Supervisors Give High Ratings to IU Interns

All Immaculata traditional undergraduate students in the business, accounting, finance, HR management, and marketing management majors are required to complete one or more internships as part of their programs, of which approximately 80 percent were paid internships. According to surveys of internship employers, created and administered by Immaculata’s business faculty, 100 percent of employers, since 2016, said they would hire their intern again, with an average of 91% since 2009.

• Employers rated students very well (average of 4.5 on a scale of 1-5, with 5 being the highest) in their overall preparation for the internship.
• Employers gave students high ratings for professional demeanor (4.8 out of 5 on average).
• Employers said students had leadership skills (4.3 out of 5 on average).

Retention, Graduation, and Job/Graduate School Placement Rates

When traditional undergraduates in College of Undergraduate Studies major in business, accounting, finance, HR management, or marketing management, they tend to stay in that program, graduate on time, and quickly find jobs or enter graduate school.

Job or graduate school placement rates within six months of graduation, as self-reported by accounting alumni:

• 2018—100%
• 2017—100%
• 2016—90%
• 2015—100%

Freshman-to- sophomore retention rates:

• 2018—83%
• 2017—76%
• 2016—63%
• 2015—84%

Four-year graduation rates:

• 2018—64%
• 2017—73%
• 2016—60%
• 2015—70%

Enactus Team

Immaculata University’s Enactus team completes projects using their entrepreneurial abilities to make a sustainable impact in the world. The team has competed in the United States national competition every year for the last seven years and has been recognized as regional champions as well as second runner-up in its division. AJ Castaldi, president of Immaculata’s Enactus team, is chair of the Student Advisory Committee for Enactus United States, and the IU team’s advisor, Dr. Charlene Fitzwater, serves on the Faculty Advisory Committee for Enactus United States.

In the 2018-19 year, the team invested 1,875 hours on projects that impacted over 2,500 people.

Emilia Wojtyla Shelter in Bolivia helps women and their children escaping abuse. Our team raised a record $7,900 in support of the shelter, which housed 65 people in the last year. The funds we raised helped the shelter launch a bakery as a stable income source and increased awareness among nearly 2,000 people about the issue of domestic violence.

Kiddos Care, a project launched by the IU Enactus team in 2016, involves mentoring at-risk inner city students who live in an area where over half of their neighbors do not finish high school, and encouraging them to pursue educational and personal goals. Students from the St. James School were introduced to college and reported they were more likely to go to college.

Fashioning Confidence encourages self-confidence in high school youth who exhibit high rates of low self-esteem and self-harming behaviors. Through a fashion show celebrating diversity, 45 high school models were inspired to build their confidence, four student designers showcased their collections and 120 formal garments were donated to organizations helping youth participate in formals at their schools.

The Engaging Partners initiative integrated analysis of survey data with proposed solutions to address Enactus experience gaps and shortfalls relative to expectations.