Guidelines for Academic Internship Proposals

The success of your academic internship will depend in large measure on the development of a well-conceived and complete proposal.  You should work with the Internship Coordinator, the On-Site Supervisor, and especially the Faculty Supervisor, to develop such a proposal.  Proposals must contain the following elements:

Company Description:   Describe the organization you will be working for–why you chose them, what they do, who they serve, how you found out about them, etc.

Learning Goals/Activities:  Describe learning goals you hope to accomplish by means of the internship and how these relate to your academic interests and/or career goals.  Learning goals might include skills, competencies you hope to improve; vocational/professional insights sought; personal insights sought.  Then describe how you plan to achieve those learning goals:  specific activities/duties, supervisors, facilitators, consultants, books, interviews, etc.  Last, describe how you will assess your goals: evaluation process, self-assessment, what criteria you will use, who will help judge, etc.

Course Work:  A description of your previous course work and/or personal experience which are relevant to and thus constitute a background for the internship.

On-Site Supervision:  Describe in as much detail as possible the on-site supervision to be provided–what kind of orientation, assistance, specific meeting times, etc.

Faculty Supervision:  Include the arrangements which have been made regarding the frequency, manner and content of contacts between you and your Faculty Supervisor during your internship.

Reading Requirement:  You are required to develop a substantial reading list in consultation with your faculty supervisor and on-site supervisor.  Make sure the reading material you select relates to your proposed internship in a way that will be beneficial to your experience.

Academic Work:  Include a statement that you understand the academic requirements of an analytical essay and a public presentation at the completion of your internship.  Also, include other kinds of academic work (e.g., daily journals, periodic reports, specific department requirements), that might be required by the faculty supervisor in addition to the readings, presentation, and essay.

Grading:  Talk to your faculty supervisor and make sure you understand how you will be graded on your internship.  Include, if available, a statement of the weight to be assigned to each of the various components of your work (on-site supervisor's evaluation, public presentation, concluding analytical essay; journals, reports, etc.) in arriving at the final grade.

Attach your proposal and a copy of your résumé (if you used one to apply for your internship position) to your application form (with on-site and faculty supervisor signatures) and return to the Internship Coordinator.

An initial draft of your proposal should be developed and submitted to your faculty supervisor in sufficient time to allow for him/her to review the statement and for you to revise the proposal as necessary before the deadline for its submission.