Reflect on your internship by writing a paper at the internship's conclusion.
Many college students earn credit through internships, which allow them to apply principles learned in the classroom in a real-world environment. Colleges and universities often establish strict guidelines to ensure that the internship is relevant to the student's academic studies. An internship paper, submitted at the completion of the internship, highlights what the student learned during the program, giving faculty a sense of the internship program's benefits.
Instructions
1. Describe your responsibilities during your internship. Your paper should begin by informing your readers of your experience, telling them what your daily responsibilities were or what you achieved over the course of the internship. Explain the purpose of the internship in this section, whether that purpose was to gain hands-on experience working with patients in a clinical setting or to improve your copy-writing skills as an intern in an advertising agency.
2. Evaluate what you learned during your internship. Your faculty advisers want to see the benefit of the internship, understanding how it enhanced your knowledge and prepared you for the real world. Speak specifically regarding what you learned -- if you adopted new techniques or skills during your internship, outline them here. If your internship changed your perspective on the industry, talk about it in this section.
3. Identify any gaps in the internship program. Advisers want to know if an internship program is overlooking anything, so this section is your opportunity to identify anything that you did not learn but expected to. If you felt that the internship was too narrowly focused, discuss that here. Suggest ways that the internship program can improve.
4. Assess the benefit of the internship. After outlining the benefits and gaps in the internship program, analyze the benefit of the internship program as a whole. Discuss how the internship has prepared -- or failed to prepare -- you for a job in the industry. Discuss the goals you set for the internship and whether it succeeded in meeting those goals.
