Writing Internships

Course Description & Requirements

Prof. Uma Krishnan, Director | ukrishna@kent.edu | (330) 672-1745

Charlene Schauffler, Assistant Director | cschauff@kent.edu

What are the goals for the writing internship?

The Writing Internship Program is a cooperative endeavor between students, the community, and the Department of English. As such it has a number of inter-related goals. Your own goals might include expanding your interests and experiences, finding out if you are suited for work as a professional or technical writer, and gaining valuable work experience before you graduate. For the community groups or businesses that use interns, the goals of the program may be to maintain good relationships with the university, to introduce "fresh blood" and new ideas into their organizations, and (frankly) to acquire smart, energetic, able workers without cost.

For the Department, the goals of the program include, of course, continued good relations with the community and successful placement of students into jobs after graduation. However, the most important goal of the program from our point of view is to enrich your education as a careful reader and competent writer, and to complement your classroom learning as a student of language and discourse. For instance, your work as a writing intern should involve a great deal of writing, and this writing may differ in important ways from the writing you do in most courses. Your "audience" will consist not of a teacher (whom you know) or even your contemporaries (such as your classmates). Your notions of readers will enlarge to include multiple audiences--your immediate supervisor and other members of the organization, as well as some segment of "the public" whose interests you must meet and whose backgrounds, knowledge, and values may be quite different from your own. This kind of writing, in a rich and immediate rhetorical situation, will teach you a great deal about writing and about the functions and uses of discourse. To this end, the requirements of the course include both job-related and academic responsibilities.

What are my site work requirements & expectations?

• Approximately 10 hours per week (assuming 3 credits) at the firm or office as a regular part of the writing staff
• Duties will vary, but expect to be involved in carrying a specific writing project(s) through all stages of development, from research (including interviewing) and organizing, to drafting and revising.
• Writing may be your own work, but you may be asked to work on collaborative projects, or to edit others' writing
• You'll work closely with your site supervisor(s) who will remain in regular contact with me
• About 60% of final grade is based on the frank evaluation by your supervisor(s) at the end of the semester

How can I be successful?

Experience has shown that those interns who generate ideas, show initiative, and seek additional responsibilities will profit more from their internships than students who simply wait to be told what to do. While a great deal of your work will eventually be substantive writing and editing, you may be asked to perform assignments you regard as routine or "boring," especially at first. It's best to cheerfully accept such assignments. Evidence of an intern's ability to handle routine tasks quickly and accurately is often necessary before the intern is given more assignments. If you find, however, that you are doing routine clerical work or proofing for an extended period of time, you should contact Prof. Krishnan. Finally, don't be afraid to ask questions. You're there to learn.