program, but the office sent me out to a training class were I learned to use a program called Sanctions, which is used for court presentations. It is a program similar to PowerPoint, but it has additional features that have been added with the help of the SDLC, which is critical for program development. The downtown Columbia office is the main branch, and there are three branch offices in Greenville, Florence, and Charleston. Some traveling was required since the System’s staff worked only out of the Columbia office. There is no company vehicle either, so when traveling I would either have to drive myself to the location or ride with someone else. It was nice to drive by myself, because not only did I receive a full days pay, but I would receive reimbursement for wear and tear on the vehicle. Overall, I really enjoyed the work experience gained throughout my internship, and I made some very good contacts along the way. The staff at the office was very friendly and supportive. I would most definitely recommend this organization to anyone seeking an internship, and am willing to speak to anyone who is considering doing such in the future.