MARTA Police Internships Lead to Job Offers, Launch Careers

ATLANTA — Six undergraduates in Georgia State University’s criminal justice program interned with the MARTA Police Department (MPD) in spring 2024, and all six received job offers from the organization. Summer interns have begun considering offers as the semester winds down.

In fact, since Internship Coordinator Michael Shapiro introduced the MPD program in 2022, most interns who’ve completed the program have received job offers. The Georgia State-to-MARTA college-to-career pipeline boasts a record that’s hard to beat.

“My internship experience at MPD was great, overall,” said spring intern Dayron Watson, who will complete his degree this summer. “All the employees were very welcoming. They gave us lots of information about how to get into the field and what to prepare for. They were clear about what they expected.”

The MARTA Police Department trains and pays Georgia State interns every semester. Additionally, interns like Leotrim Gashi have opportunities to aid the agency in its strategic initiatives. Gashi appeared in MPD’s See & Say 2.0 public safety campaign.

Leotrim Gashi (L) and Sgt. G. Dennis

Georgia State alumna Sgt. Monique Hill (B.S. ’15) serves as the department’s internship coordinator. She understands how difficult it can be to find the right internship, let alone the right job.

“I feel I’ve come full circle in helping students,” she said. “When I was at Georgia State, I struggled to find an internship. A professor assisted me in getting one with a law office, but I would have preferred one in policing. I felt policing would be the ultimate career, fulfilling my desire to assist those in need by protecting and serving my community.”

As a child, Hill dreamed of being a negotiator. She learned the path to her dream was in law enforcement, so she entered the criminal justice program at Perimeter College in 2011, before the college had joined Georgia State. She transferred to the criminal justice program in the Andrew Young School of Policy Studies and graduated in 2015.

Hill settled into her policing career quickly upon graduation, starting as a detention officer with the DeKalb County Sheriff’s Office. She joined the MARTA Police Department in 2017.

In addition to being MPD’s internship coordinator, Hill holds other roles. As training coordinator, she ensures that MPD’s approximately 300 sworn police personnel receive training in mandatory Georgia Peace Officer Standards and Training (P.O.S.T.) Council requirements to keep their credentials up to date. She also serves as the community outreach liaison, in charge of planning events like the COPPS program to prevent juvenile crime, the Kids in Transit summer camp and the Citizen’s Police Academy. She coordinates personnel participation in community-led events as well, and heads the chaplaincy program.

Additionally, Hill serves as MPD’s Crisis Negotiation Team commander, with several officers on her team. Her varied experiences serve the interns well.

“Our interns get well-rounded knowledge and experience,” Hill said. “One of my main goals is to ensure they spend three to four days in every department.”

The interns are assigned mentors to shadow in each of the different units. In the Police Records Department, they get to see how reports are processed. In the Property and Evidence Unit, they observe how MPD processes criminal evidence and stores lost items and property held for safekeeping after an arrest. They also shadow detectives from the Criminal Investigations Unit, Explosive Detection K-9 Teams and front-line officers assigned to precincts in the field.

“We did ride-alongs, listened to dispatch and saw how everything works,” Watson said. “I’ve done ride-alongs with other police departments. MPD is different in that it’s very customer service-based. The MARTA officers do policing and more — like when people need directions or have trouble getting into the train stations. We had a lot of interaction with the people we served.”

Watson knew early on that policing was the path he would follow. Originally from Brooklyn, N.Y., he has a cousin who recently retired from the NYPD and other family in the military.

“This internship showed me the most important part of doing the job well is being able to communicate — to treat others how we want to be treated," he said. "Have an open mind and be careful with how you respond to people. Respect goes a long way. Some customers may not act like they should, but as long as you do, everything comes around.”

Three Georgia State interns have accepted offers and started jobs with MARTA since the program began. One is a police officer, another works with the records department and another as a call-taker in the Police Communications Center. Watson fielded several offers while working to complete his degree and has joined the Conyers, Ga., Police Department.

Given her experience as a former student and internship coordinator, Hill has advice for students seeking internships.

“This is the same advice I’d give the younger me — characteristics we’re looking for,” she said. “First, when seeking a position, do not be afraid to ask questions. Ask as many as you need to get clarity. Second is networking. Meet as many people as you can. As we work in public transit, people see us as being the heartbeat of Atlanta. Don’t be afraid to get information. Pick their brains. Third, be open-minded and ready to learn. And most importantly, just be yourself. A lot of times we try to be what we think an employer wants, but it’s just easier to be yourself.”

To learn more about Georgia State’s degree opportunities in criminal justice and criminology, start HERE.