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Student
Co-op and Internship Handbook
Written by Reviewed, edited, and approved by Linda Taylor, Secretary, Cooperative Education/Internships, with input from an ad hoc faculty committee with membership as follows: Patricia McFerson, Telecommunications and Business
Education Dr. Robert Parker, Mechanical Engineering Technology Dr. Sharon Parkinson, Social Work Dr. Dolly Samson, Information Systems & Technologies Dr. James Shaner, Communication Dr. Molly M. Smith, Health Promotion & Human
Performance June 1997 Introduction to Cooperative Education, Internship, and
Similar Courses Based on For many years, Weber State University has recognized the educational value of work experience directly related to a student’s academic major and career goals. Cooperative Education, Internship, and similar courses have been a part of American higher education since the turn of the century. Colleges and universities have documented the benefits to students who have participated in these courses and programs. Benefits include the opportunity to apply classroom learning to practical problems on the job, to work with professionals in the field you are preparing to enter, and to experience tentative career choices in real-life work situations. Students who gain practical work experience through these programs generally become more committed to their academic fields, more serious about their course work, and more constructive contributors in the classroom. CO-OP students and Interns are often exposed to advanced technology and equipment in a learning environment that is not available on campus. Students also learn the competitive nature of the job market and what is needed to prepare for the best career positions after graduation. Graduating with study-related work experience gives you a competitive edge in the new graduate job market and assist in your receiving a higher starting salary than classmates who have not had this experience. National studies show that Cooperative Education and Internship experiences significantly contribute to the growth of the individual in academic, personal, social, and career development. Experience in a work-related study course will contribute to your developing sense of identity and value. In the employment setting, you learn important lessons about relating to other persons from a variety of backgrounds. The net effect is a better total education. As a student about to begin a Co-op or Internship position, you probably already sense these new opportunities for learning. The major difference between this course and a typical college lecture or lab course is the process. You won’t attend classes or take tests, but you will be required to demonstrate new learning to the faculty member supervising this course. Also, you will need to exercise more initiative in the learning process. You will take an active part in setting learning objectives and projects and then document what you have learned to the satisfaction of your faculty supervisor. The course syllabus will be unique and specific to your work experience and academic major. The primary purpose of this handbook is to show you how to develop appropriate learning objectives and projects and, secondarily, to familiarize you with some of the ways your faculty coordinator will evaluate your performance to arrive at a grade for you at the end of the term. CO-OP and Internship Definitions Cooperative Education at Weber State University is defined as a part-time or full-time, paid or unpaid study-related work experience, continuing throughout the academic term in which you are enrolled in the appropriate CO-OP course. Normally, CO-OP positions provide employment over more than one term, primarily because employers usually perceive positions under the name "Cooperative Education" as a long-range recruiting program for college graduates. They observe undergraduate students in productive and educational work assignments, without making any long-term employment commitment, and then select the best student for permanent employment after graduation. An Internship is similar to Cooperative Education in that the work experience must be directly related to the student’s field of study, but it may cover only one academic term, may be either paid or unpaid, and is usually a curriculum requirement in your major. Also, participating employers do not generally perceive an Internship as a recruiting program, although some students ultimately obtain career positions with their Internship employers. Paid or unpaid, Internship experience and documentation on your transcript and resume will make you more competitive for better career positions after graduation in the same way that CO-OP participation does. Because of the educational similarities between Cooperative Education and Internship, most academic departments at Weber State University utilize the same course numbers, usually titled "Cooperative Work Experience," with 89 as the last two digits of the course number and the first digit indicating the level of the course. For example, a sophomore-level Accounting student would register for ACCTNG 289, the lower division course for Accounting CO-OP students and Interns. Normally, a junior or senior CO-OP/Intern would register for ACCTNG 489 to designate upper division level. Other names for similar courses and programs at Weber State University are Practicum, Field Experience, Clinical Experience, and Student Teaching. Like Internship, some of these study-related work experiences are paid and others are not. Some