Internship Policy

Overview

The Career Center serves as a resource for all employment opportunities (jobs, paid internships, unpaid internships for J-School credit and posts all opportunities on the school’s website.

  • Internships are either paid or not paid. Unpaid internships may be eligible for academic credit. Employers determine payment and payment amount for interns.
  • Supervision is provided by the employer offering the professional experience.
  • The supervisor must be a communications professional.
  • The internship site should be an office, but remote positions are accepted.  A student can't work in a residence or in an office of someone's home. Necessary equipment to perform the assigned tasks must be provided by the internship supervisor.
  • The career development coordinator surveys student supervisors about quality of work performance and level of professional preparation, using the school evaluation form.

Paid Internships

When an internship is paid, students and employers discuss the hourly wage, work hours and other employment requirements. When an internship is paid, students are allowed to receive credit. A student can turn a paid internship into a credit internship.

Academic Credit Internships (not paid)

Journalism 507, Practicum in Journalism (Professional). Eligibility is based upon successful completion of the appropriate prerequisite. For journalism students in the news and information track, the prerequisite course is Journalism 415, Multimedia Reporting. For students in the strategic communication track, the prerequisite course is Journalism 560 Message Development. In addition, students must be in good academic standing to enroll in Journalism 507 (i.e., their overall GPA and Journalism GPA must be a 2.5 or higher).

  • Students should be aware that many employers require proof that the student is eligible to earn credit before the internship begins.
  • Students enrolled in Jour 507 receive academic credit for professional experience in news outlets, media companies, advertising and public relations firms, non-profit agencies, and in other related organizations.
  • Students enrolled in Jour 507 must submit a four-page paper upon their return to campus. They are advised to keep a time log of hours worked and a record of what was accomplished each day.
  • Students also must provide five work samples to ensure that students are doing meaningful and relevant work. These samples often become student portfolio pieces.
  • Six components -- the completed on-site hours, the four-page paper, the work samples, the supervisor evaluation, updated resume and updated LinkedIn profile -- determine the student's grade. Jour 507 credit hours are graded as satisfactory or unsatisfactory. The Career Center coordinator reviews all documents and assigns the grade.
  • Students who meet the eligibility requirements may enroll in Jour 507 for 1-3 hours of credit. The maximum number of academic credits a student may earn is 3. To earn one credit hour, students work a minimum of 40 hours. To earn 2 credit hours, students work a minimum of 80 hours. To earn 3 credit hours, students work a minimum of 120.
  • No student may earn more than four hours total in Jour 506, Directed Studies in Journalism, Jour 507, Practicum in Journalism (Professional) and Jour 508, Practicum in Journalism (Academic).
  • In some cases, employers provide a stipend to cover the intern’s expenses such as mileage and parking. Students enrolled for credit are allowed to receive a stipend. Typically, employers pay the stipend upon successful completion of the internship.

Other Internships

Students not eligible to earn credit through the School of Journalism may explore other options within the University. Guidelines:

  • The Career Center coordinator collects information about jobs and internships from employers, faculty members, alumni, professional organizations and other university career offices.
  • Students need a permission code to enroll in the internship class. The code is obtained from the Career Center coordinator.
  • Students must make an appointment to see the Career Center coordinator to review the requirements for an academic credit internship and to fill out an information sheet with details on the internship.

Updated Fall 2020