INSIDE GGC

Georgie Hardy’s summer internship with the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) sounds as if it were custom made. A senior majoring in criminal justice, Hardy searched for the internship by checking the GBI website for jobs. She landed the internship for Region 11, which includes Athens, Georgia.

Hardy’s experience from May to July 2024 is a classic story of a student finding confirmation in her career choice by working for a summer in the intended vocational path.

“I knew I wanted to work for them, but the internship helped me make sure that is what I want to do!” she confirmed.

She discovered that some of the skills she learned were ones that must be experienced and cannot always be taught for example, compartmentalization.

“I saw things that most people do not see,” she observed. “The agents advised us to not let it get personal and to talk with someone at the office, if needed.”

Hardy also learned that criminal investigations require persistence. “I knew that a lot of time and hard work went into figuring out what happened, but you have to be focused and patient,” she observed.

The internship also taught skills Hardy already knew while simultaneously reinforcing their importance.

“The crime scene specialists have to locate all of the evidence and mark it, but they have to make sure they get it all,” she explained. “Since I want to be a crime scene specialist, I learned how important it is to photograph everything thoroughly.”

Hardy also lived the life of crime scene specialists. Among other things, this meant working cold cases and visiting the sites where those crimes occurred, watching interviews with suspects, going to the morgue while a detective took photos of a body for investigative purposes, and helping with crime scene investigations.
Four types of experience were particularly poignant. First, she said, “Working on elderly and child abuse cases was extremely tough.”

Second, watching families of murder victims break down upon learning of the loss of a loved one was hard.

Third, autopsies were difficult: “I watched them, but it was challenging because I had never seen one before.”

Finally, Hardy discovered the demands of always being on the clock as a crime scene specialist. “One time I was called out at 8 p.m. that night and did not arrive back home until 4 a.m. the next day.”

Living the pluses and minuses of the job led Hardy to affirm, “I loved every minute with the GBI, and I know this is what I want to do.”

GGC students may contact Career Services to learn more about internship opportunities and career guidance.