Certificates Internship for Credit

Satisfies 3 Credits

Internships provide practical training and experience for students. Working within a firm or organization allows students to acquire and apply knowledge through direct experience in a field related to their academic program.

For certificate programs, there is one type of internship for credit opportunity:

• Academic Internships: Generally part-time positions and may be paid or unpaid positions. Requires a minimum of 150 hours. Credits earned through this internship can be applied to business or general electives.*

*Internships credits related to certificate programs can be applied to the certificate program or seek guidance from your academic advisor about how it can be applied.

Eligibility

Students who have faculty approval and have completed the course prerequisites are eligible to enroll in an internship. Course prerequisites are stated below and are enforced.

Academic Internships

• Entrepreneurship – Bus Adm 490: junior standing, admission to the major; completion of Bus Adm 292 or 447 or completion of at least one 400-level course in student’s major; written consent of a designated instructor.
• International Business – Bus Adm 494: junior standing, admission to Bus Adm major; completion of Bus Adm 330(P), 350(P) and 360(P); written consent of a designated instructor.
• Real Estate – Bus Adm 389: junior standing, admission to the major; completion of Bus Adm 380; written consent of a designated instructor.

Policies

1. Credit for the internship must be approved prior to the start of the internship.
2. Students completing the internship must have an approved faculty supervisor and an on-site supervisor during the internship.
   1. The designated faculty supervisor (listed on the back of this form) in conjunction with the Career Services representative will determine if a position qualifies for internship credit.
   2. You must meet with the supervising faculty member to review your Learning Goals and Professional Development Plan and to complete the Method of Assessment.
3. The duties or responsibilities called for by the internship:
   1. require the student to have a significant knowledge base. Please refer to the internship prerequisites listed under the Eligibility Section above;
   2. must present new areas of the discipline that are uniquely and significantly different from that experienced in previous positions of employment;
   3. must cover minimum number of hours (see above);
   4. directly relate to the major area;
   5. include learned skills that are transferable to other settings.
4. All internships are completed for 3 credits and are graded Credit/No Credit.
5. Credit for an internship will be granted only when the internship is completed. Students must be registered for and complete the internship during the semester in which they receive academic credit.
6. You may complete only one internship course per major area.
7. Students cannot complete an internship and a Bus Adm 499 – Research in Industry with the same company.

How to Find Internships

• Search for open positions on Handshake, LinkedIn, Indeed, or by attending the career fair. If new to Handshake, you must activate your account first.
• The Career Services Center in Lubar N203 can help find positions. They can also provide feedback on your resume, cover letter, and interviewing skills. Schedule an appointment via Handshake or reach out to them by email (careerserv@uwm.edu) or by phone (414-229-5445).

How to Register

1. Check if you are eligible by using the Internship for Credit Eligibility Survey.
2. Create an Internship Learning Plan (see tips on next page). This will be entered into Handshake.
3. Share the learning plan with your site supervisor from the internship, so they can agree on supporting you with those goals.
4. Meet with a designated faculty supervisor (see last page) to review the internship position and the learning plan. Ask about their expectations for the method of assessment and internship closing activity.
5. Submit your Internship for Credit application through Handshake – Please note, responses cannot be saved and completed later. Gather the required information in advance of filling out the application.
   • Watch this detailed video on how to submit the application as an “experience” in Handshake
   • In Handshake, click on “Career Center”
   • Click on “Experiences,”
   • Then click on “Submit an Experience”
   • Select the experience template that relates to your major or internship.
   • Fill out the required information.
   • After submitting the experience, attach a document for the position description if needed.
6. Tell your faculty supervisor and site supervisor to expect an e-mail from Handshake requesting their approval of the internship. They may need to check their junk folder. A Handshake account is not required.
7. Monitor the approval progress in Handshake:
   • Career services will also review the submission for approval.
   • If academic prerequisites are met, your academic advisor will approve and enroll you in the course.
   • The approval process may take up to 2-3 weeks to complete, so start this process early to complete on time.

You must submit the internship experience application via Handshake and obtain all approvals by 4:30pm on first day of class for a given semester.

Guidelines for Creating a Learning Plan

Complete the Learning Goals & Professional Development sections prior to meeting with your faculty and site supervisors. The purpose of the Learning Plan is to think through your goals for academic learning and/or application prior to the internship experience.

Academic Learning Goals

Learning goals should be reflective, intentional, and relevant to your internship experience. The following are examples of how to state your learning goals:

• “I will demonstrate the ability to …..”
• “I will apply theory/concepts/learning from __ courses to…..”
• “I will learn/develop…..”
• “I will intentionally explore…..

Skill Development

Depending on the focus of your internship, you will likely have a chance to develop discipline-specific and/or transferable skills. Discipline-specific skills will depend on your major. In addition to discipline- specific skills, consider these other skill-development areas:

• Critical thinking
• Information Literacy
• Communication
• Citizenship
• Leadership
• Organization/Planning
• Team Building
• Computer Skills
• Networking

List your primary goals for academic learning and/or skill development and application. What is it you want to learn or be able to do? How will you apply course concepts into this internship?

Personal/Professional Development, Career Awareness

In addition to your academic learning goals, consider how this experience will allow you to develop professionally. Consider your values, skills, interests, abilities and how they may impact or be impacted by this learning experience. Take every opportunity to learn about specific career positions and occupations, training required, and professional development opportunities. Consider how this internship will contribute to your understanding of the workplace, operational procedures, organizational structure and culture and get a sense of the overall work environment. Contemplate your short-term and long-term career goals.

Faculty Mentors

Depending on the certificate program, choose the designated person on this list:

Area	Name	Email	Phone	Office
Entrepreneurship	Steve Michael	stevmich@uwm.edu	414-251-8363	S363
International Business	Tailan Chi	chit@uwm.edu	414-229-4544	S369
Real Estate	Chad Venne	cmvenne@uwm.edu	414-251-6654	S461

To be completed by faculty supervisor in Handshake approval process:

• Describe how progress toward the learning objectives will be measured. Indicate requirements for ongoing evaluation (e.g. periodic journal, reflection on learning goals, readings, reaction
  essays, etc.) Indicate how often you will correspond with the student.
• Provided a description and criteria for the closing activity, which is intended to facilitate thoughtful reflection integration of academic and experiential learning (e.g. integrated paper, reflective paper, portfolio, seminar presentation, etc.)
• What is the due date of the closing activity? Must be submitted prior to the grade due date.