Internship Class Official description:

An internship is a high impact learning experience where knowledge and theory from students’ program of study are integrated with shadowing, volunteering, or paid employment with a private company, not-for-profit organization or government agency toward the intentional development of transferable knowledge, skills and abilities and practical application of professional competencies. The semester prior to the internship, Academic and Career Advising Center staff assist students with preparing their application materials and searching and applying for English Studies related internships within the local community, stateside or abroad, as well as in defining learning objectives, educational and career goals, and professional deliverables to be met throughout the course of training and practice. During the semester of the internship course, under the mentorship of a dedicated professional who has the education and/or background and expertise of the students’ discipline of study, students immerse in a remote, hybrid or in-person professional setting. Through guidance, support and regular feedback from the mentor and the internship course instructor, students strive to satisfactorily learn and practice their internship position and achieve their learning objectives. Students follow a course curriculum including: 40 contact hours at the host site per credit hour registered; participation in classes, meetings or workshops as scheduled by the course instructor; timely completion of homework assignments in support of student learning outcomes, professional readiness and career exploration; and end of semester evaluations.

Student Description of Internship class:

The internship class was useful because I feel like needing to check in with someone made me more accountable and helped me document the experience better. If it wasn’t for the class I don’t think I would have wrote anything down about my experience. Looking back on the documentation allows me to reflect on how this internship has helped me grow and what I can now do that I couldn’t at the beginning of the internship.

Student Description Of Internship:

Coming into this internship with little technical experience, I was amazed at how much I learned in just one semester. I got to work on camera setups and assist with lighting. Even though I was still learning the ropes, I loved being a part of a real production environment. It was a lot of hands-on experience that I could never get in the classroom. One thing that stood out during my internship was how often things went wrong and how crucial it was to solve problems quickly. It was incredible to see how the work I did in the studio, whether it was setting up the equipment or helping with edits actually contributed to the final product. There’s something really fulfilling about seeing a project come together and knowing you played a role in making it happen. It gave me a real sense of purpose and pride in the work I was doing, even if I was just assisting.