ENGLISH and WRITING INTERNSHIPS

ENG 409, LING 409, HUM 409, WR 409

 

 

REQUIREMENTS FOR INTERNSHIP

1. The student has junior standing when applying (has completed at least 90 credit hours).
2. Has a cumulative GPA of at least 3.0 in English Studies coursework.
3. Has completed WR 135 or the equivalent, plus 8 hours of upper-division coursework in Literature, Linguistics and/or Writing.

 

ESTABLISHING THE INTERNSHIP

Step One–Making Arrangements

1. Before applying for the internship, the student must consult with the appropriate faculty advisor who will grant the student academic credit for the internship.
2. The student must obtain an on-site supervisor, a person who will assign duties and review the student’s work.
3. The student and the supervisor must determine the tasks to be performed and duties to be assigned.

 

Step Two–Preparing the Internship Proposal

After consultation with the faculty advisor, the intern will submit the internship proposal.

1. The proposal should be typed, double-spaced and must include the following information:

The name of the intern

The name of the faculty advisor who will be responsible for the internship’s academic credit

The name and address of the organization where the internship is to be performed

The name, address, email and telephone number of the supervisor who will assign the duties and evaluate the intern.

Job description:  a detailed explanation of the intern’s duties, expected projects and

responsibilities.

A one-page explanation of why the internship deserves academic credit:  in particular, what benefits this particular internship will provide in terms of the student’s academic program and career interests.

2. The completed proposal should be submitted to the faculty advisor with a copy for the department chair. It becomes the contract between the student and the faculty advisor.

 

Step Three:  Obtaining the Approval of the Internship Agency

Before the internship can be approved by the faculty supervisor, the internship proposal must be signed by the on-site internship supervisor.

 

Step Four:  Determining Credit

1. Internships under Eng 409, Ling 409, Hum 409 and Wr 409 may be taken Pass/No Credit only.

 

2. Students can apply a maximum of 8 internship credits towards their major; beyond this, 4 additional credits may be used towards the minor or towards upper division elective requirements. Note that no more than 12 internship credits total, under any prefix, may be applied towards a Western Oregon University degree.
3. For every credit hour earned, a student must spend at the internship site a minimum of 30 hours per quarter. For example, 3 hours per week for 10 weeks would equal 1 credit; 6 hours per week for 10 weeks would equal 2 credits.  Internships that do not coincide with the academic calendar will have credit hours prorated on this basis.

 

5. The number of credit hours will be determined by the student in consultation with the faculty advisor and will be based on the time to be spent working on the internship and the assigned responsibilities as described in the proposal.

 

4. Students register for the internship under ENG 409, WR 409, LING 409 or HUM 409 with a by-arrangement form.

 

APPLICATION

The student must submit the following documents to the faculty internship advisor:

• the complete proposal, signed by the faculty advisor and by the on-site supervisor (from Steps Two and Three)

• a statement of the credit hours desired  (from Step Four)
• a letter of support from a WOU faculty member
• a recent unofficial transcript

 

EVALUATION OF THE INTERN

1. Halfway through the internship, the intern should get the Midterm Intern Evaluation Form from the faculty advisor and ask the internship supervisor to complete the form and send it directly to the faculty advisor.
2. At the beginning of week 6 of a 10-week internship, the student must submit a two-page progress report to the faculty advisor. The report must be accompanied by the student’s journal entries for the first five weeks (see # 4 below).
3. At the end of the period designated for the internship, the supervisor must submit a written end of term evaluation of the intern and his/her work to the faculty advisor. This evaluation should cover the same topics as the Midterm Intern Evaluation Form, as well as any additional information the internship supervisor feels is appropriate.
4. Portfolio assessment: A student must submit to the faculty internship advisor a portfolio by the Monday of finals week.   The following must be included:

A weekly journal of the student’s assignments and activities.  Each entry should be at least a page long and should include what the intern is learning from the internship, what skills he/she is using, plans, objectives, etc.

Samples of the work performed during the internship (i.e. flyers, ads, reports, etc.)

As an introduction to the portfolio, a 2-3 (typed)-page cover letter in which the student describes clearly the benefits/knowledge gained from the internship experience and discusses how classes relevant to the internship helped prepare him/her for the internship.

 

TERMINATION

Failure to fulfill professional obligations to the agency as stated by the contract or failure of the agency to properly assist and supervise the student may result in termination.  Credit will be either Withdraw or NC.