Winter Term Internship Guidelines

The Winter Term Internship Program offers you a unique opportunity to explore a career early in your academic preparation. By working with a dedicated professional for several weeks in an area of career interest, you will gain valuable work experience and job information that could be useful to you as you prepare for future employment.  The Winter Term office is available to help you develop ideas for an internship and assist you in the internship search process. Be sure to attend one of the internship workshops in the early fall semester to get started with your planning and, if necessary, stop by the Winter Term office to meet with the staff for additional guidance.

GETTING STARTED

Before starting the application process with the Winter Term office, you must first find an internship host. You should identify potential employers and contact them via personal interview, telephone, email, or regular mail. It will be important during this time to also develop a resume that you can present to potential hosts, as they will be interested in the kinds of activities you have been involved in as well as any prior work experience. Use your contacts (e.g. family, friends, professors, professionals) to help you get started with your search. When searching for an internship host, please keep in mind the following rules for credit-earning Winter Term internships :

  • The internship must last the entire duration of Winter Term (i.e. January 2- January 25, 2009), and you must work an average of 35-40 hours per week (the equivalent of a full-time job).

  • You may not intern directly for a relative.

  • The internship cannot take place at the high school from which you graduated.

  • You may not repeat a summer job or previous internship (if serving in the same capacity).

  • You may not change or substitute internships after the application deadline. If a problem develops that requires your withdrawal from a Winter Term internship after you have registered for it, you will need to register for an on-campus course if you intend to gain Winter Term credit during the current year.

 Note: If you are unsure as to the legitimacy of a particular internship project, please contact the Winter Term office. 

Securing an internship requires a thoughtful, methodical approach to communicate your desire to participate in a professional work environment. The responsibility to establish an internship is uniquely yours, though there are several resources on campus to assist you in this process.The Winter Term Office maintains a Volunteer Host Database, comprised of host organizations who have indicated their interest in interviewing DePauw students for internship positions. Please see the Winter Term Internship website for additional details. The Winter Term Office also keeps record of past internship host organizations; please contact a Winter Term representative or visit the website if you wish to see these records. Finally, the Career Services Center is an excellent resource for identifying potential hosts, with its myriad publications, databases, and skills workshops.

When identifying potential host organizations, be aware of your skill-set and general preparedness for the position you are seeking. Often, shadowing experiences are appropriate for those students who desire to learn through observation, and who may otherwise not qualify to directly practice skills while interning. Those students possessing well-developed skills (frequently upper-class students) should feel free to apply for any position requiring the employment of those skills.

Once you have identified the internship host you will be working with during Winter Term, there are 4 steps remaining to complete the internship process:  1) Application; 2) Learning Contract; 3) Internship; and 4) Evaluation.

INTERNSHIP APPLICATION

Deadline: October 31, 2008 to the Winter Term Office

By submitting an application, you are informing the 
Winter Term office of your intent to fulfill your 
Winter Term credit by participating in an internship. 

You must submit the following items to the Winter Term office as your completed application. Please submit application packet in its entirety. Application packets are available online, from the "Forms and Documents" page .

  1. Internship Information form (application forms are available online, in the Durham House, and at Internship information sessions.
  2. Host Confirmation form (your host's signature is required). This form should be sent to your host after you’ve both agreed on the terms of your internship, but well in advance of the application deadline.  For your convenience, you may send this form to your host as an email attachment.
  3. Release Form and Agreement (a parent/guardian signature is required).
  4. Internship Code of Conduct form (to be read and signed by you).
  5. Resume (contact the Career Services Center or the Winter Term Office for assistance with resume writing).
  6. Immunization Checklist and photocopies of passport (required for those interning internationally).

Optional Student Financial Support applications are due to the Winter Term Office by October 31, 2008. The Winter Term Student Financial Support Program is designed to help DePauw students with demonstrable financial need participate in off-campus Winter Term projects. All interested students should inquire within the Winter Term Office for more information, or visit the link above. The applications are to be filed and reviewed separately from the Internship application packet.

LEARNING CONTRACT

Deadline: Friday, December 5, 2008 to Faculty Advisor

  • Attend an orientation meeting led by your faculty sponsor; location and time tba via email.

    By the end of the first week in November, you will receive an email from the Winter Term office notifying you if your application has been approved, the name of your faculty sponsor. You are required to attend an orientation meeting conducted by your faculty sponsor, during which time you will be informed of her/his expectations of you as a Winter Term intern. At this time, it is also appropriate to contact your host supervisor to collect any updated details of your internship; these will be important to include in your learning contract.
  • Develop a learning contract with your faculty sponsor.