academic departments use the x89 numbers for these courses, but a variety of other numbers may be used. In summary, the common policies governing Cooperative Education, Internship, Practicum, Field Experience, Clinical Experience, and Student Teaching, at Weber State University, are as follows: The work experience must be directly related to the student’s academic major and career objectives, and the participating student must be enrolled in the appropriate credit-bearing course. Working with your Faculty Coordinator Once you have found an appropriate position, you must make an appointment to see the faculty coordinator in your academic department designated to work with students enrolled in CO-OP, Internship, and similar courses. The Manager of Cooperative Education and Internships maintains a list of designated faculty coordinators for each academic major during each academic term. Your first meeting with the designated faculty coordinator in your academic department must be scheduled and conducted either before or during the first week of the academic term. At that time, the following should be discussed and accomplished: 1. Describe your study-related position and the work you expect to be doing throughout the academic term. Validate this position by providing your faculty coordinator with a job description of your duties and responsibilities. Obtain faculty coordinator approval of the position for credit. 2. Obtain the appropriate course name and number for which you should register. Discuss the number of credit hours you will earn. The number of credit hours is not always based upon the number of hours worked each week, but more importantly is a measure of the learning potential of the position. 3. Determine from your faculty coordinator the grading policy (i.e., credit/NC or letter grade). 4. Propose learning objectives, projects, journals, reports, etc. which when completed will determine how you satisfy the course requirements, obtain credit, and receive a grade. The outcome of your proposal will be your learning contract or course syllabus. You assume the initiative and the greatest share of responsibility for what is included in the syllabus. The faculty coordinator will consider your proposal, suggest modifications, additions, and/or deletions, and approve the learning contract/syllabus. Suggestions for documenting your learning objectives are found in Appendix A. 5. Prepare your learning contract in writing and have it signed. See Appendix B for a sample learning contract. Learning Objectives Every academic course is based upon learning objectives, and these objectives are stated in the course syllabus you receive at the first class. Objectives for traditional lecture, recitation, and laboratory courses are set by faculty in the academic department offering these courses. Cooperative Education, Internship, and similar courses are unique because each such course has its own set of learning objectives that are based upon a particular student’s work assignment, academic major, and career goals. Not only are you granted the right to help decide what it is you will learn in this course, you have a responsibility to propose specific learning objectives and projects to your faculty coordinator at the beginning of the academic term. Each learning objective must include a specific statement of what is to be learned, how it will be evaluated, and when it will be completed. To begin the process, review your career objectives and the new experiences you expect to have on your job assignment. If you have worked with the same organization in the same position, for a period of time, you may want to meet with your work supervisor to talk about learning objectives aimed at cross training or preparation for additional responsibilities. Learning objectives set forth what is to be learned during the academic term and how it will be evaluated. Objectives must be measurable and have a specific completion date. You will be required to provide documentation throughout the academic term so your faculty coordinator can measure your progress toward completing your objectives. Sample learning objectives can be found in Appendix A. Working with your Work Supervisor Meet with your work supervisor for suggested learning objectives and projects. Stress to your work supervisor that if necessary you will work on and complete your learning objectives, projects, and other activities outside regular working hours and your work supervisor is not expected to spend any extra time on your supervision because of the fact that you are enrolled in this course and earning credit. You should also ask your work supervisor to agree to complete an evaluation over your work at the end of the term. The work supervisor evaluation is found in Appendix D. Sequence of Activities During The Academic Term Your Co-op or Internship position is a three-way agreement between yourself, your faculty coordinator, and your work supervisor. It is important all three members have input into and agree on the learning contract/course syllabus. This collaboration continues throughout your entire study-related work experience. Outlined below is a sequence of some of the activities you should complete during a Co-op/Internship course. 1. During your first meeting with a faculty coordinator (see page 4 for specifics), you must agree on a schedule of activities and further meetings. Remember that this first meeting must take place before or during the first week of the academic term. 2. Meet with your work supervisor regarding the learning contract. Communicate your work supervisor’s recommendations to your faculty coordinator as soon as possible for revision of the learning contract. 