Preparation and Registration

1. It is the student's obligation to identify and apply to an internship site through the Center for Career & Professional Development, Faculty sponsors, or their own resources. This step may include creating a résumé.
2. The student then consults with a Faculty member of his/her choice to sponsor the internship, discussing the student's learning objectives for the internship experience.
3. After confirming the internship site through interviews or other arrangements, the student completes an Internship Contract, available from the Center for Career & Professional Development. The contract includes a general description of work-related responsibilities as well as learning objectives agreed upon by the student and Faculty sponsor for the internship. It also includes a description of a substantive academic component. The academic component of an internship should not be tacked on; it must be an integral part of the internship devised by the Faculty supervisor in consultation with the student and, if possible, the employer. The component might include assigned readings, an academic paper, a journal, a portfolio or log, or written-up notes from a series of interviews. It almost certainly would include several of these. All contracts will include a requirement for an oral presentation in the form of the Internship Showcase. The contract will be approved with signatures by the employer sponsor, the Faculty sponsor, the Assistant Director in the Center for Career & Professional Development, and the Associate Dean.
4. Students should register for INT 400. The completed and signed contract will be sent to the Registrar's Office with an internship title, Faculty sponsor, and number of credits expected. Students who wish to register for more than three credits must petition the Academic Standards Committee with appropriate support from the Faculty sponsor and the Center for Career & Professional Development. Requests for more than three hours credit are very rarely granted.
5. The student must attend one class prior to the beginning of the internship (led by the Assistant Director in the Center for Career & Professional Development. This class will include an introduction to experiential learning and an introduction to self-guided inquiry.