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What is the internship?.
The internship is a 9 credit hour course (HRD 329) that should be taken during. your last semester of course work. It is intended to provide HRD majors with a capstone experience that will bridge the gap between course work and professional practice by offering an opportunity to:
1) apply your accumulated knowledge to a real project that meets a .
real need within a real organization and
2) work with a practicing HRD professional at a sponsoring organization..
The internship will require approximately 300 hours over the course of the. semester -- approximately 20 hours a week during a 15 week semester. There are three basic roles in the internship:
•
The Intern is the
student. The Intern’s primary responsibility is to.
complete the internship as outlined in the Proposal, under the direction and guidance of the Sponsor and Instructor. •
The Sponsor is the
person at the organization to whom the intern will.report.
The Sponsor’s primary responsibilities are to provide the Intern with
direction,
guidance, and feedback, and to evaluate the Intern’s work in terms of
the
organization’s needs.
•
The Instructor is an
NEIU faculty member who is the instructor for the.HRD
329 course. The Instructor’s primary responsibilities are to
guide and coach the Intern, to facilitate the seminar component of the
course, and to provide a course grade, incorporating input from the
Sponsor.
What is the seminar part of the course? The course has two major components. Most of your time will probably be spent on the internship component -- working for the sponsoring organization. But there is a seminar component and you will be expected to attend scheduled class sessions and complete any class assignments given by the instructor. What do I turn in for a grade? No two internships are exactly the same. What you turn in are likely to be unique and what other students are turning in. The details will be worked out with your instructor. However, it is common to ask students to turn in: • periodic time logs that document the time spent on the internship and how that. time was spent • periodic reflective writings (for example a journal kept throughout the. internship) How
do I register for the course?
Like other courses, registration for HRD 329 is done through the online registration. What is different about this course is that registration requires prior authorization. To be authorized for the course you must:
1) Submit a written proposal and have it approved .
2) Be admitted to the College of Education .
3) Have completed all the required HRD courses
What
should be included in the proposal?
The
basic idea behind writing a proposal is to create a “contract” so that
everyone knows what your goals are and how the internship fits in with those goals. The proposal should include information about the following: . • The sponsoring organization. Include the name of the organization, its location, and a brief description of the products or services it provides. . • Your learning goals. Treat the internship as a professional development experience. What knowledge and skills do you already have that you will be able to use during the internship? What new knowledge and skills would you like to develop during the internship? One way to put this in context is to think about your particular career interests and goals. What would you like to do once you graduate with an HRD degree? What would you like to learn during your internship that would help you reach that goal? . • The planned learning activities. What will you be doing during your internship -- specifically what will you be doing to help you reach your learning goals? You may find that you are working as a member of a team. If that is the case, be sure to clearly describe your role in the work. Exactly what will your responsibilities be? . • The tangible results. What will you produce to help document accomplishment of your learning goals? What will be the end result of your work? What tangible thing(s) will you produce for the organization? Describe the outcome of the internship (training manual, website, etc.), including an outline of the content and a description of the intended audience. . • Contact information. Include names, titles, telephone numbers, addresses, and email addresses for both you and your sponsor. Sometimes details get worked
out as the internship
progresses. But, it’s
How
long should the proposal be? When
is the proposal due?
Internship proposals should be submitted to Dr. Dundis -- either in person (CLS 4010) or by email. If you plan to do your internship during the Fall semester, your proposal is due by July 15. If you plan to do your internship during the Spring semester, your proposal is due by November 1. And if you plan to do your internship during the summer semester, it should be submitted by April 15th. It is a good idea to get your proposal in as early as possible, in case there is anything that requires clarification or additional information. Proposals can be submitted as early as you like as long as you are sure that the conditions of your internship will not change substantially. .. How
do I find an internship?.
Finding an internship is like finding a job. First, make sure your resumé is up to. date and presentable. Second, develop a network of people and let them know that you are looking for an internship. Consider attending meetings of local professional organizations (ASTD, ISPI, HRD, etc.) as well as telling friends, family, other students, etc. Finally, keep your eyes and ears open for opportunities. In
looking for an internship, consider your own needs and interests, as
well as those of the organization. Think
about your own career goals and look for an internship that will help
you
achieve those goals. For example:
•
What do you want to learn; that is, what new knowledge and skills do
you
want to acquire? •
Do you want to work in a particular industry (healthcare, social
services,
retail sales, etc.)?
•
Do you want to work for a large or small organization? .
•
Is location important (downtown, western suburbs, northern suburbs,
etc.)?.
•
Is it important to find a paid internship? .
It
may not be possible to meet all of your needs and interests, but the
more.you
consider what those needs and interests. However, the better able you will
be
to meet at least some of them.
Can
the HRD Program help me find an internship?
Sometimes we have leads that we can tell you about. And sometimes. NEIU’s Placement Center has internship opportunities. But for the most part, the responsibility for finding an internship is yours. What
kinds of internships can I do?
This is pretty open. We have purposely kept the guidelines for internships. relatively loose in order to allow students a chance to explore a range of opportunities. The internship always involves a balance between the needs of the students, the sponsoring organization, and NEIU. •
For the students
-- The project should match their interests and career
goals. Students should think about the
internship as a component
of their professional education and develop an internship that is both
relevant and interesting to them.
•
For the sponsoring
organization -- The project should meet a real
organizational need. The expectation is that students will do real work for the organization. •
For NEIU --
The project should have some connection to the training and
.
development
focus of the HRD curriculum. We are also interested in
helping students
add to their professional portfolio. As a result, the project
should
lead to a tangible result, something students can show prospective
employers
as an example of their best work.
To illustrate
some of the possible variety, recent internships have included:.
•
Development of a training program on hiring for use by a consulting.
business •
Development of a website and procedural manual for a children’s museum..
•
Development of policy and procedure manuals for a travel company.
•
Evaluation and redesign of training programs for gymnastics instructors
at a
park district
•
Design and delivery of a basic computer skills training program at NEIU.
. Can
I do my internship where I work?
Yes. However, your internship responsibilities should be over and above.your usual job duties. There can be some overlap between your job and the project. But keep in mind that the project should be a learning experience -- it should help you acquire new knowledge and skills. Can
I be paid for my internship?
Yes. This is something to explore with the sponsoring organization.. . Can I start working on my internship before the semester begins? Yes, under certain conditions, but only two or three weeks before the beginning of the semester. All internship work requires an instructor at NEIU, as well as a sponsor at the organization where you will be doing the work. If you would like to begin work on your internship prior to the beginning of the semester, you must: •
have an approved proposal .
•
obtain agreement, in writing, from a full-time HRD faculty member who
has
reviewed your proposal and is willing to supervise your work prior to
the
beginning of the semester
Who
can I talk to if I have questions?
Contact
Dr. Steve Dundis by telephone (773) 442-5526 or by email.
Top of Pages-dundis@neiu.edu if you have any questions about the internship. |
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