Policies and Procedures

The College of Applied Human Sciences has established the following policies related to internship placements. Please review these policies carefully before requesting internship approval.

1. Submit Agreement First

   The Internship Agreement needs to be completed prior to the first day of the semester in which the student is scheduled to complete the internship. The agreement will then be reviewed. If approved, the student will be emailed registration instructions.  Students will not be able to register for their internship course without a completed approval form on file.

2. Verify Course Details

   Student interns should consult with their academic advisor or program faculty regarding the appropriate course number and credit hours when completing an internship for academic credit. 

3. Syllabus Requirements

   All credit-bearing courses require a syllabus that includes related learning outcomes, activities, assessments and grading criteria. Students are required to document progress during their internship and demonstrate completion of the course learning. The specific internship requirements will be detailed in the course syllabus.

4. Site Prerequisites

   The student intern is responsible for working with their internship site supervisor to comply with all internship site pre-requisites prior to the start of their placements (e.g., application materials, certifications, criminal background checks, health screenings). These pre-requisites will vary considerably across placements, so we encourage students to be proactive in identifying their internship site well before the start of the intended term.

5. Clear Communication

   Successful student internships are dependent on maintaining clear channels of communication among all involved parties. Toward that end, contact information should be exchanged early in the placement between the student intern, internship site supervisor and course instructor.

6. Professional Conduct

   Professional attire and behavior are always expected by student interns. Neither the course instructor nor internship site supervisor will tolerate unprofessional behavior. All reported incidents of unprofessional behavior of student interns will be acted upon immediately. The student intern could be suspended from the placement until the incident is resolved.

7. Attendance Policy

   Students are to call their respective internship site supervisor prior to their scheduled hours if they are going to be late or absent that day. Student interns are to send a follow-up e-mail to the internship site supervisor and course instructor to explain the reason for the absence or tardiness. If this policy is not followed, this will be viewed as unprofessional behavior and subject to termination of the internship placement.

   The ONLY acceptable reasons for absence from scheduled internship hours are illness or a death in the immediate family, participation in a university-sponsored event, or attendance at an approved professional development opportunity (e.g., state or national conference which needs pre-approval at least one month in advance). Hours missed will be ‘made-up’ prior to the end of the placement at the discretion of the internship site supervisor. Make-up days will be arranged in collaboration with the cooperating teacher, university supervisor and the coordinator of field experiences.

8. Follow Site Calendar

   Student interns are expected to follow the same work calendar as the organizations in which they are placed. On scheduled campus days, student interns are required to report to campus for their course-related activities. Additionally, a student’s internship assignment may not line up in accordance with University holidays (i.e. fall break, spring break, etc.). Subsequently, students must communicate proactively with internship site supervisors regarding University holidays and the internship supervisor will have the discretion to determine if it can/will be considered as an excused absence.