For Employers
The journalism internship has become an extension of the campus of Western Washington University by providing a professional-level laboratory in applying classroom principles to real life. Students work with professionals and for professionals.
Students earn college credit for their time just as if they were on campus, and the credit counts toward their degree. Your establishment, in effect, serves as another classroom.
We have found many reasons why it is mutually satisfactory to extend our campus into your organization. Your cooperation gives our students an irreplaceable experience invaluable in honing their skills and understanding, as well as developing professional attitudes in those headed into your field. It also gives you a way to join in maintaining professional training standards in all areas of journalism, and previewing the next generation of journalism graduates. We expect our interns to be fully involved and productive throughout their internship with you.
The period of the internship will vary, but usually will be six weeks of forty hours weekly, or an equivalent amount of time extended over nine or ten weeks.
We need two letters from you. The first at the beginning of the internship, which explains your understanding as to when the work starts, how long it continues, hours to be worked, etc. This serves to give the student and us official notification of what you expect. The other letter comes at the conclusion of the internship. It tells us whether the student has fulfilled the obligation and offers a professional appraisal of performance. Additionally, please use the forms provided below for a midway and final evaluation.
At least once during the period, a member of our faculty will call on you to discuss the student's performance. In addition, the student files written reports and samples of work each week.
We expect you to assign someone in your organization who has at least five years of experience in the field to supervise the intern. Students who have been given a variety of tasks to perform are the ones who have found the internship experience most profitable, provided they have one person who is the supervisor, mentor, etc., to guide them through the professional work and expectations of the host organization.
If you need additional information, please do not hesitate to contact us.