Why Internships?

The majority of internships are taken for academic credit and the academic department helps find,internship sites; approves the internship; and supervises the intern. Students can also find their own internships and then get approval from the appropriate faculty member.

How can Internships benefit our department?

There are a multitude of reasons why internships can be beneficial:

Faculty can create and develop contacts with local business and employers: Dr.John Bodenman, in the video clip below says, "What internships do is enable us to engage with potential employers for our students". Helping students forge these relationships will not only open up opportunities for future students, but it can also cultivate key relationships between your department and organizations.

This could potentially open up doors for  them to sponsor events, fund faculty research, create potential research challenges and become fundraising sources for the institution

Application of classroom theory in a real world environment: Students can develop key skills in a competitive working environment, which will help them not only better grasp concepts taught within the classroom, but will allow students to apply classroom concepts in a real-world setting.

Increase the visibility of the department and the university: An increase in visibility from the outside community could have a positive impact on student retention and enrollments. This would also lead to a increase of the prestige and viability of your department, as more candidates would be immediately suited for the job market. It could also lead to stronger external relationships and development of additional sources of employment for graduates.

Dr. John Bodenman from the Department of Geography describes what internships have brought to his department.