Internships and Practica
Information for Students
What is a practicum/internship?
A practicum/internship is a work experience in an on- or off-campus setting for which a student receives academic credit. The School of Business cooperates with local agencies and businesses to provide a wide variety of opportunities that give real-world application of the concepts learned in the classroom. Supervision is provided for the student at the place of assignment by a designated on-site supervisor. An academic coordinator on campus further supervises the student's progress and serves in a liason capacity between the experience site and the University.
Juniors, Seniors and graduate students are eligible for BA 409/509 practicum placement. A minimum 2.5 GPA in business administration course work at SOU is required for internship placement. A student must work at least 30 hours for every one credit earned. Most students enroll for 4 credit hours and complete 120 hours of work during the term. (Additional credit hours may be granted under special circumstances. Freshmen and Sophomores may register for up to a total of 4 credits of BA 209.) Practica normally follow the 10-week quarter, but may begin and end at any time that is mutually agreed upon by the academic department, the site supervisor, and the student. Students may earn a maximum of 15 credits in BA 409 toward their bachelor's degree.
More information about the Internship program may be found in the Student Internship Handbook.
You may also want to watch this video tutorial describing the internship program and how to search for an internship.
What steps should a student take to set up a Practicum/Internship?
- Become fully admitted to the School of Business. Once you have completed the pre-business program requirements, visit the School of Business office in Central Hall 144 to apply for full admission to the upper division program in Business Administration. At this time you will select one of four concentration options and will meet with an advisor who will help you plan your upper division coursework. Your advisor must approve your internship.
- Identify and receive approval for an appropriate internship from the Internship Coordinator. (Students must have a minimum 2.5 GPA in business administration coursework and have completed appropriate classes in their major to register for an internship.) If you are applying the internship to a certificate program requirement, you must also get approval of the certificate coordinator.
- If you are seeking a site, please see information below.
- Register for BA 409 Practicum credits as directed by the Internship Coordinator.
- After registering for BA 409, you must complete and submit to the following forms to the Internship Coordinator:
Student Internship Application (must be signed by student, employer, and certificate coordinator if applicable)
Student Agreement (must be signed by student)
Host Site Agreement (must be signed by employer)
Students may not start counting internship hours until those three forms above are submitted and approved by the internship coordinator. If you are registered for BA409, you may log on to the Moodle site at http://moodle.sou.edu. Download the course syllabus and read further about course requirements.
Search for Internships
To find an internship, you can do several things:
1. Go to your student email account. Along the top left where you see links to your calendar and mail, click on Groups. (This is in GMail - not in My.sou.edu.) If you do not see Groups, click on More, and then you should see Groups. Search for Business Internships. Double click on the group title and then you'll be able to scroll through all the postings. There's a blue button that says "Join Group." Join if you want to receive emails about any new postings. You can always unsubscribe later when you're not interested any more.
2. Go to the University site was: http://www.sou.edu/careers If you have never logged into this site before, you will need to create a log in and password.
3. Go to a company's website and look at their job posting or careers page. Companies often post internship opportunities on their own site. Click here for a list of employers who have offered internships in the past and links to their employment page.
4. Contact a company you want to work for and offer your services. Be prepared with a cover letter explaining why you want to intern with them and a resume.
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| Dr. Joan McBee Internship/Practicum Coordinator CE 141 541-552-6493 or 541-552-8151 FAX: 541-552-6715 mcbeej@sou.edu |