What is an internship?
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Internships involve significant, high-level exposure to and participation in the work of an established career. In order for a Winter Term Internship application to be approved, the members of the Curriculum Committee must be convinced that the internship will provide the intern either an opportunity to grow intellectually or a professional experience directly related to the intern’s major or intended postgraduate career. Mere bystanding is not sufficient, and a distinction is made between professional careers and other work experience. Routine office experience, clerical work, or the continuation of a summer job or internship is not suitable. Winter Term Internships require a minimum of 100 hours of active participation during Winter Term. According to Middlebury College policy, internships for academic credit are unpaid career experiences, although students may receive a stipend to pay for their living expenses.
Who is eligible to apply for a Winter Term internship?
- Internships are available to sophomores, juniors and seniors.
- Students applying for internships must be in good academic standing.
- A student may not repeat the same winter term internship for credit.
- A second internship must be substantially different from the first. Generally, the Curriculum Committee will not look favorably on an application that involves work in the same organization as an earlier internship, or work that involves repeated application of the same skills and experiences used in an internship previously completed.
- A maximum of two internships may be taken during any student’s four year college career.
What does the application process involve?
The Curriculum Committee has established a list of pre-approved internships undertaken by students in previous years. Students interested in these internships, as well as in submitting those of their own design, should contact the Career Services Office to complete an application. The deadline for submitting applications to Career Services for Winter Term is typically due at the end of October. Please go to the application form for further details on deadlines. Completed Winter Term Internship applications include the following:
- Resume, submitted via MOJO
- Personal statement submitted via MOJO (as “Other” document) and written by the student describing how the internship relates to the student’s educational program
- Assumption of Risk and Conduct Form, completed by the student
- Internship Description Form, completed by the Internship Sponsor
- Faculty Adviser and Academic Sponsor Approval Form, completed by both Faculty Adviser AND Academic Sponsor (If your Faculty Adviser and Academic Sponsor are the same person, the form only needs to be completed once).
After the internship is approved International Students must:
(1) schedule a meeting with Kathy Foley-Giorgio, the International Student Adviser, to discuss and process the Curricular Practical Training (CPT) employment authorization.
(2) bring the approved internship application, the CSO approval letter and I-20 to the meeting.
Proposals that involve association of a student with a close relative will require additional supportive statements. The relative may not function as internship supervisor. If the internship is to be undertaken in a foreign country, the Curriculum Committee will expect competence in the language of the country. All Winter Term internship applications are submitted to the Career Services Office and approved by the Curriculum Committee.
How does a student receive credit for the internship?
Final credit is awarded when the following steps have been satisfactorily completed:
- The student must receive a positive evaluation from the Intern Supervisor, which addresses the student’s performance and attendance.
- The student must submit either a daily journal or a substantial piece of writing to the Academic Sponsor, which is to be determined in advance by the Academic Sponsor. On the basis of the student’s written work, the Academic Sponsor will submit a recommendation of “credit” or “no credit” to the Career Services Office.
- The student must submit a three-to-five page Word document briefly describing what you did at the internship, what you learned about the career field, and what you learned about yourself? This reflection is to be submitted to the Career Services Office via an e-mail attachment. These narratives will be made available to other students considering internships in the future.
How does a student secure a Pre-Med internship at Porter Hospital?
Porter Hospital Internships are processed separately from other Winter Term Internships though the deadline is the same. Please go to the application form for further details on deadlines. Students interested in securing the Porter Hospital Internship need to contact CSO and request a “selection list”. Applicants must submit a cover letter and resume as well as the General Information Sheet and approval signatures as found in the Winter Term Proposal Forms. All applications are submitted directly to CSO and are forwarded to the Porter Hospital liaison for review, acceptance and assignment.
Where do students find information about available internships?
Please visit MOJO for Midd-friendly internships being offered during Winter Term. The internships listed are not automatically approved. A proposal must be submitted to Career Services by the deadline. Students can also create their own internships. For information on how to accomplish this please visit Career Services during Drop-ins or make an appointment with a counselor.
Students applying for Internships must demonstrate that the nature of their involvement in the profession during Winter Term will be at a sufficiently high level to justify the Internship in lieu of a normal course choice. Factors which influence the Curriculum Committee’s judgment include:
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