Ramstein High School students learn ‘tricks of the trades’

Preparation and good planning is a key factor for success on everyday missions and in life. This year, about 120 Ramstein High School students here got a head start by enrolling in and participating in the RHS Career Practicum Course.

The course, which is a program offered throughout the Department of Defense Dependents Schools-Europe high schools, allows students the opportunity to gain first-hand experience in a job field and get a taste of what life is like after high school.

Students who participate choose an internship to pursue, either for a single semester or all year long. At the start of the course, the students go through the process of applying for a job, learning how to dress for success and completing a resume for a mock interview. 

 “We get experience firsthand. In my case I got to observe at the dental clinic and see all the different oral procedures done there instead of just reading about them out of a book,” said Huy Nyguyen, a RHS student intern at the dental clinic on Ramstein Air Base.

“No other class gives on-the-job training that you would normally have to wait until after high school to get,” said Alisha Waterhouse, a RHS student nurse assistant intern at Ramstein Elementary School.

 The participants not only acquire valuable job skills such as responsibility and work ethic, but most show considerable improvement, both academically and behaviorally, RHS staff agree. 

 “Career Practicum is a wonderful experience, which causes the student to be inspired to work in an area that they might not have been interested in before,” said John Penter, a teacher at RHS. 

The course provides a safety net that allows high school students to pursue an interest in a life-like environment while not making any final decisions.  
“Students get only what they put into the Career Practicum Course,” Penter said. “If you have no goal, you will reach no goal.”

“You get students who might be interested in working with young children or in the field of education. The children respond extremely well to their presence in the class,” said Bethany Dines, a teacher at RES.

Throughout the internship, the course coordinators provide different activities to replicate a real job, like clocking in and requesting references.  The program allows students to gain valuable experience as an intern and potentially opens the road to a brighter future.