Guidelines for WGSS Internships

GUIDELINES FOR INTERNSHIPS IN WOMEN’S, GENDER AND SEXUALITY STUDIES 

Purpose

Internships provide students with opportunities to learn with and from those outside the academic community and apply knowledge gained in WGSS classes. Internships can also give students a chance to test interests in occupational fields. Students may take two internships for graduation credit, after completion of their first year. Only one internship can be counted towards a minor or major in WGSS.

Planned Parenthood, The Bradbury-Sullivan Center, Third Street Alliance, Easton Area Neighborhood Center, March Elementary School, Northampton County Prison, ProJeCt of Easton and Turning Point are local examples of where WGSS students have done internships.

Application Procedure

All semester internships must be approved in advance by submitting the internship registration form to the Registrar’s Office. All approvals must accompany the form at the time of submittal.  No credit will be granted for internships undertaken without pre-approval and registration.

Course Requirements and Expectations

  1. The student is responsible for finding and defining the nature of the internship opportunity.  During the regular academic year, most internships are near Easton (or, occasionally, on campus). Students may do internships off campus—in New York or Philadelphia, for example—during summer or interim sessions.
  2. The student is expected to work an average of 8-10 hours a week (~120 hours) during a semester, and at least as many hours during the summer or interim.
  3. Students may receive a stipend or other form of compensation for their internship work
  4. Although the supervising faculty member will maintain a liaison relationship with the interning organization, the student is expected to work independently, consulting regularly and being in touch immediately if problems arise (e.g., excessive hours, unusually heavy work load, or trivial assignments)
  5. It is the responsibility of the sponsoring organization to provide the intern with meaningful exposure to the organization’s work. Normally the intern will have a supervisor who will introduce them to larger mission of the undertaking, provide regular work assignments, and evaluate the student’s contributions.
  6. Internships are graded Credit/No Credit. The grade will be determined by the supervising faculty member on the basis of the student’s reflective journal and final project, as well as a letter of evaluation from the student’s direct work supervisor.

Responsibilities of the Student-as-Intern

  1. The conscientious and timely completion of all assigned work. Students should keep a running total of hours devoted to internship work.
  2. At the beginning of the internship, the student should write a several pages describing the kinds of tasks they expect to perform and articulating their specific goals.
  3. At least once a week, the student should write several pages about internship activities, describing tasks performed and skills utilized or learned. Most importantly, they should reflect on the educational value of these activities, especially relative to gender/sexuality issues. Usually the supervising faculty member will ask students to submit journal entries every two or three weeks.
  4. The completion of a final project/analytical reflective essay at the end of the semester.
  5. The completion of other assignments as deemed appropriate or necessary by the intern’s faculty supervisor.

WGS 380/381 WGS Internship Student Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of a WGSS Internship, students should be able to:

  • Demonstrate a basic knowledge of the organization for which they have interned (e.g., its structure and mission) and be able to articulate how organization views and approaches gender-related issues in a specific institutional context.
  • Develop a set of internship goals that reflect the thoughtful development and modification of their goals for intellectual and personal growth.
  • Communicate (through journal entries, meetings with the faculty supervisor, samples of internship work, and/or a final paper) tasks performed and knowledge and skills utilized, enhanced, or learned.
  • Thoughtfully reflect on the educational value of internship activities in increasing their understanding of and ability to effectively address a variety of gender studies-related issues and concepts.