Internships

History Internship Guide

This is a sample for a nine-hour internship for History Majors.

HISTORY INTERNSHIP REQUIREMENTS
Coordinator:  Dr. Georgia Mann, (706) 864-1905

The internship is an important opportunity to further your education and should make you more marketable. It allows you the opportunity to view some realities of the profession and associate your experiences with historical models discussed in your class work. It also gives you and the employing agency a chance to review each other for post-graduation employment. For these reasons, it is important to choose your internship agency very carefully.

You should begin to plan your internship at least one semester in advance. The summer is usually an optimum time because some agencies only make provisions for internships in the summer.  There are however opportunities during the fall and spring semesters.  Some students may complete an internship in the Oral History program.  The Coordinator will evaluate your request for such an internship.

Before performing your internship, you must have completed the history courses in the core, including Historiography (HIST 2000); thus the summer between your junior and senior year is normally the first eligible period. Students on military contract (attending advanced camp) are allowed to break up their internship into two periods, as long as the intern agency agrees. There are three requirements aside from your work duties that must be turned into the Internship Coordinator before a grade will be issued:

1. A daily log of your work duties, hours, experiences and thoughts for each day you work. This journal should present impressions of the day’s work experience and skills and information learned. It need not be detailed, but should provide the coordinator with a general portrait of how horizons and knowledge have expanded.     

2. A Weekly Internship Report form to the Internship Coordinator (or other designated faculty member).

3. A Project Report and portfolio based on the agency’s resources, which will be discussed by the student and Coordinator. In the first few weeks of the internship experience, a suitable area of inquiry should emerge. A preliminary description of the project, a preliminary outline of the paper, and a preliminary bibliography is due the mid week of the internship.

The following is an outline of the step-by-step procedure for fulfilling your internship requirements.

1. Meet with the Coordinator to determine the appropriate internship and pick up copies of the appropriate instructions;

2. Determine the agency you would like to intern with and clear the agency with the Coordinator.  The Coordinator will clear all applicants for the Oral History internship.  Some agencies have been deemed inappropriate and are not eligible for internships. After approving the agency, the Coordinator will give you a contact name and telephone number for the agency, if available. Contact the agency or agencies you are considering for placement. Determine if they have any openings, the number of work hours they will require, if any payment is available and if any potential problems can be worked out, i.e. unable to work weekends or the need to split up your work schedule. Be honest with the agency and address any problems up front.

3. If the agency has an opening and is interested in you, complete a contract request form and give it to the Coordinator. A letter detailing the internship requirements will be sent as soon as possible. Along with the letter, formal agreement contracts will also be sent. No more than three letters will be sent out.

4. Approximately two weeks later, (after the letter and contracts have arrived) contact the agency again to determine if they are still interested. If you and the agency reach an agreement regarding work assignments, have them fill out the appropriate agreement contract and return it to the Coordinator.

5. Make an appointment with the Coordinator in order to review your internship and obtain copies of the weekly report forms.

6. Prior to the beginning of your work assignment, attend a general internship meeting for all interns. This will usually be held during finals week of the semester prior to the semester you will work.

7. Begin the 320 hours (minimum) of work assignments, keeping a daily log of your activities and hours. (For three-credit hours, the commitment is at least 120 hours; six-credit, 225 hours)  Be sure to mail your weekly reports.

8. The History Internship Coordinator may conduct a personal interview with your supervisor and fill out a midterm evaluation on your performance.

9. After completing your work assignment, have your employer return your final evaluation, then make an appointment with The History Internship Coordinator to turn in your log and the project assignment or paper. DO NOT leave them in a mailbox or with a secretary. At this time The History Internship Coordinator will go over your experiences and review any problems.

10. Only after all of the above steps have been completed will a grade be issued for the course. Your grade will be calculated as follows: 75% Job performance, 10% Job log (including weekly reports) and 15% historic project. I want to emphasize that this course is worth l5 hours of academic credit, a considerable amount of effort will be expected in completing your paper. It is not something that you could knock out the night before turning it in.

SPECIAL NOTES

1. Some employers will require more than 200 (40 hrs a week for five weeks) hours of work for 9 semester credit hours. Be sure to agree to a set number of hours prior to finalizing your internship arrangement.

2. Some agencies pay their interns, usually minimum wage. Most, however, do not pay and are not required to do so. If compensation is a major requirement of yours, be sure to ask during your initial inquiries.

3. Please remember that your history project must be ten pages in length and typed.  Oral histories requirements will be worked out with the Coordinator. 

4. Before contacting any agencies, clear them through the History Internship Coordinator.

5. Always remember that you are representing the university. You will not be allowed to jeopardize future internships with the host agency. If your job performance or work attitude are deemed by the History Internship Coordinator to be unacceptable, you will be pulled from the agency, given an F for your grade and the hours worked will not be credited toward your next assignment.

6. Also remember that you are working at the convenience of the agency. They are not going to tolerate behavior from you that they might from a regular employee. Tardiness and absenteeism are not acceptable work habits even if others do it. Prior to working your first shift, you should obtain the phone numbers of those supervisors you must contact if you are going to be late or absent. Remember you need them, they don't need you. They can and will terminate you if you are deemed to be more trouble than you are worth. If termination is appropriate, the hours worked will not be credited toward your next assignment.

7. While history internships are seldom risky, if a supervisor orders you into a dangerous situation, respectfully and firmly decline, and contact the History Internship Coordinator immediately.

8. If any problems or questions arise, contact the History Internship Coordinator immediately. Also note that the school will continue to send its official correspondence to you through your mailbox on campus or by email. You should check it at least once a week or have a friend do so for you.

9. Every effort possible should be made to complete all your internship requirements prior to the end of the semester.

10. Remember to fill out the proper forms at the registrar's office for commuter/off-campus status. This will waive your activity fees.