Experiential learning Opportunities

Guidelines for INTERNSHIPS, PRACTICA AND JOB SHADOWS

Experiential Learning Opportunities (ELO’s)including Internships, Practica, Job Shadows and Field Experiences, place students in off-campus learning environments in which students apply classroom learning to a career field related to the professional field of their major.  Regular tuition rates apply for internships, practica and job shadows.

 Internships, Practica and Job Shadows require that a completed experiential learning opportunity (ELO) application be filed prior to registration.  Application forms may be obtained from your faculty advisor, the Registrar, or the Enterprise Resource Center.  Field Experiences are part of lecture courses and do not require a separate registration nor an application form. 

The Enterprise Resource Center (ERC) will assist any student interested in an internship, practicum, or job shadow as long as they have the approval of their supervising professor.  (The ERC would generally not be involved with the experiential learning components within the education department and the educational ministries department.)   

Internship

An internship places the student with a mentor in an on-the-job learning experience.  It is practice-oriented and requires that the student put into practice prior mastery of the theoretical foundations and basic skills of the career or profession.  An internship provides apprenticeship experience under the direction of a mentor in many functions of the career; it is not simply an entry-level job.  An internship is a culminating experience in the student's career preparation. 

 The internship experience is intended to place the student outside of the College-classroom environment and to provide realistic experiences for one's future career.  Compensated internships may be permitted but the emphasis is on the learning experience.  Transportation for each of these off-campus experiences will be provided by the individual student.

 To initiate an internship, the student fills out the ELO application with his or her faculty advisor, supervising professor or ERC staff.  The form may be obtained from faculty advisors, the Registrar, or the Enterprise Resource Center.  The student must complete the application form and submit it to the Academic Dean for approval prior to registration for and final placement in the internship experience. 

 Contact with the intern is maintained by the Enterprise Resource Center or supervising faculty member on a frequent basis during the internship.  The ERC staff or faculty member will respond to any difficulties the intern is experiencing and will encourage the student to reflect on the internship experience.  Enterprise Resource Center staff or supervising faculty members advise the mentor of his role and are available for consultation during the experiential learning opportunities (ELO’s).  No fewer than two contacts are expected to be made during the internship in addition to contacts made before and after the experience. Frequent mentor-intern conferences provide regular review of the student's progress.

 Final evaluation is based on job performance and job-related factors such as responsibility, punctuality, skill, and cooperation.  A concise written evaluation is submitted by the mentor to the ERC and supervising faculty member.  The final grade of S/U is submitted by the supervising faculty member based on the mentor's report.

 Academic credit is based on the number of hours of job experience.  Regular work hours are to be maintained.  A minimum of 40 clock hours of directed on-the-job time is required for each semester hour of credit; often more time is devoted to the internship than that required for minimum credit.  Internships may be arranged for no fewer than two semester hours credit nor more than four credits.  Regular tuition rates are charged based on the amount of credit.  A maximum of 10 semester hours credit in internship may be applied to a degree program.

PRACTICUM

A practicum places the student in a practice learning situation.  It provides supervised observation of a particular career or profession and exposure to the functioning of an organization through participation in its operations. Students are encouraged to relate and interpret their experiences through frequent conferences with a faculty supervisor.  A practicum is exploratory rather than culminating.  Projects and assignments are completed which expose the student to important elements of the profession. 

The supervising professor or the ERC staff makes the practicum arrangements in accordance with guidelines established for internship experiences.  Final evaluation is based upon the quality of the completed assignments, the depth of the student's understanding of the organization, and on performance standards such as punctuality, responsibility and cooperation.  A final grade of S/U is submitted by the faculty member, based upon the written report of the mentor.

 Academic credit is based on the number of hours of experience.  A minimum of 40 clock hours of directed work is required for each semester hour credit.  No practicum will be less than one or more than three semester hours credit. Regular tuition rates are charged based on the amount of credit.

Job Shadowing (J-Term)

Job shadowing is an informal process, usually of short duration, in which students observe the daily routines and activities of employed professionals in the students' field of study. Job shadowing provides an opportunity for students to see, on a limited basis, how skills and knowledge acquired in class are applied in the real world.  The ERC staff will provide assistance in arranging job shadowing experiences.

FIELD EXPERIENCES

Field Experiences are part of lecture courses and place the student in a learning environment ‘in the field’ where observing of professionals at work and assisting with selected tasks provide the student with an introduction to the profession.

 Students are placed in field experiences by the instructors of courses which require such experiences.  Assignments related to the field experience are part of the overall course evaluation.  Typically, students will spend two to three hours per week in their field experience.  Regular tuition rates are charged based on the amount of credit.

GUIDELINES FOR DIRECTED AND INDEPENDENT STUDIES

Directed Studies and Independent Studies are individually structured courses for students who are not able to take regularly scheduled courses or who are interested in pursuing an academic interest not covered in a regular course. 

An application for directed or independent study must be completed prior to registration.  Forms are available from the Registrar. Regular tuition rates are charged based on the amount of credit. 

INDEPENDENT STUDY

Independent Study allows a student to pursue an academic interest outside the regular curriculum.  Its purpose is to supplement the regular approaches of study rather than to substitute for regular curricular offerings.  It should be undertaken only by students who are primarily self-motivated and should require minimal supervision by the faculty member after the project has been structured.

 An independent study will normally engage a student in research or significant readings on a topic of mutual interest to the student and the sponsoring faculty member.  The project is to be carefully designed and directed toward a definite goal.  It should involve a substantial body of college-level literature, methodology, theory or laboratory effort.  The student's interpretation and comprehension are of paramount importance. 

Ordinarily the independent study will be taken in the student’s major field after foundation courses have been completed which provide a basis for advanced study.

 The project must be sponsored by a faculty member in the major field who approves the plan as worthwhile, who is available for consultation, and who evaluates the learning experience and achievement of the student.  Students should be able to complete projects within the term of registration; if additional time is needed, an extension of time may properly be requested.

Application forms may be obtained from the Registrar.  Regular grades are reported at the conclusion of the course.

DIRECTED STUDY

Directed Study is an individualized offering of a regular course which the student has been unable to schedule but which is required in the student's program.  Course assignments will be set forth by the faculty member.  Periodic meetings will be held between the student and instructor to review progress and clarify material.  In tutorial instruction, the student may properly request consultation time equal to one-half the hours the regular course would meet.  The student pays a tutorial fee per credit hour in addition to regular tuition.

 If students wish to accelerate their degree programs or complete additional majors or minors or certification fields beyond that required for a degree, students will pay a tutorial fee if the course cannot be taken when offered.

 If students have failed a regularly offered course or failed to register for the course when it was available, the student is responsible for the course irregularity and will pay a tutorial fee.

Other courses may be offered to students as Directed Studies when scheduling prevents the student from taking the regular course or from taking an appropriate substitution.  The inability of the College to provide the student with the regular course or an appropriate substitution is determined by the academic dean (in consultation with the registrar and the student's advisor) who will ascertain whether the student is to be charged a tutorial fee.  Application forms may be obtained from the Registrar.  Regular grades are reported at the conclusion of the course.