Cettei to intern with FBI

By Summer Bozeman

Katie Cettei, a senior psychology major, dreamed big when deciding where she wanted to do her internship and she will be getting a big payoff for it with the FBI this summer.

With the help of sociology professor Tina Jaeckle, Cettei has secured an internship with the FBI’s Behavioral Science Unit (BSU), located at the FBI Academy in Quantico, Va.

“What she’s going to be able to do is go in and work with top-level FBI professors, who are experts in their fields and probably do some research with them, do some writing with them and learn about criminology,” said Jaeckle, who works with the FBI as a consultant and visiting professor at the BSU.

Cettei’s ambition is to go into forensic psychology, and the BSU is not only the best place to train, but also the best opportunity for networking available to a new graduate. The professors with whom she will be directly working are those who train leaders in her field.
“I just think meeting the professors and hearing about their experiences in the field, and what they’ve learned, what they’ve taken away from their experiences will be the biggest [advantage] of participating,” Cettei said.

Jaeckle agrees. “There is no question that she would receive no better training than [she will receive] from these folks,” she said.

Throughout the 14-week program, Cettei will be living with an approved family near the Academy campus, and will be on her own financially. But she feels that the benefits of being involved in the internship far outweigh the financial responsibility, and plans to save up over the summer before the leaves for Virginia in the fall. She will also consider getting a part-time job to help with her expenses, despite the fact that interning is a 40-hour per week commitment, plus the elective classes.

“It’s definitely worth it,” she said.

The internship will consist mainly of research and teaching assistance, but Cettei is most excited about the opportunity she will have to attend any three classes per week, which are usually open only to students of the Academy. Offered courses typically cover such topics as bio-psycho social aspects of criminal behavior and applied behavioral science for law enforcement operations.

After she returns from Quantico in December, Cettei will graduate from Flagler and is planning on attending graduate school at either the University of Florida or the John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York. After that, she will go where the wind takes her.

“I don’t really have a plan,” she said. “I think it’s good to be open.”

Cettei is also the first Flagler student to ever intern with the FBI in this capacity, although Jaeckle has a second student under consideration to follow Cettei to Quantico. She says of this possible second intern, “She’s just got to get into graduate school and then we’ll work with her.”

Jaeckle says that for the next cycle, students who are not necessarily interested in psychology or forensics may have the opportunity to intern at the Quantico campus. “If other students are interested they’re always welcome to come talk to me about it, but they have to talk to me. It’s not something that they can look up and apply for.”

If you may be interested in discussing an internship with Tina Jaeckle, visit her at Carrera #33, or e-mail tjaecke@flagler.edu.