CREDIT INTERNSHIP REQUIREMENTS & PROCEDURES

First, the Facts

To qualify for the Credit Internship Course, you must be a declared journalism major. It is also good if you have completed at least some of your coursework toward the major. Typically this means you'll be a second-semester sophomore, junior, senior, or a graduate student in your final semester. (What is called "Internship" for undergrads is called "Fieldwork in Journalism" for graduate students). GSP students must wait until the summer that they have become a declared major (usually after the spring semester of their sophomore year) to take an internship for credit.

The Journalism Department does not grant credit for public relations, marketing, promotional or advertising internships, or for internships with a pure entertainment focus (talk shows, comedy shows, etc.). Internships that only involve working in the fashion or beauty closet of a magazine also are no longer approved for credit. While an occasional exception might be made, PLEASE DO NOT ASSUME that you will be the exception! You MUST get permission from the Career Services director BEFORE you interview for or accept one of these internships. In general, the internship must involve newsgathering and/or news production work for a news organization. Undergraduates are not eligible to receive credit for paid internships. Graduate students can receive credit for paid internships. You also may discuss your situation with the Career Services director to determine what constitutes "paid" versus a "stipend."

• As a credit intern, you must work at the internship at least 12 hours a week, in one fall or spring academic semester but not more than 20 hours. (If you do your credit internship in the summer, you must work at least 170 hours total; those hours can be bunched up or spread over the summer.)
• Students are now allowed to take the internship course more than once and for fewer than 4 credits. But you can still only earn a maximum of 4 credits for this course. If you have already taken the course for 4 credits, you cannot take it again. When you register for the course on Albert, you will be able to choose 1, 2, 3 or 4 credit hours. This change is to address the fact that more employers are only offering internships for academic credit and that you may want to work at a company for more than one semester (or work at a different company). Generally students should plan to do no more than 2 internships for 2 credits each. This recommendation could vary depending on your situation. And remember, there are internships that do not require credit or are paid. They are just as valuable.
• Please carefully consider how many journalism credits you need to graduate. Undergraduates have room to earn odd credits; graduate students do not. Therefore graduate students are strongly advised to do their internships (also known as fieldwork) for either 2 or 4 credits. Talk to your academic adviser or to the Career Services director if you have questions.
• The internship class counts as a skills elective (although some graduate programs DO require internships).
• You must register for the class and pay for the credits, as you would for any other course.
• Most internships are unpaid.
• Most broadcast internships and many magazine and newspaper internships require that you get academic credit, because of labor and insurance laws.
• The department does not give retroactive credit for internships.

Enrolling in the Credit Internship Class

• You are responsible for finding your internship (see hunting tips below). The director of Career Services, however, is available to guide you in your search and MUST APPROVE your internship. It is recommended that you seek help with your resume and cover letter before starting your search.
• Immediately after you find your internship, submit an Intern Record Sheet to the director of Career Services. This should be done by email to avoid lost paper copies.
• Only once you have submitted your Intern Record Sheet and the director of Career Services has approved your internship can you enroll in the credit internship course. Note: all students must also obtain an access code to register.

How the Credit Internship Class Is Run

• Be sure to review the syllabus detailing the procedures and requirements before your internship starts.
• During the semester you'll file regular logs onto Blackboard telling us what you're doing at the internship. The syllabus will tell you where and when to file your logs.
• Toward the end of the semester, we'll send your supervisor an evaluation form. It is your responsibility to make sure your supervisor returns the form to us. (We will alert you when we've sent out the form.)
• You will receive a letter grade for the internship class. Your grade is based half on your logs (promptness and quality of submission) and half on your supervisor's evaluation of your performance.
• During both summer and fall semesters, you may be contacted by the Career Services office for an individual meeting to discuss your logs. Do not assume you will be receiving an "A" for this course because you show up for your internship every day. Please be sure to read the notes about your logs on Blackboard, as this will be the best indication of how you are doing in the class. Please also feel free to contact the director at any time to share any internship problems or triumphs.

The Internship Hunt

These resources are available to help you in your internship search:

• Postings on the undergraduate and graduate listservs
• Recent intern requests.
• The jobs/internship bulletin board near the Career Services office, Room 647, 20 Cooper Square.
• Web sites that list internships and jobs such as journalismjobs.com and ed2010.com (magazines) and Mediabistro.com.
• The red, black and green Internship Reviews books available in the Career Services office contain candid reviews written by previous NYU journalism students about their internships.

You should also feel free to approach any news organization that interests you, even if they don't officially list an internship. They may be delighted to take an intern.

To apply to an employer:

• If you are responding to a listing, please follow the directions. Most will ask for at least a cover letter and a resume. If you're a print student, you may also be asked to send five or six of your best writing samples, preferably published clips.
• Follow up. If you don't hear back within a reasonable length of time, check on the status of your application by email and re-emphasize your interest in the internship.
• The interview: If you get an in-person interview, dress neatly and conservatively. Afterward, send a thank-you note.

Email: pamela.noel@nyu.edu