Career Development
Information for Students
The internship program at the College of St. Catherine is one component of an extensive career planning process available to students through the Career Development office. It is designed to give students the opportunity to undertake a professionally supervised and planned work experience that relates to their academic program and career interests.
An internship is a structured, work-based learning experience related to your personal interests and field of study. Internships are designed to be exploratory in nature, as opposed to “training” required as part of certification, licensure or a credential (e.g. fieldwork, practicum, clinicals, student teaching). It may be done on a full-time (summer or January) or part-time basis (summer, semester, or WEC trimester) and conducted concurrently with other academic coursework. An internship is planned by you in cooperation with a faculty internship advisor (FIA), the Internship Director and an on-site supervisor. No more than 20 percent of your internship responsibilities should be clerical in nature.
An internship comes packaged with numerous benefits including an opportunity to:
• Apply classroom learning to the workplace.
• Explore occupational options.
• Test reality by trying out your interests and abilities in a work setting.
• Develop and enhance professional skills.
• Increase self-confidence as a student and worker.
• Practice job search skills and expand one’s network of professionals.
• Build a resume with relevant work experience.
• Earn academic credit.
• Possibly earn money.
The maximum number of semester credits a student can earn in experiential learning (including internships, independent studies, individual studies, CARL) is 32 credits. Students may earn zero, 2 or 4 credits per internship. The number of hours per week a student is expected to devote to the internship experience depends on the number of credits for which she registers. The following information indicates the total number of hours an intern is required to work based on credits.
Credit Options
4 semester credits 150-160 total hours
2 semester credits 75-80 total hours
Zero credit 75-80 total hours
During the fall, spring, and summer sessions:
4 credit internship average 10-12 hours/week
2 credit average 5-6 hours/week
Zero credit average 5-6 hours/week
During January term:
4 credit internship average 38-40 hours/week
2 credit average 18-20 hours/week
Zero credit average 18-20 hours/week
Time spent on outside research, training workshops, or meetings related
to the internship may be included in the hour requirements as long as it is
agreed upon by the site supervisor, internship director, and student intern.
Students should begin planning their internship as soon as possible, but no later than the beginning of the semester preceding the semester in which she plans to do her internship. For example, students planning an internship for spring semester should begin their planning early fall semester. Assessing one’s goals and objectives, developing the appropriate internship site and preparing an appropriate resume takes time. It is never too early to begin your planning!
The particular department in which a student hopes to earn credit must correspond with the nature of the internship tasks and activities (e.g. legislative research - political science, graphic design - art). Most often a student will opt to take a credit-based internship in her major/minor department. Credit-based internships are designated as course #460 within individual academic departments. Each academic program varies as to whether course #460 fulfills a major/minor requirement or serves as elective credit. Students should consult their academic advisor and the college catalog.
During fall and spring semesters and the WEC fall, winter and spring trimesters, full tuition is charged based on the number of course credits taken. Summer session tuition is charged at a reduced rate. Zero credit internships will be charged only a small program fee.
Some internships are paid and some are not. Payment depends on the resources of the sponsoring organization. Compensation for work undertaken as an intern can take a variety of forms. You can be paid a wage, be reimbursed for mileage and/or other expenses incurred as part of your internship experience, or receive a stipend. Organizations not able to directly compensate an intern may offer indirect compensation in the form of discounts on services or products, or the opportunity to participate in in-service and/or training workshops usually provided for full-time employees.
The major participants in an internship are the student intern, site supervisor at the organization, CSC internship director, and in the case of credit internships, faculty internship advisor.
Student Intern
T, he student intern is responsible for selecting her internship experience (final approval given by Faculty Intership Advisor and Internship Director) and seeking out a faculty member in the department in which the credit is to be earned. The FIA will supervise the intern throughout her internship. The intern is also responsible for completing an Internship Learning Contract, working the required number of hours, keeping a journal of her internship experiences, and completing a special work project for evaluation which may include a research paper, portfolio, or oral presentation. In addition, the intern schedules the mid-semester evaluation meeting between the student, site supervisor, and FIA. The intern also maintains high standards of professionalism while on site.
Site Supervisor
Student interns are supervised by a staff person employed by the site organization who has a significant amount of experience and expertise in the area in which the student is interning. Site supervisors are responsible for interviewing interns, determining qualifications for the position, orienting interns to the organization, supervising, directing, and evaluating their work. The ideal site supervisor will serve as a mentor, sharing the pros and cons of a career in the field and giving suggestions for entering the profession. She/he will also have sufficient experience in the field to draw from and will share that experience with the student intern. The site supervisor meets with the intern on a regular basis to guide performance, answer questions and provide background information and resources related to the intern’s work. A site supervisor may also help by recommending ways to enhance the intern’s learning.
