Union Pacific's internship program offers 'true railroad work' to college students
12/16/2022
By Grace Renderman, Associate Editor
Union Pacific Railroad’s internship program recently earned several nods from career research company Vault, which ranked UP among the top internships in the United States in several categories, including transportation, software and development, human resources and information technology.
Earlier this year, Vault ranked UP’s summer program at no. 5 for the transportation category and no. 20 for software engineering and development. The firm also ranked the Class I’s year-round program ranks fifth for HR, 15th for IT and 17th for software engineering and development.
Each program heavily emphasizes networking, work culture inclusion and learning opportunities, says Tonya Eggspuehler, UP’s assistant vice president of talent management.
"It comes down to the work that they're doing. These are real-world experiences with a Fortune 150 company,” Eggspuehler says. “It's not busy work, it's not filing — it is true railroad work for our business.”
Real projects, real problems
UP interns work at the railroad’s headquarters in Omaha, Nebraska, or on one of its properties in its 23-state network, and they’re paid for their work, with wages depending on college year and prior experience. Some also have accommodations covered by the company; UP partners with the University of Nebraska Omaha (UNO) to enable interns to stay in on-campus housing, Eggspuehler says. There’s upwards of 150 interns on UP grounds at any time, while some work remotely during the school year and stay in Omaha in the summer.
While remote work is feasible for some interns, it’s not for others, Eggspuehler says. All summer interns are required to be on UP property during the summer.
Internships are offered to undergraduate and graduate students across the country in nine of UP’s departments: corporate audit, engineering, finance and accounting, HR, IT, logistics, marketing and sales, mechanical and supply chain. Internships are typically posted twice a year — once during fall and once during spring. Application screening and interviews follow. Students most often find those opportunities being advertised at university recruiting events and via online job portals, like Handshake (a student-centric career and networking website) and LinkedIn. They’re also posted on UP’s dedicated jobs webpage.
UP interns are tasked with managing "real projects and real problems,” says Tonya Eggspuehler, the Class I's assistant vice president of talent management. Union Pacific Railroad“We provide offers as soon as possible after interviews are conducted and provide ample time for candidates to consider the job offer,” Eggspuehler says.
Interns are assigned to their own team in a specific department, based on what kind of internship they earned, and are tasked with managing "real projects and real problems,” Eggspuehler says. Interns also receive feedback on their work.
Beyond the work itself, interns are also offered some of the same resources as full-time employees — from access to employee resource groups and social networking events, to tours of the UP railroad museum, and a breakfast with President and CEO Lance Fritz.
“Inclusion is extremely important for our interns to feel a part of our culture,” she says.
The pandemic interrupted work culture inclusion efforts. UP was forced to cancel its summer internship program in 2020 due to COVID-19, Eggspuehler says. UP developed a hybrid program in 2021, which allows interns to continue working remotely while at school, given their class load doesn’t affect their ability to work, she says.
Prior to the hybrid program’s creation, only students physically in Omaha could work a year-long internship. Now, about 15% of year-round interns are working through the hybrid program. Eggspuehler expects that percentage to increase.
“We really saw the need to keep that connection with interns, and we saw the capabilities we have virtually, which is why the hybrid program came to be,” she says.
During the pandemic’s early phase, UP stayed in “constant communication” with interns who lost their gigs, and some even came back in a later year, Eggspuehler says. And for those who decided not to return, or who were ineligible to do so because they graduated, UP provided lump-sum payments in lieu of working for the railroad.
From intern to full-time worker
Aurelio Picazo Perea is one such intern who ended up working full time for the Class I after he earned his degree in business administration in May 2021 from UNO. Although he studied banking and finance, Picazo Perea ended up in UP’s technology department, where he now works as an associate project analyst. He's responsible for project management, administrative work and supporting the technology budget office and its supplier contracts.
He did similar work as an intern, and even ended up joining the same team as a full-time employee just two weeks after he graduated. Picazo Perea had worked as an intern since late 2019 and worked through the pandemic both in person and virtually.
“I didn't really take much of a gap [between graduation and full-time employment]. I kind of just jumped right into it,” he says. “I got the opportunity to really integrate myself into the team.”
Picazo Perea’s internship experience included working on the technology department’s welcoming committee, which helped other technology interns get acquainted with the UP campus, the people who work there and the surrounding area. That opportunity provided a way for him to network with other employees and gain a meaningful experience.
He came to UP unsure of what he wanted to do with his career. The railroad helped him figure it out, he says.
“This has been a great company to jump-start my career with,” Picazo Perea says. “It's a little funny that I ended up in tech, but I really enjoyed the work that I did here."