About Internships for Credit
Internships allow you to explore new workplaces and career options, develop abilities and knowledge that aren't available in school, integrate academic and workplace learning, build your portfolio, and make yourself a more desirable candidate for full-time, permanent employment.
Why do an internship for credit?
Earning credit for an internship requires somewhat more work than if the internship were not taken for credit: you keep a journal, meet monthly with the internship director, and, at the end of the internship, submit a portfolio of work completed on site.
The journals prompt you to reflect on your learning on site. This reflection helps you become conscious of the knowledge and abilities you are acquiring on site, contextualize your professional activities in light of course work, and develop your post-graduation plans accordingly.
Developing the portfolio prepares you to showcase your writing samples for potential employers.
Interns registered for credit have the internship director as a resource if questions and problems arise on site. And because students cannot earn credit for completing only administrative tasks such as data entry, filing, or making phone calls, taking an internship for credit ensures that you will be assigned substantive writing tasks and responsibilities on site.
What kind of internship is suitable for English credit?
For an internship to be eligible for English credit, its primary tasks and responsibilities should be some combination of writing, editing, analysis and research. Interns also typically cover some administrative tasks; these may include attending meetings, planning events, or maintaining databases. If you have questions about whether an internship you are considering is suitable for credit, contact Scott Berg, the internship director (sberg1@gmu.edu).
How does internship credit count towards the degree?
Undergraduate internships for credit are taken as English 498. They count towards the English B.A. thus:
-- for concentrators in Nonfiction Writing and Rhetoric, English 498 counts towards the concentration requirement, the English elective, or a university elective.
-- for English majors in the other concentrations, English 498 counts as the English elective or as a university elective.
If you have any questions about how an internship for credit would count towards your BA in English, check with Laura Scott, English department undergraduate advisor.
If you are a graduate student, read about graduate internships and consult your advisor about how English 504 would contribute to your degree.