Ness School Internship Program

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Internship Handbook
Explore This Section
Internship Handbook

An internship is an opportunity for students to earn academic credit while engaged in meaningful work with a high degree of educational value. During the internship experience, students gain the opportunity to apply the knowledge, skills and abilities they鈥檝e developed in their academic disciplines, acquire hands-on experience that they can bring to bear in subsequent coursework and learn how to conduct themselves in a professional setting. The internship can also serve as a stepping stone into a career with the selected company or organization.  Many students view their internship as a highlight of their college careers.

An internship is an opportunity for students to earn academic credit while engaged in meaningful work with a high degree of educational value. During the internship experience, students gain the opportunity to apply the knowledge, skills and abilities they鈥檝e developed in their academic disciplines, acquire hands-on experience that they can bring to bear in subsequent coursework, and learn how to conduct themselves in a professional setting. The internship can also serve as a stepping stone into a career with the selected company or organization. Many students view their internship as a highlight of their college careers.

Ness School of Management and Economics

Steps in the internship process.

I. Steps to complete when looking at different internship opportunities:

  1. Review NSME Internship Handbook.
  2. Forward list of duties/job description from the company to internship coordinator to determine acceptability for academic credit.

II. Steps to complete once a student accepts an internship position but before the job has started:

  1. Complete the internship application and forward to Klein.
  2. Forward supervisor contact information to Klein (if not already included in the application). She and Allen Falken will work with the appropriate personnel in the company to complete the master agreement and Individual Agreement. (This may be a lengthy process, so we need to start on this right away).
  3. Write an internship plan and forward to Klein.
  4. Arrange meeting with Klein to discuss the internship after the application and internship plan are completed.
  5. Once all of the above have been completed, you will be given permission to enroll in the appropriate 494 section.

III. Steps to complete after the internship job has started:

  1. Write midterm report and submit to D2L dropbox by end of week eight (Fall and Spring semesters) or by July 1 (Summer term)
  2. Give a final oral report to Klein by first day of finals week (Fall and Spring semesters) or end of 10-week term (summer term) OR within five days of end of employment. Please discuss specific due date with Klein. If giving a final report to the employer, please discuss with Dr Klein the logistics of using this as partial fulfillment of the final report.
  3. Have supervisor complete supervisor evaluation form and email directly to Nicole Klein

Writing a Plan

Planning for an effective internship from the very start helps ensure a successful experience. Therefore, a well-designed internship plan prior to the start of the experience is an essential requirement for a successful internship course. The purpose of the internship plan is to develop a 鈥渞oad map鈥 for the internship experience, and it is intended to help students think in-depth about what to expect from the experience. The internship plan will serve as an outline for final assessment. While students are responsible for developing their own internship plan, it should be written in close consultation with the employer. Approval by the employer is required prior to submission to the Internship Coordinator. Close communications in the development of the internship plan is expected to lead to an alignment of expectations between student and employer about the internship experience.

Internship Plan

Basic Information

  • Student name
  • Position title
  • Position description
  • Company or organization name
  • Mission statement and/or organization description

Internship-specific information

  • The intern鈥檚 goal of the internship (a goal is a broadly stated aim or overall purpose)
  • A set of specific objectives (objectives serve to work toward the overall goal) related to the final assessment of the internship

In developing the internship plan, it may be helpful to obtain a copy of your employer鈥檚 educational plan for your position and use it to write your internship plan. A job description written by the employer is a required attachment to the plan. While your employer鈥檚 educational plan will likely not be in the format required for your internship plan, information from the educational plan may be useful for crafting your internship plan鈥檚 goal and objectives. If your employer does not have a formalized educational plan for your position you should consult with the employer about your internship goal and realistic objectives for your internship.

  • Position title: Use the title of your expected internship position as stated by your employer. 鈥淪tudent Intern鈥 is the default position title if your employer does not have a title for the position.
  • Job description: Consult with your employer to obtain a brief description of expected duties and responsibilities for your position and attach to your internship plan.
  • Company Name: The name of the company or organization should be followed its mission statement, if it exists. The mission statement should be followed with a 4 to 5 sentence description of the company. This description should describe basic information about the operation, such as location, age, size, sector, and organizational structure.
  • Intern鈥檚 goal for the Internship: The internship goal is a desired outcome of the internship. It should be a general rather than a specific statement. Typically, it is not quantified, and it may be difficult to determine if it has been achieved. The goal may have multiple parts.
  • Objectives: Objectives are more specific than goals and should include both task-oriented and professional growth-oriented objectives. Objectives are the things that need to be completed in order to achieve the goal. Task-oriented objectives are often quantified, may include targets or deadlines for completion, and include things that you hope to learn. Professional-growth objectives include how you hope to grow professionally during your internship. These are harder to quantify and may take a little more thought to determine what areas of professional development do you hope to advance during your internship.
  • Strategic Assessment: These considerations must be incorporated in the final assessment. The objectives related to each will be customized based on the job activities and duties. Use the internship plan as an outline to evaluate what you hope to accomplish over the course of your internship. The following considerations will apply to final grading of the internship report and should be considered in the outline of your plan:
    1. Career Goals 鈥 Identify and discuss goals for your career and internship experience.
    2. Business Concepts 鈥 Identify, explain, and apply curricular business concepts to the work environment, including ethics.
    3. Organization Analysis 鈥 Provide a comprehensive analysis of the condition, performance, structure, and strategies of the work organization.
    4. Problem Solving 鈥 Define a problem or opportunity related to work organization and use a problem solving process to explore alternative solutions.
    5. Global Issues 鈥 Identify contemporary global trends and issues and determine opportunities and threats they present to the work organization