3. Attend a follow-up meeting with your faculty advisor to achieve final agreement on your learning contract and the specific course requirements. 4. Continue meeting with your faculty coordinator and/or work supervisor throughout the academic term. Report progress on your learning objectives and projects. 5. Remind your work supervisor to complete the evaluation form(s) of your performance on the job. A suggested work supervisor evaluation form is shown in Appendix D. 6. For a final wrap-up of the course, meet with your faculty coordinator and turn in all required documents. Appendix A Possible Learning Objectives for CO-OP and Internship Courses Experience at Weber State University and other colleges and universities nationwide shows that a learning contract containing two or more of the objectives below produces a successful learning experience. The objectives and the depth of effort should match the number of credit hours that you have agreed upon. The amount of time you spend on assigned projects should be equivalent to the time you would spend on a regular lecture/recitation/lab course for the same number of credit hours. While reporting requirements vary from department to department, Co-op students will need to give evidence of their accomplishments. The documentation aspect of the Co-op experience serves to enhance the learning, as well as report the outcome. 1. Objectives can be based on established, employer-required training programs. For example, CO-OP Students and Interns at Walt Disney World are required to participate in ten three-hour seminars and completion of these seminars could be a learning objective for a Disney Intern. 2. Submit a job description of your duties and responsibilities to your faculty coordinator at your first meeting. See Appendix C. 3. Maintain a daily or weekly log (journal) of your activities on the job needs to be submitted to your faculty coordinator. Comments on specific problems and challenges you have experienced and how you confronted, analyzed, and were able (or unable) to solve the problems. 4. Present a seminar to other students in the same academic department. 5. Submit a narrative written report, as specified by your faculty coordinator and/or employer, due at the end of the academic term. 6. Complete a research project and/or technical report based upon a suitable topic associated with your work assignment and academic major. Appendix B Sample Learning Contract It is hereby agreed between ______________, faculty member in the Department of _______________at Weber State University, and ___________________, student in the same academic department, that the learning objectives and projects set forth below will serve as the syllabus for Course No.________, during the __________academic term of _________. It is further agreed that the objectives and projects set forth below will be completed by the end of the academic term, to the satisfaction of the faculty supervisor, before the student receives credit and a grade for the course. It is also understood that the depth and quality of the student’s performance on all of the learning objectives and projects, as evaluated by the faculty supervisor, will determine the final grade for this course. This contract includes the objectives and projects that are checked and initialed by both the student and the faculty supervisor in the spaces provided. 1. A daily/weekly journal of student activities on the job, with comments on specific problems and challenges experienced and how they were analyzed, confronted, and solved (or why resolution was not reached). Faculty initials_______ Student Initials______ 2. A seminar presentation at_____(time) on______________(date). Faculty initials_______ Student Initials______ 3. A narrative written report, with format, content, and length agreed upon. Faculty initials_______ Student Initials______ 4. A research project and technical report, based upon a topic or project associated with the student’s work and academic major. Faculty initials_______ Student Initials______ 5. A composite report. Faculty initials_______ Student Initials______ 6. Other project(s) or learning activity(ies) agreed upon and described in detail on separate attachment(s) which is (are) part of this contract. Faculty initials_______ Student Initials______
Signed: ____________________________, student. Date: ________ Signed: ____________________________, faculty. Date: _______ Note: Each party to this contract must receive a signed copy Appendix C Job Description Acquiring a formal written job description from your supervisor is helpful in two very important ways: 1) It informs you at the beginning of your co-op experience exactly what is expected of you. The job description normally gives you the boundaries within which you function on the job. Job descriptions are also used for performance evaluations. 2) The job description helps your faculty coordinator to determine how relevant this work experience is to your major field of study, your skill competency level, and the value of the experience students receive with this employer as a future Cooperative Education/Internship training site. Your job description should include an explanation of your job duties, responsibilities, assignments, projects and level of work that you perform. Attach your formal written job description to this sheet when submitting
it to your faculty coordinator. |
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