ISC 498 - Internship in Information Science
I. COURSE NUMBER AND CREDIT:
ISC 498 1-6 S. H.
II. COURSE TITLE:
Internship in Information Science
III. COURSE DESCRIPTION:
An upper division course for students who wish to
take part in a semester-long internship designed to
provide a pre-professional experiential learning
opportunity related to the Information Science major.
Students will work full-time or part-time in a
position which will provide opportunities to further
their knowledge in an area of information science and
to analyze and synthesize that knowledge in an
approved internship setting. Only 3 semester hours
of internship credit may be counted as part of the
Learning Contract for IS majors.
IV. PREREQUISITES:
Completion of sixty (60) semester hours of academic
course work including courses related to the intended
pre-professional internship; a minimum overall grade
point average of 2.5; approval of the pre-
professional internship position by the faculty
sponsor as being an appropriate situation for
experiential learning; and the completion of all
elements of the learning agreement with Experienced
Based Education.
V. JUSTIFICATION:
Pre-professional internship provide undergraduate
students with the opportunity to apply and critically
analyze theoretical concepts in a work setting under
the supervision of a practicing professional and a
faculty sponsor from the college. This collaborative
effort allows the student to gain an understanding of
the structure and organization of the internship
placement and its relationship to the larger
community. The internship should also provide the
student with the opportunity to gain firsthand
knowledge of the work of a professional including
his/her responsibility to the organization and the
knowledge, skills and attitudes necessary to be
effective in the position.
VI. COURSE OBJECTIVES:
1. To provide the student with the opportunity to
critically analyze his/her application of theoretical
concepts and/or skills from one or more areas of
information science in a professionally related work
setting.
2. To assist the student to synthesize and integrate
theory and practice by examining the work of one or
more professional practitioners.
3. To expose the student to the literature and in-
service training a professional practitioner utilizes
to stay abreast of developments in their field of
employment.
4. To assist the student to utilize his/her
experiential learning through reflection, abstract
conceptualizations and active experimentation in a
supervised pre-professional internship.
5. To provide the student with the opportunity to
gain knowledge and appreciation of the ethical
responsibilities associated with the work of a
practicing professional.
6. To help the student gain a clear understanding of
the importance of a productive member of an
organization through a clearly elicited recognition
of his/her economic and social contributions to the
placement site.
VII. COURSE OUTLINE:
Because of the nature of an internship, there is no
typical course outline. To provide structure for the
students' experiential learning, a learning agreement
will be designed by the student and his/her faculty
sponsor which will contain an internship position
description to be provided by the site supervisor,
clearly formulated educational objectives which will
serve as focal points for student learning and
evaluation procedures which are consistent with both.
VIII. METHODS OF INSTRUCTION:
The student will complete all requirements as stated
in the learning agreement. The requirements should
specify:
1. A description of the student's responsibilities
while at the site and any outside preparation
necessary to his/her pre-professional internship.
The time commitment of the student should be
indicated.
2. A clearly formulated set of student developed
learning objectives to be stated in terms which will
facilitate measurement of his/her actual mastery of
knowledge, skills, and attitudes related to the
internship.
3. All methods of evaluation the faculty sponsor
will require to assess the student's learnings.
These may include a reflective journal, work samples,
a portfolio of all work completed, periodic written
or oral reports on topics assigned by the sponsor,
and a final paper which summarizes the internship.
4. Provision for input on the student's actual
performance at the internship site by the site
supervisor.
IX. COURSE REQUIREMENTS:
Course requirement will vary with each proposal.
X. MEANS OF EVALUATION:
Students will be evaluated by their faculty sponsor
with input from the site supervisor. Grades are H
(Honors), S (Satisfactory), U (Unsatisfactory).
XI. RESOURCES:
None
XII. BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Brooks, S. E. & Althof, eds. New Directions for
Experiential Learning, San Francisco: Jossey
Bass, 1979.
Hellweg, S. A. & Flacione, R. L. Internships in
the Communications, Arts and Sciences.
Scottsdale, AZ, Gorsuch Scarisbrick Publishers,
1985.
Kamil, A. & Stanton, T. The Experienced Hand.
Cranston, RI: Carroll Press, 1982.
Kaston, C. D. & Hefferman, J. M. Preparing
Humanists for Work: A National Study of
Undergraduate Internships in the Humanities.
Washington, DC: Washington Center and NEH, 1984.
Kendall, J. Strengthening Experiential Education
Within Your Institution. Raleigh, NC: NSIEE,
1986.
Koenigsberg, F. S. Directed Experiential Learning -
A Workbook. Available from Experience Based
Education, SUNYCO, 1986.
Kolb, D. Experiential Learning: Experience as the
Source of Learning and Development. Englewood
Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, 1984.
Willingham, W. Principles of Good Practice in
Assessing Experiential Learning, Columbia, MD:
CAEL, 1977.