![Members of Red Cross Team O](https://nittanyai.psu.edu/wp-content/uploads/RedCrossTeamO-Apprenticeship--scaled-e1728048312799.jpg)
The Nittany AI Advance program is a highly competitive program that provides qualified students with a paid one-semester internship that helps both for-profit and nonprofit organizations develop and implement AI and machine learning to solve existing problems and create new opportunities.
Students early in their journey with artificial intelligence with deep interests may find Advance and the program expectations intimidating. This is where the Nittany AI Advance apprenticeship program comes in. Every spring and fall, there are a limited number of one-semester apprenticeship positions for students who want to explore Advance without committing to a multi-semester project. The apprenticeship program provides students with opportunities to gain more skills by participating in an unpaid position within the Advance program. The apprentices work and learn with Nittany AI Advance teams, joining a project and helping the team with various administrative and technical needs for the semester. Learn more about Nittany AI Advance and apply to be an intern or an apprentice.
I got the chance to talk with five of the apprentices from the fall 2023 and spring 2024 semesters and gained insight into how the apprenticeship program has impacted them. Before we get into the interview, I’ll introduce the five apprentices who supported projects by the Advance Red Cross teams A, O, and B.
Aaftab Jafri was an apprentice during the fall 2023 semester on Red Cross team O and worked on machine learning (ML) and creating synthetic data for ML models. Shreya Rupesh and Fiona Rubino were apprentices during the spring 2024 semester with Red Cross team O and worked with exploratory data analysis (EDA) and error modeling and created machine learning models. Lucas Ligenza was an apprentice with Red Cross team B during the 2024 spring semester and went from focusing on data science to being an engineer within his team. Kieran Sturges was an apprentice for Red Cross team A and focused on bucketing, modeling, and other non-technical work.
Starting off the conversation, I wondered what their reasoning was for getting into the apprenticeship program. Lucas shared his initial hesitations to go right into the Advance program due to a perceived lack of experience for machine learning engineering or data scientist roles. “I didn’t really think I was experienced enough at the time,” he said, highlighting his initial doubts and the allure of the apprenticeship as a “foot in the door.” Aaftab chimed in with a similar sentiment, acknowledging his own reservations about going right into Advance and that the apprenticeship was the perfect way to get the experience he needed within the field of data science. The overall sentiment from everyone was that they were a little behind on the requirements for Nittany AI Advance, but had enough knowledge to begin the program and gain experience while working within it.
Coming into the program, most of the apprentices agreed they had to pick up a lot of skills very quickly, mostly through working with members in their group. When speaking about this, there was a lot of pride in how quickly they gained new skills. Shreya recalls learning about tree-based models, something she didn’t know before this semester. “It was just really cool getting the experience,” she said, reflecting on developing a new skill set through hands-on work. Fiona found pride in applying her data science skills practically, noting how the exploratory data analysis she worked on with Shreya played a pivotal role in the creation of a machine learning model. Kieran mentioned how he felt he had grown into his position. “I kind of had to put my foot in the door when it came to the modeling process,” he says. “It started out, if I wanted to do something, I had to speak up.” After figuring out the Adaboost model and presenting it for his team, he gained more confidence and respect among them. “I was pretty proud of taking that initiative,” he says, proud of the confidence he showed, which led to further opportunities.
Aaftab highlighted how working with a client-facing project has been great for professional development. “I feel like, professionally, it’s a really great way to get your foot in the door,” Aaftab remarked, emphasizing the value of weekly sprints and deadlines in simulating the ‘real job world.’ Aaftab admitted that engaging directly with clients and receiving immediate feedback was very different then class work and hard to get used too, but was a great experience for future jobs.
When reflecting on the apprenticeship experience, several participants expressed a desire for a few changes that could have significantly enriched their learning journey. One wished for greater enthusiasm within the team, sharing, “It kind of felt like we were dragging ourselves, and it’s hard when it’s clear that not everyone shares a passion.” A consensus with the group was that a more structured approach to mentorship for the apprentices would be beneficial and that having a designated person for them to shadow and mentor them would have been extremely helpful. There were ideas that the mentors “could be like a rotation” between Advance members in order to bridge the gap in understanding complex tasks, this being shown by an apprentice admitting, “I was really overwhelmed because… I didn’t really know what modeling was.” There was a clear wish for more direct mentorship and a supportive environment where communication and guidance are readily available to foster a more robust learning experience.
Gathering the final thoughts from the apprentices, many of them stated that the experience exceeded their expectations. The amount of skills gained has been extremely beneficial, as Kieran remarks, “I haven’t even taken Comp. Sci. 132, which is the foundation of any coding courses, and I could still do modeling.” Aaftab highlights the benefit of networking with the Advance students and partners, stating, “I think the value that I got out of this experience exceeded what I kind of expected in terms of the people I’ve met, including people on my team, people on other teams, and through a lot of the Advance events,” showing the great sense of community that the Advance program has. It’s clear that the apprenticeship offered more than skills and knowledge — it provided a gateway to a community of like-minded individuals, fostering relationships that could extend well into professional careers.