Media Production & Studies Internship Form (MDIA 4890)
Internships must be approved by the Internship Coordinator (Dr. Liggett) BEFORE the student begins work. After this form has been reviewed and approved, registration will be done through the School of Media and Communication at Dr. Liggett’s request. (Students cannot register themselves for MDIA 4890.) For the safety of students, the University, and employers, BGSU requires that all students doing internship work are registered for University credit.
STUDENT INTERNS: Please READ the procedures and policies information below carefully before you sign this form. If you have questions, please contact the Internship Coordinator, Dr. Lori Liggett.
Internship Procedures & Policies
An intern is a student gaining supervised practical experience in media and communications while working outside the classroom in a professional setting. The internship is a structured experience which must have demonstrated educational and professional value. While info about potential internship opportunities is made available to students, faculty do NOT find or arrange internships for students. Each student is responsible for finding an appropriate internship, contacting the organization to discuss opportunities, completing hiring procedures, and this approval and registration form. Students must send a confirmation email from the direct supervisor to the Internship Coordinator for review.
Approval from the Internship Coordinator is required BEFORE students begin internship work. Before registration for credit takes place, the student must complete this form in its entirety and submit it for approval. NOTE: Students may not receive retroactive credit for internships previously completed.
Credit is earned (S/U only – satisfactory / unsatisfactory). MDIA majors must complete one (1) credit hour of MDIA 4890 to meet graduation requirements. Students may complete up to a maximum of six (6) credit hours of MDIA 4890 but may not take more than (3) three credit hours of MDIA 4890 in a semester.
- Speak to your College adviser, faculty mentors, professional mentors, the BGSU Career Center, or the Internship Coordinator about internship ideas and opportunities. Other students may provide useful info about their own internship experiences.
- Contact companies/organizations to see if they have available internships.
- After you have been selected for an internship, submit this approval and registration form.
- Once approved, registration will be done for you. Your registration for MDIA 4890 will appear on MyBGSU soon afterward.
- The Internship Coordinator provides due dates and details about requirements on Canvas. In order to get credit at the end of the semester student-interns must: 1. Complete the required number of work hours, 2. Submit an evaluation form filled-out by the direct supervisor (see #2 below), and 3. Write a report that describes the internship experience. (Students may have to fulfill additional internship related requirements throughout the semester.) If students have questions about requirements, they should contact the Internship Coordinator: lorilig@bgsu.edu.
- For the safety of students, the University, and employers, BGSU requires that all students doing internship work are registered for University credit.
- One credit hour of MDIA 4890 requires 100 hours of on the job internship work completed within the semester of registration.
- The direct supervisor will guide the student-intern on the job, maintain appropriate contact with the Internship Coordinator as needed, and provide an evaluation of the intern’s work and learning achievements after the internship is complete. Student interns may not be supervised by other students. The direct supervisor must be an official employee of the hiring company and must be an experienced professional who can provide on the job direction and oversight.
- Student-interns may be paid or receive a stipend, or serve voluntarily (unpaid), depending on the standard practice of the organization being served. Paid internships are permissible if the employer knows the student-intern is receiving official university credit for the internship.
- If the student intern is already an officially hired and paid (non-intern) employee of the company they must perform additional work to receive internship credit. This must be done with prior approval of their direct supervisor, the Human Resources department of the company, and the Internship Coordinator. Student-interns may NOT use their official paid (non-intern) work hours towards the work hours needed for the internship.
By signing this form, the student-intern agrees that all or portions of their required report may be used to advertise or promote the internship program either in print format(s) or online format(s).
Updated: 12/16/2021 09:53AM