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GIS Education & Resources

Graduate Student Intern Program

Internships

 

Although they are not a requirement of the program, internships are a valuable part of the educational process in the Urban Planning Program. They provide opportunities for students to apply their newly gained skills in temporary jobs in the real world, giving them an opportunity to try their professional style in an environment that is guided by Urban Planning "faculty" as well as professionals in the field. Students are graded on their performance in the internship through a collaborative analysis by their professor and professional supervisor. In addition to receiving up to six credits for the internship, students often receive a modest compensation for the experience. Each year in the Fall, the Department solicits these internship opportunities by distributing to area employers an Internship Document containing resumes of all interested students.

 

STUDENT INTERNSHIP REGULATIONS & PROCEDURES

 

Proposal

A student intending to enroll for an internship for credit (945-991) shall submit his/her proposal to a Department of Urban Planning (DUP) faculty for approval. The proposal will identify the agency, give the name, address and telephone number of the expected direct supervisor in the agency, describe the work or assignment in which the student will be engaged, and identify the expected learning experience in terms of skills, methods, and/or planning related experience the student expects to acquire. On the prospective instructor's approval of the proposal and his/her agreement to serve as faculty supervisor, the student will be eligible to enroll for the internship.

 

Internship

The student will fill the internship an accordance with the terms of the approved proposal, which will also be forwarded to the agency supervisor. The faculty supervisor and the agency supervisor will interact to monitor the student's performance, and to resolve any difficulties that may arise between the students academic commitments and the employee tasks or responsibilities.

 

Debriefing

At the end of the semester, during finals week, the student will forward to the faculty supervisor a report reviewing his/her accomplishments, and identifying the planning-related learning experience provided by the internship. This report may be accompanied by any relevant material which is evidence of work done and of learning experience. This report is to be five typewritten pages. On review of the report and after interaction with the student's agency supervisor, the faculty supervisor may also have a meeting with the student to receive an additional oral debriefing of the student's experience.

 

Evaluation

The student's successful completion of an internship and the grade awarded will be based on the instructor's evaluation of the student's performance and what the student has learned in the course of the internship. The evaluation will be based on the following:

• fulfillment of objectives and expectations as set out in student's proposal
• performance in fulfilling tasks and assignments as reported by agency supervisor
• learning experience in performing in agency environment, as evidenced in student's report and agency supervisor's evaluation
• new planning related concepts, methods, and/or skills learned and/or applied in internship, as evidenced by student's report assessed by faculty and agency supervisors.