An internship is an opportunity to reflect on what you have learned in your sociology and anthropology courses, apply that knowledge in the real world, try out a potential career path, improve your resume, and work independently.
Course catalog description: SOC 395/ANTH 395 (1-4 credits) Supervised experience in a setting suitable to anthropological or sociological analysis. May be repeated once for credit. Open only to department majors. SS (click here for course catalog listing)
Course requirements:
- Faculty advisor. The student must identify a faculty member from the Department of Sociology & Anthropology to serve as faculty advisor and register for a section of SOC 395 or ANTH 395 under the name of the faculty advisor. The faculty advisor does not need to be the student’s academic advisor.
- A memorandum of understanding (MOU). A short description of the expectations and requirements of the internship must be signed by the student, faculty advisor, and internship supervisor. The items below describe what information should be included in the MOU. Think about the MOU as comparable to a course syllabus. A copy of the completed and signed MOU must be given to the department coordinator.
- A total of 50 hours is required per credit. Completing an internship during a 15-week semester would normally require 3-4 hours of work per week per credit-- consistent with Lehigh’s guidelines for all academic classes. The 50 hours of work per credit should include both the internship itself and the academic work the students does with their advisor (e.g. the weekly memo, final paper, in-person meetings, and so forth).
- Supervisor Evaluation. The student is responsible for providing the faculty advisor with the name, email address or telephone number of the person who will be their direct supervisor during the course of the internship. The supervisor will be asked to evaluate the intern using a form provided by the faculty advisor midway through the internship and again at the end. The faculty advisor will provide the supervisor with email and telephone contact information in case there are questions about the student’s performance.
- Weekly memo. Students must submit something in writing to their advisor at least once per week during the internship period. The exact content and format of this writing should be arranged with the faculty advisor. It may include an internship work log, short analytic reflections, application of concepts or readings from sociology and anthropology courses to internship work, or answers to questions posed by the advisor.
- Short final paper. At the end of the internship, the student must submit a written analysis of the internship experience, its meaning, what was learned, what was not learned, and how the internship fits within the context of the student’s educational path and future goals. The exact length and format should be arranged with the faculty advisor.
- The final grade. Internship grades are based on the quality of the weekly reports, the final paper, discussions with the faculty advisor (if applicable), and the supervisor’s evaluation.
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