SkillBridge: A win-win for UArizona and U.S. service members

Genesis Villalobos is glad to be a Department of Defense (DOD) SkillBridge participant hosted by the University of Arizona. She says the program is helping her inspire her younger siblings to pursue their careers and honor her multi-talented mother. “My mom gardens, sews my clothes, and fixes our plumbing. She could build us a house if she needed to,” she says. “I want to be useful, like she is, and be respected and paid well for what I do.”

The DOD SkillBridge program helps service members obtain hands-on civilian work experience during their last few months of active duty to bridge the oft-disorienting gap between military life and civilian employment. Service members intern with approved companies and institutions, gaining experience that allows them to explore a career path and can help them land a job. Villalobos is interning with the Research Development Services (RDS) unit in Research, Innovation & Impact (RII), a placement that allows her to pursue her interest in program management.

Villalobos’s mission to excel for herself and her family led her to enlist in the army, where she served 3.5 years as a combat medic stationed in Oahu, Hawaii. Her tasks ranged from medical duties to clinic management to changing vehicle tires. She says being required to adjust constantly and find solutions to unexpected challenges prepared her for the working world and made becoming a SkillBridge intern at UArizona an easy transition. The military also teaches superb time management skills, she says, which are coming in handy. 

Genesis’s background as a combat medic enriches the RDS team, says Kim Patten, associate vice president for research development. “Our associates support medical and biomedical research collaborations with the military through basic research funding programs, and it has been enlightening to have her firsthand perspective.”

Villalobos limited her search to opportunities near her family home in Tucson, so she was thrilled to learn UArizona is an approved host institution. She says SkillBridgers work hard to put all the pieces in place for an internship. “I started bothering Terry Higgins [UArizona SkillBridge administrator] almost a year before I would be eligible. It was complicated figuring things out with the military, and it took a while for Terry to find a placement for me.”

Once on campus, Villalobos said, “Everything was all set up for me, and everyone was so welcoming. I couldn’t believe it.” She hopes UArizona faculty and staff will expand internship opportunities on campus so more Skillbridgers can experience the university’s hospitality and networking opportunities. “And they can learn to talk to people without using ‘sir’ and ‘ma’am.’ That’s one of the hardest things to get used to!”   

If you are a UArizona faculty or staff member interested in hosting a SkillBridge intern in your workplace, please contact Terry Higgins to learn more.