    During an individual meeting with your faculty sponsor (to be held sometime in mid-November), you will begin developing a learning contract. The learning contract is an agreement between you and your advisor detailing the following:  
    • Specific learning objectives for the internship, and a methodology for their completion.
    • Required research or preparation to be accomplished before Winter Term.
    • The basis upon which your project will be evaluated (reports, paper, daily journal, presentation, etc.).

    Once you have written a draft of your learning contract, review it with your faculty sponsor.  If necessary, make revisions and changes; you will likely prepare several drafts of this document, as you develop a specific agreement with your sponsor. Be sure that both you and your sponsor sign and date a final draft of the learning contract.  You should also mail a copy of the contract to your host supervisor prior to your internship in January, so that she/he is aware of your academic requirements during the month. A guide to writing the learning contract is available here.

  • Attend a workshop on professionalism and health/safety issues during the week of November 10-14, 2008.
    You will receive an email from the Winter Term Office notifying you of the date and time of this workshop.

 

  • Attend an orientation meeting led by your faculty sponsor; location and time tba via email.

    By the end of the first week in November, you will receive an email from the Winter Term office notifying you if your application has been approved, the name of your faculty sponsor. You are required to attend an orientation meeting conducted by your faculty sponsor, during which time you will be informed of her/his expectations of you as a Winter Term intern. At this time, it is also appropriate to contact your host supervisor to collect any updated details of your internship; these will be important to include in your learning contract.
  • Develop a learning contract with your faculty sponsor.

    During an individual meeting with your faculty sponsor (to be held sometime in mid-November), you will begin developing a learning contract. The learning contract is an agreement between you and your advisor detailing the following:  
    • Specific learning objectives for the internship, and a methodology for their completion.
    • Required research or preparation to be accomplished before Winter Term.
    • The basis upon which your project will be evaluated (reports, paper, daily journal, presentation, etc.).

    Once you have written a draft of your learning contract, review it with your faculty sponsor.  If necessary, make revisions and changes; you will likely prepare several drafts of this document, as you develop a specific agreement with your sponsor. Be sure that both you and your sponsor sign and date a final draft of the learning contract.  You should also mail a copy of the contract to your host supervisor prior to your internship in January, so that she/he is aware of your academic requirements during the month. A guide to writing the learning contract is available here.

  • Attend a workshop on professionalism and health/safety issues during the week of November 10-14, 2008.
    You will receive an email from the Winter Term Office notifying you of the date and time of this workshop.

WINTER TERM INTERNSHIP

Complete your internship from January 2 to January 25, 2009.

It is expected that you complete all academic assignments specified in your learning contract in addition to your job-related work as an intern. Ultimately the grade you receive for Winter Term reflects how well you transform your internship into a learning experience relating to your academic program at DePauw; therefore, you must follow through with all academic obligations as required by your faculty sponsor.

As an intern, you are expected to work full-time (minimum of 35 hours per week); vacations scheduled during Winter Term are not allowed. In the event of illness or emergency, please inform both your host supervisor and your faculty sponsor in advance of your absence from work.

According to (but not limited by) the Internship Code of Conduct, interns are required to demonstrate professional behavior on a consistent basis throughout the internship. Hosts are encouraged to provide performance updates for their interns to DePauw faculty sponsors, accounting for general aptitude, behavior, and progress to date. The grade you receive is impacted by this type of feedback.

EVALUATION

(with Host Supervisor and Faculty Sponsor)

  • Participate in an exit interview.
    Before leaving your host organization, interns are required to arrange an exit interview with their host supervisor.  The purpose of the exit interview is to collect constructive feedback that can be applied in your next professional committment (job, internship, etc.). At this interview, your host will complete the Intern Performance Evaluation; please return this form to your faculty sponsor as part of your evaluation materials. Within two or three days of your final work day, (January 25), you must send a thank you letter to your host, acknowledging her/his committment to your professional devlopment.

  • Turn in materials to faculty sponsor by January 31, 2009.
    By this date, you should submit all evaluation materials requested by your faculty sponsor (e.g. journal, reports, presentations, etc.); you must complete all assignments specified in your learning contract.  These evaluative materials form the basis of your Winter Term grade.

*IMPORTANT:  In order to successfully complete and register your internship project for credit, you must complete all of the necessary steps outlined in this packet by the appropriate deadlines.  Failure to comply with these guidelines will jeopardize your potential for receiving Winter Term credit. If you miss a deadline but would still like to pursue an internship for credit, you will need to go through an appeals process to have your application reconsidered (Contact the Winter Term office to obtain an appeals form).  If a problem arises at any time during the internship process, you should contact the Winter Term office immediately.