Internship Director
The Internship Director is a staff member in the Career Development Office and serves as the central information resource for all questions concerning internships at the College. The Director provides guidance to prospective interns and information about the process and requirements of securing and participating in an academically appropriate internship. The Internship Director connects with the community to develop relationships with employers and prospective internship sites. In zero credit internships, the Internship Director assumes the role of FIA. The Internship Director is responsible for informing the “key” people in the internship of their roles and responsibilities. The Director addresses questions and mediates problems and issues among the participants in the experience. In addition, the Director maintains the student intern’s official internship file and ensures that the paperwork is distributed and completed by appropriate individuals.
Faculty Internship Advisor (2 and 4 Credit Internships)
The FIA is responsible for helping the intern integrate the internship into her total academic experience. She/he provides academic direction and evaluates the learning derived from the internship. The FIA meets with the intern to assist her in defining her Learning Contract objectives and learning tasks and strategies that support them. The FIA maintains appropriate contact with the student throughout her experience to give direction and support. The FIA is asked to initiate a phone call to the site supervisor and intern sometime during the first ten days of the semester to establish contact and communication. In addition, the FIA conducts an on-site evaluation meeting with the student intern and site supervisor midpoint in the internship experience to evaluate the student’s learning and experience to date. The student is responsible for arranging this meeting among the three participants. The Mid-Semester Intern Evaluation form can be used as a basis for discussion at this meeting. When an on-site evaluation is not possible, the evaluation is to be conducted by telephone and is the FIA’s responsibility to do this. At the end of the semester, the FIA and student intern meet to review her journal, major work project, and to provide closure to the experience. The FIA evaluates the student intern’s learning and assigns and submits the grade.
Participating in an internship can benefit you intellectually, personally and professionally. There may be, however, some unanticipated developments in your internship which can become potential barriers to a positive experience. Your awareness and ability to handle the problem will make a positive outcome more likely.
If at any time you experience a problem at your site, please contact your FIA and the Internship Director. Listed below are a few potential problems along with possible solutions:
Possible Problem
Unrealistic Expectations Think through clearly what you did expect from this internship, and consider whether these expectations were realistic. If they were, how might you still meet them? If they were not, what caused them to be unrealistic?
Conflicting Goals Be aware that some of your goals may be different from those of your site supervisor. Try to balance the two sets of expectations and meet as many of your site supervisor’s expectations as possible, while still maintaining focus on your expectations.
Boredom Seek out new assignments. See where there is a need to be met and develop a plan to meet the need. Suggest your plan to your site supervisor.
Poor Communication Most problems arise from a misunderstanding or a lack of communication between people. If you have a concern, raise the issue with your site supervisor in a polite and tactful manner. Site supervisors usually do not take on an intern unless they want to help them develop.
Following are the titles of some internships that have at one time or another been posted in our internship database. These ideas will get you started thinking about how your major might relate to some internship possibilities.
Majoring in Accounting/Finance? Tax Clinic & Resource Intern, Accounting Intern, Bank Teller Intern , Financial Services Intern, Budget Intern
Majoring in Business? Sales Intern, Office Management Trainee, Marketing Research Intern, Inside Sales Representative, Personal Banker Intern ,Human Resources/Training,Development Intern
Majoring in Biology? Dental Assistant, Conservation Intern, Raptor Care and Education Intern, Public Health Outreach Intern, Hazardous Waste Intern, Heart Institute Intern
Majoring in Art/Music/Theater? Theater Education Intern, Graphic Design Intern, Gallery Marketing Intern, Gallery Assistant Intern, Art Education/Clay Camp Intern , Art Exhibition Intern
Majoring in Communications? Events Planning Intern, Marketing Intern, Public Relations Intern, Grant Writing and Research Intern, Development/Fundraising Promotions Intern, Outreach/Community Organizer
Majoring in Education? After School Enrichment Instructor, Child Care Intern, Youth Development Intern Family Education, Tobacco Prevention Intern Teacher Aide, Computer Lab Aide, Truancy Intervention, Homework Center Intern
Majoring in FCNS? Soft Lines Apparel Intern, Retail Management Intern, College and University Food Retail and Marketing Intern, Service Management
Majoring in Psychology/Women Studies? Organizing and Advocacy Intern, Research Assistant, Resource Counseling Intern, Girl Scout Program Intern, Restorative Justice Intern, Probation Officer Intern, Senior Citizen Program Assistant
Majoring in Computer/Information Management? Web Design, Web Programmer, Document Retention and Electronic Communications Intern, Retrieval Intern
Majoring in Exercise Science? Athletic Training Intern, Fitness/Wellness Intern, Youth Fitness Instructor, Game Production Intern, Community Health Education Intern, Sports Management Intern, Summer Recreation Intern