Internships

The Honors College encourages students to venture outside the classroom to apply their knowledge in the world. We want students to take the abstract theories presented on paper and make them come to life. Through these real, concrete experiences, our scholars will become the innovators and policy makers of tomorrow.

A student can earn between one and six Honors credit hours by completing a professional internship (45 hours per credit) and completing the academic components of the course. This course can be repeated if a student wishes to complete more than a single internship experience, however a student cannot earn more than six total Honors credits from internship experience. Three options are available:

• Shadowing and Career exploration (HONR 189)
• Internship courses in your major (e.g. PSYC 491)
• Internships through the Honors College (HONR 491)

Shadowing and Career Exploration: HONR 189

Honors students sometimes will pursue opportunities to shadow professionals in a field that they are exploring as a potential career. Students can earn credit by pairing this experience with reflective work and research that puts this experience into an academic context.

HONR 189 allows students to earn 1 credit for every 45 hours shadowed, and then journal, produce an annotated bibliography of research related to an issue they observed at the worksite, and a reflective paper that puts their research and experience into conversation.

Interested students should contact the Honors College with questions, or fill out an application to apply for permission to register.

Internship Course in Your Major

Many majors offer internship experiences within the major (e.g. PSYC 491) and with appropriate additional work, these can be counted toward your Honors credits. An Honors internship contains the following components:

• Journal
• Portfolio including internship report
• Action Research paper that combines work experience with academic knowledge
• Final presentation or poster session.

Some departments will work these requirements into their curriculum, while others contain some but not all components. The Honors College will review any components not required by your departmental course, and students should document all components for Honors credit. For this reason, students should apply for Honors credit before or while they are engaged in the internship experience. NOTE: In order to earn Honors hours, students must earn a C or better; therefore, Honors credit cannot be earned for a pass/fail experience.

Full guidelines can be found below, and you may apply to have your internship counted.

The Honors Internship: HONR 491

For students pursuing internships outside the scope offered in their department, HONR 491 offers credit for a range of experiential learning opportunities. Students enrolling in HONR 491 may not simultaneously enroll in a departmental internship and must work 45 hours per credit earned.

The Honors Internship contains all of the components required for departmental experiences:

• Journal
• Portfolio including internship report
• Action Research paper that combines work experience with academic knowledge
• Final presentation or poster session.

A sample syllabus can be found below, and you may apply for permission to enroll in HONR 491 here.

Internships for Honors Thesis

Any internship that meets the above guidelines, and produces an action research paper of 10 pages or longer is eligible to count that project as an Honors Thesis/senior project. Please be sure to mark that option on the internship application.

Why complete an undergraduate internship experience?

• Gain career-relevant knowledge, skills, and experience before graduation
• Network and establish invaluable connections in your field
• Receive a job offer before you graduate
• Increase your competitive edge as you develop your resume
• Enhance your sense of local and global communities
• Improve your self-awareness and self-assurance
• Acquire perspective on your future - learn if this industry, career, company, and/or occupation is right for you!

Qualifications Internship Sites:

• A student may not complete an internship at any site where a relative owns the organization/business, or would be the/a supervisor to whom the student would report.
• Internships may be paid or unpaid, depending on the agreement made between the student and the organization/business.

Important Notes:

• Please complete the application for Honors credit prior to enrolling in coursework. If you do not complete the application prior to beginning your internship, we cannot guarantee Honors hours for your experience.
• In order to earn Honors hours, students must earn a C or better; therefore, Honors credit cannot be earned for a pass/fail experience.
• Students cannot enroll in both a departmental course (e.g. PSYC 491) and HONR 491 to earn credits for the same internship completed over the same period of time. Students who are found to be doing so may be in violation of Academic Integrity standards.