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First-Year Students

First-year students selected to participate in the Zip To Industry program discover what someone working in their major does on a daily basis. They explore a variety of careers in their areas of interest, learn the real-world applications for their coursework, and strengthen their connections to their STEM majors.

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Download Our Program Brochure

ZTI Brochure.pdf


Possible Job-Shadowing Opportunities Available In:

  • Aerospace Systems Engineering
  • Applied Mathematics
  • Biomedical Engineering: Biomechanics
  • Chemical Engineering
  • Chemistry
  • Civil Engineering
  • Computer Engineering
  • Computer Information Systems
  • Computer Science
  • Construction Engineering Technology
  • Corrosion Engineering
  • Electrical Engineering
  • Electrical Engineering Technology
  • Engineering
  • Mechanical Engineering
  • Mechanical Engineering Technology
  • Surveying and Mapping

2020-2021 Student Selection

The Zip To Industry program is open to incoming first-year STEM majors who are interested in taking part in five to ten virtual shadowing experiences during the 2020-2021 academic year. Following their New Student Orientations, students in participating STEM majors will receive an email from the program team with information about joining the selection pool.The deadline for students to apply for the cohort is August 2020.

The cohort will be randomly chosen from the selection pool and notified in September 2020. Unfortunately, not all students will be chosen to participate.

Questions? Email Erin Stevic, program coordinator, at estevic@uakron.edu.

Program Details


Virtual Company Visits

Selected students will complete between five to ten virtual shadowing experiences at partner employers. Each shadowing visit will last up to two hours. The program will pay students for the shadowing hours they complete.

Personalized, One-To-One, Shadowing Experiences
During shadowing, each student will be paired, one-to-one, with a UA co-op/intern student who shares the same major or areas of interest. Shadowing activities may include a company tour, observation of the employee's daily tasks, and conversations about job expectations and academic coursework.



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Praise From Past Participants:

  • "I have learned a lot from my shadowing experiences that I know will help me in my future career. My experience with the Zip to Industry program was probably my favorite experience of my first year at the University of Akron."
  • "I got to see the work environment with my own eyes. [ Job shadowing ] confirmed what I will be working in, and what the job expectations are in my field."
  • "There are so many parts of civil engineering, you can get into construction, structural, solid and environmental… The experience helped me to solidify what I want to do specifically within civil engineering."
  • "My mentor is a new graduate from UA, so we share a lot in common. He told me a lot about what to do and what not to do ... throughout the program at UA."
  • "This Program is Fantastic! As a freshman STEM student, I would highly recommend it."