English

Internships

The English Department encourages you to pursue at least one internship during your time at West Chester. The advantages are numerous: internships enable you to apply your reading and writing skills to real workplace situations, make informed decisions about your career plans, and build valuable contacts. Our students have completed an exciting array of internships – in publishing, broadcasting, event planning, marketing, public relations, journalism, social media, political campaigns, legal research, environmental advocacy, and more – both on and off campus.

Maybe you know exactly what you want to do after you graduate—or maybe you have no clue. An internship can help you explore a professional area to help you make such decisions, to help you test how you apply your reading and writing skills in work situations, and to allow you to build professional connections. And if you aren’t sure what you want to do after you graduate, an internship experience can help you make informed decisions about the kinds of work you really want to pursue after graduation. Perhaps most important, completing an internship tops the list of what employees weigh heavily in hiring recent graduates; in fact, it can be a deciding factor between two otherwise equally qualified candidates (National Association of Colleges and Employers, Job Outlook 2022). More, students who complete internships report having higher salaries and higher levels of job satisfaction compared to students who don’t have internship experience (Gault et al., 2000, 2010; Knouse & Fontenot, 2008).

Not sure where an internship fits in your program of study?

• Majors: You can apply ENG 395 as elective credits in the “second focus area or department electives” or to the 18-credit "Minor or Concentration" sections of your program.
• Minors: Consult with your minor advisor for guidance, as some minors may require an internship.

Internship Coordinators

 

Getting Started

On average, you should plan 3 months for the internship search process. For example, if you would like an internship for Semester 2 of your fourth year, then you should start searching by the beginning of Semester 1 of year four. That may sound like a long time, but it takes time to decide what you want to do, prepare search materials, locate potential internship sites, and complete the steps of the application process—often while maintaining your regular semester workload.

1. Review internship resources. We strongly recommend that you begin the process of finding an internship by exploring a few of the many resources available to you, including
   1. The information available to you in the student handbook &
   2. The Twardowski Career Development Center
2. Meet with the appropriate internship coordinator. The coordinator can help walk you through specific requirements for internships, including eligibility requirements, upcoming deadlines, etc.
3. Begin the internship search process. This process should include updating your online presence via LinkedIn and your job search materials (resume, cover letter, etc.), as well as reaching out to professors, friends, and other contacts to let them know that you're seeking an internship. You should also attend Career Development Center events on campus to meet with potential employers.
4. Apply for internships that interest you and that fit your potential career goals. Because many companies begin reviewing applications right away, you should apply as quickly as you reasonably can. Make sure all of your materials are tailored to each position, carefully proofread, and clearly named with your name and document type and/or company you're applying to. You don't want your resume to be one of 50 named "resume.docx!"
5. Prepare for possible phone, video, or in-person interviews. The Career Development Center offers several resources to support you with this, including mock video interviews. When you get a phone or video interview, make sure you have updated and tested all of the tech you will need. For an in-person interview, leave early to give yourself extra time in case of unexpected traffic or parking requirements. For any interview, make sure you have copies of your job search materials, a notebook/pen to take notes, and a list of questions to ask the hiring manager(s).
6. Follow up with the hiring manager if you don't hear from them after a few weeks. You could be waiting on a decision for several weeks, because hiring inevitably takes longer than expected. If you haven't heard anything within two weeks or so, send a polite email to your interviewer that expresses your continued interest in the position & asks if there's anything else they need as they continue their decision-making process. Also, don't get discouraged if you don't get an offer after an interview! You may need to apply to several places before you find a good fit.

Registering for an Internship

Once you have received an acceptance offer from an internship site, you will work with your faculty supervisor to complete the paperwork to officially enroll in the internship course, ENG 395. You will need to submit two forms to your faculty supervisor:

1. The Student Attestation Regarding Clearances Form: This form indicates that you have completed the two background checks required by the university: the Pennsylvania State Police Criminal Record Clearance and the Child Abuse History Clearance. Once you have completed your background checks, please fill out the Student Attestation Regarding Clearances form and submit only that form to your faculty supervisor–never your clearances.
2. The Internship Agreement Form: You, your internship supervisor, and a faculty supervisor will all need to sign this document after you have filled it out. As an attachment to this form, please include a formal list of internship duties and responsibilities. This list can either be on an official letterhead from your internship’s organization or in a forwarded email from your internship supervisor.

Once your faculty supervisor has this paperwork, they will start the process for enrolling you in ENG 395, which changes depending on whether your internship is paid or unpaid:

• Paid Internship: Your faculty supervisor will be able to enroll you right away.
• Unpaid Internship: Your faculty supervisor will send the paperwork to the Dean’s Office for approval. The Dean’s Office will reach out to your internship supervisor and provide them with one last form to complete. This is called an affiliation agreement, which is essentially a legal contract between the university and an internship organization. Once your internship supervisor has signed and returned the affiliation agreement, your faculty supervisor can then enroll you in ENG 395.

When an affiliation agreement is required for a paid internship, there may be a 1-2-week delay between submitting your completed paperwork to your faculty supervisor and officially enrolling in ENG 395. Because of this potential for delay, you should complete your paperwork as quickly as possible after receiving your internship offer.

Once you are enrolled in ENG 395, you’ll be ready to begin your internship at the start of the semester.

During Your Internship

The following minimum requirements for work must be fulfilled:

• You must perform the required number of hours doing contracted tasks at the internship site. You will earn one academic credit hour by completing 45 hours of work in an internship. That means that if you plan to earn 3 credits for an internship, you will complete 135 hours on site at your internship.
• You must maintain regular contact with your faculty internship advisor, meeting at least three times over the course of the semester.
• You must maintain a collection of samples of their work throughout the internship.
• You must confer regularly with your on-site internship supervisor.
• At the end of the internship, you will share a portfolio of your work and a reflection on that work with your faculty supervisor. Consult with your faculty supervisor for specific details about what to include in your portfolio.

It is your responsibility to demonstrate that you have met the academic requirements for an internship.