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Internships
Women's Studies internships allow students the opportunity to test
classroom concepts in a field setting within the University or with community
agencies that provide services to women. Students who are majoring in Women's
Studies must participate in an internship; minors are encouraged to do so for
elective credit.
The Women's Studies Program has information on
internships including a list of agencies in which students can intern. This list
is separated into: legal, political and social agencies and organizations. For
example, students interested in social organizations can choose from counseling,
women's shelters, local YWCA's or women's health organizations. In addition,
there are many political and legal organizations from which to choose.
Internships from 1 - 3 credit hours are available for
Women's Studies Majors and Minors. The internship goal is to work with women in the student's
chosen field or career. Internships can be arranged with the Women's Studies
Coordinator, Laurie Fuller.
GUIDELINES
1. An internship in Women's Studies is a
field experience at a community agency or program concerned with the needs of
women. The point of the internship is to put the ideas and theories of Women's
Studies into practice in an actual setting focused on women, to refine,
challenge, and apply concepts in women's studies to the internship context. This
course emphasizes the relationship between Women's Studies and work on women's
concerns.
2. The student interested in an internship
must be a Women's Studies Major or Minor (or have taken several Women's Studies
classes) with the goal of working with women in her chosen field or
career.
3. Before registering for an internship,
the student must find an area agency willing to supervise an intern and discuss
with the program director the goals of the program and the opportunities for
interns.
4. An agreement must be worked out between
student and agency, clearly delineating the intern's proposed project and
responsibilities, the tasks to be accomplished, and the hours to be
worked
5. The student is responsible for
submitting in writing the resulting agreement to the Coordinator of Women's
Studies. The agreement should specify the following:
a. The general goal of the
internship
b. Three learning objectives
c. Methods of accomplishing the
objectives
d. The number of hours the student will work at the
agency
3 - 4 hours
worked = 1 credit hour
8 - 9 hours worked = 2 credit
hours
10+ hours worked
= 3 credit hours
e. How the project and learning objectives are related to
Women's Studies theories (feminisms) and practices
Numbers 1-5 above must be completed before
the second week of classes for the fall and spring semesters and before the
first week of classes for the summer semester. Failure to have steps 1-5
completed by that time will lower the student's grade one letter, (from an A to
a B and so on).
6. The intern is required to send three
narrative reports to the Women's Studies Coordinator during the semester (see grading guidelines below for report content requirements). The
first two reports (to be sent at regular intervals) will document the progress
the student is making in achieving the goals and objectives established. The
third report (at the end of the semester) should be a summary paper (minimum of
three pages) commenting on the completed project and the learning experience.
This paper summarizing the project needs to comprehensively deal with the
relationship between the project, learning objectives and Women's Studies
theories (feminisms) and practices.
7. The last requirement is a brief letter
from the intern's supervisor to the Coordinator of Women's Studies indicating
whether the student had completed the agreed project and tasks satisfactorily.
This letter should be sent at the completion of the semester to be received by
the first day of the exam period for the semester.
Grading of the
Women's Studies Internship
A = All your papers are turned in on time. (Agreement is due the second week
of the semester. Fall semester papers are due: October 1, November 1, and the
last Friday of classes. Spring semester papers are due: February 1, March 1, and
the last Friday of classes.) Each paper you wrote was an excellent
well-constructed essay, with no spelling mistakes or run-on sentences. Each
paper had a clear thesis that thoughtfully described in-depth the current status
of both your internship and your internship objectives, and how they relate to
ideas you have learned in your Women's Studies courses. In your papers you
clearly discussed your goals and objectives, reflecting on how your internship
is going and how you are accomplishing, or not, those goals and objectives you
set for yourself. What are you learning in your internship and how does it
relate to what you have learned in Women's Studies courses? You explained in
detail how what you learned in your internship related to what you have learned
in Women's Studies, quote some readings or examples from classes and discuss how
they relate. In addition, your summary paper demonstrated an in-depth
understanding of the relationship between the project, learning objectives and
Women's Studies theories (feminisms) and practices, including a thorough
bibliography of the texts you quote and relate to your internship learning.
Lastly, you received a superior report from your internship supervisor.
B = Two or more of your papers were turned in on time. Each paper you wrote
was a well-constructed essay, with few spelling mistakes or run-on sentences.
Each paper demonstrated a solid understanding of the current status of both your
internship and your internship objectives, and how they relate to ideas you have
learned in your Women's Studies courses. In your papers you discussed your goals
and objectives, reflecting on how your internship is going and how you are
accomplishing, or not, those goals and objectives you set for yourself. What are
you learning in your internship and how does it relate to what you have learned
in Women's Studies courses? You explained how what you learned in your
internship related to what you have learned in Women's Studies, quote some
readings or examples from classes and discuss how they relate. In addition, your
summary paper demonstrated a solid understanding of the relationship between the
project, learning objectives and Women's Studies theories (feminisms) and
practices, including a bibliography of the texts you quote and relate to your
internship learning. (Your papers were well written but had a few rough spots.)
Lastly, you received a good report from your internship supervisor.
C = One or more of your papers was turned in on time. Each paper you wrote
demonstrated an adequate understanding of the current status of both your
internship and your internship objectives and how they relate to ideas you have
learned in your Women's Studies courses. In your papers you discussed somewhat
your goals and objectives, reflecting on how your internship is going and how
you are accomplishing, or not, those goals and objectives you set for yourself.
What are you learning in your internship and how does it relate to what you have
learned in Women's Studies courses? You explained somewhat how what you learned
in your internship related to what you have learned in Women's Studies, quote
some readings or examples from classes and discuss how they relate. In addition,
your summary paper demonstrated an adequate understanding of the relationship
between the project, learning objectives and Women's Studies theories
(feminisms) and practices, including somewhat of a bibliography of the texts you
quote and relate to your internship learning. (Your papers demonstrated only
superficial and cursory understanding of these relationships.) Lastly, you
received a satisfactory report from your internship supervisor.
D = You have demonstrated an incomplete understanding of the current status
of both your internship and your internship objectives, and how they relate to
ideas you have learned in your Women's Studies courses. In addition, your
summary paper demonstrated an incomplete understanding of the relationship
between the project, learning objectives and Women's Studies theories
(feminisms) and practices. (Your papers demonstrated an inadequate and vague
understanding of these relationships.) Lastly, you received an unsatisfactory
report from your internship supervisor.
F = You have demonstrated a poor understanding of the current status of both
your internship and your internship objectives, and how they relate to ideas you
have learned in your Women's Studies courses. In addition, your summary paper
demonstrated a poor understanding of the relationship between the project,
learning objectives and Women's Studies theories (feminisms) and practices.
(Your papers demonstrated an insufficient understanding of these relationships.)
Lastly, you received a poor report from your internship supervisor.
Fall semester papers are due: October 1,
November 1, and the last Friday of classes. Spring semester papers are due:
February 1, March 1, and the last Friday of classes. Summer due dates will be
arranged with the Coordinator.
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