The fourth floor of Spartan Stadium was filled Wednesday afternoon with 128 Mid-Michigan businesses, all hoping to ensure some of MSU’s local talent stays local, said Paul Jaques, internship developer for MSU Career Services Network.

“We set this up to show students we have job internships here that want to stay here, intern here or work here,” Jaques said.

Businesses in attendance ranged from radio stations to hospitals to a local chapter of the armed forces, all looking to recruit MSU students.

Each station had a map detailing a company’s distance from campus, how many minutes a drive to the office would take and even included driving directions.

“We want students to really understand the (Lansing area) outside of MSU,” said Wendy Coduti, an on-campus internship coordinator with the Career Services Network who helped organize the event.

Not only did Coduti help set up this year’s Earn, Learn and Intern, she also acted as a recruiter for MSU. MSU has positions in more than 240 departments, Coduti said, which means students looking to balance work and school at the same time won’t need to look far for an opportunity.

“It’s a good internship opportunity while you’re continuing with your classes,” Coduti said. “You’re not having to pick up and leave.”

The convenience of a Lansing-area internship worked well for human resources and labor relations graduate student Jackie Wang, who is finishing a summer internship at Sparrow Health System.

Wang worked at the human resources department of Sparrow and helped recruit for the company Wednesday.

Being so close to campus was a big advantage, Wang said, because she was still able to take classes while gaining some professional experience.

“It’s easier to commute,” she said.

“You’ll be more familiar with the community so it’s easy to schedule your time.”

Michael Berkowitz, a history, philosophy and sociology of science senior, said he wasn’t only looking to stay in state for his internship, but he couldn’t resist the draw of potentially staying in Lansing.

“It gives you that feel that you’re giving back to the community if you end up going through with one of these programs,” he said.

“Why not help out the area while you’re in the area?”