Internship

All students in the School of Community Resources & Development are required to complete a Senior Internship. The Senior Internship allows students to put theory to practice working in a professional agency under the supervision of an Agency Internship Supervisor and an Academic Internship Supervisor.  This 12-credit professional experience is complemented with an online course to facilitate professional communication. Students culminate their experience with a final report to reflect on their experiences and acquired skills.

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.

Browse a list of community partner internships.

Eligibility requirements (CSM/NLM/PRM/TDM 463 Senior Internship)

The following requirements must be met before a student is eligible for Senior Internship.

1. The student must be a Community Sports Management, Nonprofit Leadership and Management, Parks and Recreation Management, Parks and Recreation Management (Therapeutic Recreation), Tourism Development and Management, Tourism Development and Management (Sustainable Tourism), Tourism Development and Management (Resort and Accommodations Leadership) Major.
2. The student must have successfully completed all required program coursework before being eligible to enroll in CSM/NLM/PRM/TDM 463 Senior Internship.
3. The student must have completed a minimum of 200 hours of Career Field Exploration hours before being eligible to enroll in CSM/NLM/PRM/TDM 463 Senior Internship.
4. The student must have correctly completed and submitted all the required forms by the established deadline before being eligible to enroll in CSM/NLM/PRM/TDM 463 Senior Internship.

The Senior Internship takes place as the student's final semester and is the off-campus, real-life application of theoretical knowledge.  Students must have completed ALL prior coursework and 200 CFE hours before applying for the Senior Internship. Students are not permitted to take other classes at the same time they are completing their 12-credit internship experience.

Process and application

Note: This application is only for CSM/NLM/PRM/TDM/CNP students 

• You must be signed out of all personal gmail accounts before clicking the link to complete application.
• Students entering the last semester of their CSM/NLM/PRM/TDM program must apply online for the Senior Internship.
• The process is multi-layered and requires detailed information about the student's interests and the internship site.
• Once approved, the student must also request overrides from the academic advisors to enroll in CSM/NLM/PRM/TDM 463. 

Please check with an academic advisor before application to ensure eligibility for the Senior Internship.

Application process for CSM/NLM/PRM/TDM/CNP students:

1. Fill out the online CRD Senior Internship Application. This application is started only if students are enrolled in CSM/NLM/PRM/TDM 403/PRM 413, or with academic advisor approval.

2. Once application has been received, approval along with further instructions will be sent via asu.edu email

3. Follow the email instructions to submit the final contracts of internship placement (Educational Agreement, Core Competencies, Student Placement Agreement). 

4. Receive department consent required to enroll in CSM/TDM/NLM/PRM 463.

Senior internship FAQ's 

What can the Senior Internship do for me?

In Spring 2011, 80% of Senior Internship students had a job offer from their Internship Agency, or from another agency they connected to through their Senior Internship, before they even graduated.

Networking is key during the Senior Internship experience!  Make sure to save every business card you get during the internship experience as they are great contacts to call upon when you are searching for that first professional position.

What do students think about the Senior Internship experience?

“I love the fact that we are getting a head start on finding a job in the real world by gaining valuable experience in our internship.  I have an interview for a Program Coordinator position and I would have had no chance in even getting an interview if I had not taken this course.  Thanks for everything!”

“Being able to apply theories from a textbook to a job made me realize all of that money spent on tuition was worth every penny.”

“This internship was vital for my transition into the working field.”

“I am thankful that we had to do an internship in order to graduate.  I have a friend that got her degree in Communications and she didn’t need an internship.  Now she is finding that it is almost impossible to find a decent job without any experience.”

If I have questions about CSM/NLM/PRM/TDM 463 Senior Internship who can help me?

If after reading all the information you have any questions please contact:

John Weber, Ph.D.
Clinical Assistant Professor
UCENT Suite 550, Room 544
Jjweber1@asu.edu
602-496-1049