Purpose Of An Internship
Internships prepare students for future employment by giving them the opportunity to apply the organizational and verbal skills that they have developed in their course work in a vocational setting. The process of obtaining an internship also provides students with valuable practice in interviewing for a job. All internships should focus on writing (or related language skills) rather than clerical duties or unskilled tasks. Students should expect to work at least 75 hours during the semester of their internship; they should not work more than 110 hours.
Step 1. Compose Your Resumé & Prepare Your Writing Sample
See the Career Center, Old Main 016, for help in structuring your resume. In addition to your resume, your future on-the-job internship supervisor may wish to see a sample of your writing. Prepare such a sample by choosing a paper with which you are pleased and revising it, correcting all errors. The staff of the Career Center is experienced in working with liberal arts students on resumes and writing samples.
Step 2. See The Internship Director To Apply For An Internship
The English Department Internship Director will be glad to discuss internships with you. The current director is Professor Amy Wolf (Churchill Tower 903, extension 2627, wolfa@canisius.edu). When you meet with Dr. Wolf, obtain from her the forms for the internship: progress reports and the final report.
Step 3. Get A Faculty Mentor For Your Internship
Your mentor will evaluate your work and give you a grade for English 498 at the end of the semester.
Step 4. Get An Internship Registration Form From The Office Of The Associate Dean Of Arts And Sciences
After you fill out the top part of the form, which includes a brief description of your planned internship, take the form to the following people for their signature: your faculty mentor, the English Department chair, and the associate dean (Old Main 111). The Office of the Associate Dean will keep the form and see that you are registered for the internship. Please obtain a photocopy of the completed form and give it to the Internship Director.
Step 5. Set Up An Interview With The Organization You HAve Chosen And Accept The Ineternship
You will be responsible for setting up and attending your interview, although the internship director may call to introduce you if you think it is appropriate. It is important that you dress somewhat formally for your interview, and that you bring extra copies of your resume and writing sample.
During the interview, your prospective on-the-job supervisor will of course be judging how suited you are for filling the needs of his/her organization; however, don't forget to gauge how well the internship will fill your needs. If you don't think an internship is appropriate for you, feel free to decline it.
If you do accept an internship, you and your supervisor will have to negotiate a work schedule that is satisfactory to both of you. This negotiation may go more smoothly if you can be somewhat flexible, but do keep in mind the hour limits stated in the first paragraph of this document, as well as your obligations in your other courses.
Step 6. Ensure That You Receive A Grade For Your Internship
Be sure to complete the following processes on time to receive a grade for your internship:
A. You obtain two “Internship Progress Report” forms and one “Internship Final Report” form from the Internship Director and give them to your work supervisor.Your final grade will be based on your mentor’s evaluation of these documents. If any of the documents are missing, you may receive a grade of FX until you provide them. Thus, you will want to make sure that these documents are completed and delivered to your mentor in a timely fashion.
B. Your work supervisor documents your performance in the internship by filling out one “Internship Progress Report” after the fifth week of the internship and the other after the tenth week. These reports are to be mailed to your faculty mentor.
C. At the end of the internship, your work supervisor fills out an “Internship Final Report” on your performance throughout the semester, and mails it to your faculty mentor. (Make sure that your mentor receives this report well before final grades for the semester are due.)
D. You write a six to ten page essay for your mentor in which you describe your internship duties and what you learned from them. This is an especially important document. See your mentor for any special instructions he/she may have about its content or form, and for an exact due date.
E. You give your mentor your essay along with samples of the writing or editing you have done in your internship.