An internship gives students the opportunity to integrate academic study with professional work experience in job placements that directly relate to their major and/or career interest. Internships are joint efforts in which businesses, government, social and cultural agencies work with the college. The internship program is designed to enhance academic and personal growth through the practical application of theoretical and technical knowledge gained in the classroom. Students get a head start networking and making professional contacts, exploring their career options while building their resumes for future employment opportunities.
Through the internship program, students learn about the variety of possibilities that are open to them with their particular academic training, personal interests and values. They acquire a clearer understanding of the work environment and a greater appreciation of the considerable skills that they themselves bring to the work environment. Since they have an opportunity to relate theory to application in their Internship placements, students more easily see the relationship between the "world of the classroom" and the "world of work."
The Internship Program provides students with a series of offsite work experiences. Students are allowed to earn up to nine credits during their college career, never more than six within any degree program. Each successive work experience offers new responsibilities and challenges and builds on the previous one, as well as on the academic work completed.
You can earn 3 - 9 academic credits for your work experience through Internship courses. However, if you are interested in getting work experience in your field and do not meet the internship requirements, you can gain work experience without earning academic credit.
A Corporate Internship is a highly-specialized six-credit internship designed to provide students with the opportunity to apply skills learned in the classroom to a corporate experience. The goal is to better prepare students to act as professionals by gaining "Real Life" experience while immersing them fully into a corporate setting. A Corporate Internship can be an integral part of each of the majors, usually taking place in the third semester. Its primary goals are the following:
- Enable the student to lean about a new industry or company and apply the knowledge gained from the major.
- Help the company solve particular business problem and get to know a prospective full- time candidate, assessing his/ her profile and fit in the company.
While OCA will do all it can to assist you in finding an internship, but ultimately how well you fare in the job search process will determine whether you get a placement. While OCA will help you develop an effective resume and coach you on successful interviewing, you must secure the position yourself, on occasion in competition with other students from Monroe College and other colleges. It is the employer who makes the final decision on whether or not you are hired. Please note that the Internship placement process takes time, so get started early in your college career!