Purpose

The Senior Internship is intended to be the capstone application of the professional core competencies a student has acquired through their required coursework. Competencies are skills, knowledge, and behaviors that are observable, measurable, and critical to successful individual and corporate performance.  An internship is a semester-long work experience emphasizing an active, student-centered learning experience designed to immerse students in their chosen fields of interest. It incorporates education and professional development involving a number of specific experiences over a 12-14 week period. 

The Senior Internship is the culminating experience in the student’s academic preparation and is the bridge between academia and the professional world. This experience affords students the opportunity to demonstrate the skills and knowledge they have acquired during the formal academic process and gain professional skills that will enhance their marketability upon graduation. 

The internship is a mutually beneficial test; a win-win situation for both the student and the host agency. The agency benefits from the student’s expertise and abilities and the student benefits from exposure to a “real world laboratory” which allows him or her to apply theoretical knowledge and gain practical experience.  The student will be evaluated and given a grade by both the agency supervisor and the internship supervisor. The student’s professors, textbooks, libraries, advisors, and numerous support systems have taught the student the necessary knowledge, skills, and tools to enter the profession; however, it is up to the student to successfully demonstrate the use of these competencies during the internship.