The Miller School sponsored its fourth annual internship/career fair on March 5 in conjunction with Career and Employment Services (CES). The Common Good Internship/Career Fair provided students with the opportunity to connect with employers searching for a wide range of majors including advertising, criminology, government positions, journalism, non-profit organizations, public relations, radio & television and social work plus many other areas. Students visited with a variety of employers for full-time, internship and co-op positions.
Students have access to a broad range of tools to help in the often stressful process of finding a job after college. The JMC faculty has diverse backgrounds and experiences, which give students contacts in several different fields and locations.
The faculty's professional experience is often an invaluable tool in preparing a resume or portfolio when job-hunting. Preparation is the key to success, and JMC faculty assist students by preparing them for the "real world" both in and outside the classroom.
An internship offers students a 'real world' experience that cannot be replicated in the classroom. While all students are encouraged to complete internships, only public relations and journalism/digital media majors are required to carry out a 1-3 credit hour internship to graduate. For a work situation to qualify as an internship, a professional must supervise the student. The school does not 'place' students in internships; rather, students arrange their own, often using contact provided by the school. Students in Advertising are strongly encouraged to pursue an internship. Internships vary from one to three hours and may be spread over more than one semester. Internship announcements are posted on the school's Web site: http://jmc.ksu.edu/jobs. An internship can be paid or unpaid.
To receive academic credit, students must complete an internship contract in advance and enroll in MC 491 for 1, 2 or 3 credits, based on a minimum of 120 work-hours per credit.
Prerequisite requirements for each sequence include:
This assures students will have completed essential skills courses in the sequence before performing pre-professional duties in an internship. Students without the prerequisite courses may still arrange an internship and benefit from the experience, but they cannot earn academic credit.
Overall, a student can earn a maximum of three credit hours from interning. Grading is based on the professional supervisor's evaluation of the intern and on additional work in the MC 491 class. Failure to complete the Internship Contract in advance, or meet deadlines, carries a grade penalty.
For questions about the internship class contact the Internship Coordinator, Gloria Freeland, at gfreela@ksu.edu
The Internship Packet for Fall 2010 can be downloaded here (PDF).