Purpose of the Program

The Communication Internship Program is designed to provide students with opportunities to explore different career opportunities. The program aids students in acquiring valuable skills and knowledge and in using laboratory equipment not ordinarily available on campus. The program also allows students to integrate academic theory with practical experience. Above all, the internship program attempts to expand a student's understanding of the dynamics of mass communications.

Eligibility for Internships

The program is open to majors in communication who have senior standing and a 3.1 G.P.A. overall (or a 2.8 G.P.A. overall with a 3.2 G.P.A. in the major). In addition, potential interns must have completed a minimum of seven courses in communications at Boston College prior to the beginning of the final year. These seven courses are to include the four basic required courses—Rhetorical Tradition, Survey of Mass Communication, Public Speaking, and Research Methods—a theory course and appropriate preparatory course work necessary for the specific field placement.

Enrollment Procedure

Due to the size and procedures of the program, internship appointments will not be made available during the drop-add period.

Eligible students are invited to apply to Christine Caswell, Director of the Senior Internship Seminar. Applicants for the fall semester will be approved during the weeks prior to pre-registration in the spring; applicants for the spring semester will be approved during the weeks prior to pre-registration in the fall. Forms are available in Maloney Hall 515 and on the Communication Department's web site.

Those students accepted for the program are responsible for securing an appropriate field placement subject to the approval of the Director of the Senior Internship Seminar. Internship credit can only be awarded for a placement that has a professional level of supervision, requires skills consistent with the academic experiences of the intern, and meets the test for an appropriate placement established by the internship program. Communication Internship opportunities will be announced in Major Mail and may also be found on the Boston College Career Center web site and on the department's bulletin board.

Requirements

Students may enroll in the internship program for one semester or three total credits during their senior year. In order to receive a grade for the course, students must:

• Work 15 hours per week at their placement,
• Meet all deadlines and complete all paperwork for the course.

Interns must write a field research paper. Grading in the internship program is based upon rigorous standards, and superior grades will be awarded only where there is demonstrable proof of superior work.