Department of Sociology

Internship in Sociology (SOC 4750)

 

The Department of Sociology encourages its majors to consider an internship course in sociology. An internship can enhance your resume and increase your competitiveness for jobs once you graduate. It can also be an invaluable experience in terms of learning more about the kind of work that you do or do not enjoy.

In addition to gaining pertinent work experience, you can earn credit hours by completing an internship. To earn three credit hours, you must fulfill both of the following requirements:

1. You must work a minimum of 6 hours per week for the sponsoring organization during the regular 13-week fall or spring semester. If completed during the summer, you must work a minimum of 78 total hours, with those hours distributed over the summer in the manner that works best for you and the sponsoring organization.
2. You must write a research paper on a sociological topic relevant to the sponsoring organization for which you interned. For example, a student who interns for Big Brothers Big Sisters might choose to write a research paper on the effects of mentoring on disadvantaged youth.

 

The requirements for registering for an internship course (SOC 4750) are as follows (see also the University Catalog):

• You must be a declared major or minor.
• You must have, at minimum, junior standing with completion of SOC 1000 and two additional sociology courses.
• You need to have a faculty sponsor within the department.
  • You may discuss who might be the most appropriate sponsor with either Professor Matthew Painter (Director of Undergraduate Studies) or Professor Barnes (Chair of the Department of Sociology).
• You need to find an organization in which to do the internship, and a supervisor within this organization must email your faculty sponsor of the willingness of the organization to mentor you as an intern.

 

 

 

Only satisfactory (S) and unsatisfactory (U) grades are assigned for SOC 4750. For a student to earn a satisfactory grade, at the end of the internship the supervisor at the organization in which the student interned must notify the faculty internship sponsor that the minimally required number of internship hours was completed and the student must earn a satisfactory grade on the internship research paper.