An internship within Purchase College or with an organization external the College is a program requirement. The goals of any internship are to learn and apply techniques and theories learned in the classroom to a real world problem. Internships may be paid or unpaid. Above all, however, internships must be educational (i.e., not office work, typing, filing, etc.). Internships also help make informed career decisions and provide contacts for potential postbaccalaureate employment. Check out the Student Research Blog to see types of internships that our students have completed. 

To clarify and strengthen the internship requirement, the ENV faculty have outlined the student obligations for a successful internship.  If you have questions about any of the requirements outlined below, please see Dr. Taylor.

It is your responsibility to find your own internship that interests you and make sure you complete all the requirements listed below.

Internship Conditions (all 5 parts must be completed)

 

Planning your internship:

1. Credits

A valid internship experience must include at least 2 credits worth of time (i.e., 75 hours completed in one semester). These cannot be split into two 1-credit internships.

You must actually register for these credits so they appear on your transcript.  If you plan to complete your internship requirement during the Fall or Spring semesters, you work with staff over in Career Development Services and complete an online learning contract for the internship.  All the details as to how to do this are laid on at this site.  Once this 3-way contract is agreed to by you, your site-sponsor, and Dr. Taylor,  career development will get you registered with the registrar’s office. If you plan on completing your internship over the summer, contact Dr. Taylor to discuss options for when you should register for your credits. 

 

Documenting your internship:

The following are due by the start of finals week of the semester where you registered for your internship:

2. Scholarly Reading  

You must read at least two articles that provide background and help interpreting your internship activities. These articles must be either primary or secondary sources (see your advisor if you have doubts regarding particular sources). You may receive suggestions from your internship supervisor or your Purchase faculty advisor. Web-based material is not acceptable. Submit a copy of each article to Dr. Taylor at the completion of the internship (the copy may be digital and submitted via email).

3. Journal

You must chronicle your activities in a journal as you conduct the work for the internship. To receive a passing grade, your journal must be submitted to Dr. Taylor by the end of the semester that you have registered for your internship. During the same day you carry out any internship work, record in the journal what you did and then reflect upon the work (i.e., why was your work important, what did you learn, etc.). 

4. Internship Summary

By the start of finals week of the semester of your internship, you must submit your journal, scholarly readings, and a summary of your internship to Dr. Taylor. The summary must be at least 500 words per credit (i.e., 2 double-spaced, typed pages) and should include information you have gleaned from your scholarly readings (above).

5. Illustrated Abstract/Blog Post

Include with your final report, both a photo (or photos) from your internship (suitable for social media use) and a one-paragraph abstract from your summary paper. Email these to Dr. Jackson to be uploaded to the Student Research Blog.