This program is designed to prepare students with the skills and structure needed to obtain an internship or job. If you’re interested in getting started, please use Handshake to schedule an appointment and select ‘Internship Guarantee Registration’ as the appointment type.
Eligibility
To be eligible for the Internship Guarantee Program, you must:
- Be classified as a Freshman or Sophomore by number of credits only (i.,59 or less credit hours)*
- Start the Program during your Freshman or Sophomore year
- Complete all Program steps before the end of your Junior year (i.e. 2 semesters before undergraduate graduation) **
DISCLAIMER:
*In accordance with eligibility criteria, enrollment is restricted to first-time Freshman and Sophomore standing.
**Juniors, Seniors, and Graduate students are not eligible for the Internship Guarantee. Juniors and Seniors are classified as having 60 or more credit hours.
What is the ‘Guarantee’?
The provided (guaranteed) internship may not be in your major, may not be paid, may not be in the semester you want, may not last a certain length-of-time you want, may not be in person, and may not be in your desired city. It may not be a perfect match with your interests, but we will work hard to ensure that it is a good experience.
For questions, contact Brenton Robinson, Career Advisor, at [email protected]
What are the Student’s Responsibilities under the Program?
To participate in the Internship Guarantee Program, you must first make an appointment with a Career Advisor in our department, to discuss your eligibility, internship interests, and goals for completing the steps. The program is self-paced and takes about 1-2 semesters to complete.
You will be added into the Internship Guarantee Program course on Blackboard, an online student application, so you can begin reporting and tracking your progress on each step required for program.
Throughout the process, you will be required to schedule periodic meetings with a Career Advisor to discuss your progress. The program is designed for your professional development – it prepares you with skills and structure needed for future job and internship searches.
The decision to pursue and complete the steps of the program is the responsibility of the student. Please notify Brenton Robinson, Career Advisor, at [email protected] if you decide at any time to withdraw from the process.
If at any point you obtain an internship by any means, the ‘Guarantee’ has been fulfilled.
This program is designed to prepare students with the skills and structure needed to obtain an internship or job. If you’re interested in getting started, please use Handshake to schedule an appointment and select ‘Internship Guarantee Registration’ as the appointment type.
Career Exploration
- Claim your Handshake account
- Take PathwayU assessment, and discuss with a Career Advisor
- PathwayU is an assessment that uses values, interests, personality, and workplace preferences to determine career paths with which you have a strong match.
- During your “Intro to Internship Guarantee” appointment, you will receive instructions on how to take this assessment and schedule a follow up appointment to review your results.
- Your personalized results will also help you prepare for networking and interviewing by giving you language to use to talk about your personal and professional brand.
- Meet with the Internship Guarantee Coordinator to discuss your career aspirations & internship goals
- Join a club on campus &/or identify volunteer opportunities to begin to curate meaningful experiences
Professional Branding
- Meet with a Career Advisor or a Peer Career Advisor (PCA) to create/enhance your resume; get approval on Handshake
- Drop-in hours:
- Monday-Wednesday from 11:30am to 6pm
- Thursday-Friday from 11:30am to 4pm
- Review resume and cover letter resources
- Peer Career Advisors are Career & Professional Development’s team of trained students, prepared and eager to help you with resumes, cover letters, LinkedIn, Handshake, and more!
- Drop-in hours:
- Set up a LinkedIn Profile & update your Handshake profile
- Review LinkedIn resources
- What must be included in your profile:
- Professional headshot and background photo
- Impactful headline
- Completed “About” section
- At least 2 “experiences”
- List 3 skills
- Follow at least 5 companies/organizations
- Attend a LinkedIn Photo Day for a professional picture
- LinkedIn Photo Days are free opportunities to get a professional picture taken!
- Check with a Career Advisor to find out when the next LinkedIn Photo Day takes place
- Meet with a Peer Career Advisor to receive feedback on your cover letter, tailored to a specific internship
- Drop-in hours:
- Monday-Wednesday from 11:30am to 6pm
- Thursday-Friday from 11:30am to 4pm
- Review resume and cover letter resources
- Find an internship position posting that interests you and write a cover letter as if you were applying to the position. This draft is what you will review with a Peer Career Advisor (PCA).
- Drop-in hours:
- Craft your two-minute drill intro and have it approved by a Career Advisor
- Your two-minute drill (also known as an “elevator pitch”) can be used to introduce yourself to employers or professionals you hope to network with
- Don’t forget to practice so that it will sound natural!
Networking
- Meet with a Career Advisor to engage in the Networking Map exercise or attend a Networking workshop
- Write/create a draft of a networking email
- In this email, you should write about who you are, how you heard of this person (or met this person), and why you want to connect
- Make 40 meaningful, professional LinkedIn connections
- Connect with at least 40 people – these initial connections can be friends, family, classmates, professors, coworkers, etc.
- You must connect with the Internship Guarantee Coordinator
- Conduct two informational interviews
- Review informational interviewing resources
- These informational interviews should be conducted with professionals in your career field of interest
Research
- Discuss internship search strategies with a Career Advisor
- Meet with a faculty advisor or mentor to discuss internship search strategies and their connections and insights
- Create a search alert for internships
- Most job boards (including LinkedIn and Handshake) allow you to create a “search alert” so you can receive emails about relevant job and internship postings
- Attend the Career and Internship Expo/Fair, network with at least five different employers, and follow up with them after the event
- Follow up with a networking email, thank you email, or connection request on LinkedIn
- Find and formally apply to eight internships
- Keep track of internships you apply to and send these postings to your Career Advisor to receive approval
- At least eight internships you apply to must be approved by the Internship Guarantee Coordinator, but CPD strongly encourages you to apply to more than the eight approved internships
- If pursuing an internship for academic credit, speak with your academic advisor
- Review the Internship for Academic Credit page to learn more
Interview Process and Protocol
- Review the interviewing section of the Comprehensive Career Guide
- Practice video interviewing on Big Interview
- This one-way video interviewing tool will allow you to practice in a risk-free setting and use your recording to improve your interviewing skills
- Conduct a mock interview with a Career Advisor
- Create a draft thank-you email template
Professional Development Pre-Internship (Ongoing)
- Choose and attend three professional development workshops hosted by the Office of Career & Professional Development