Externship Program

one to five day shadowing/mentorship program for undergraduates

The Career Center at Boston College is proud to present the Boston College Externship program, offered to all undergraduate students. An externship is designed as a 1 to 5 day job-shadowing experience. It is an opportunity for students to gain understanding of a business, industry, and/or job function, to ask questions, and to observe first hand day to day business operations.

The externship is not for academic credit and students are not compensated for their participation. Rather, it is an experience which exposes students and employers to one another and allows for networking, branding, career education, and recruitment.

We hope you will consider participating in this beneficial opportunity.

Externship Frequently Asked Questions

Suggested Activities for Externs

Externship Sponsor Application

Application Deadline

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Frequently Asked Questions:

What are the benefits of sponsoring an Extern?

Boston College’s Externship Program presents employers with a unique opportunity to market their company. In addition to making your name known on campus, the Externship Program offers you the chance to get a sneak peak at BC talent and better understand what is important to them. Students talk, and an externship provides an opportunity to give them something to talk about. We believe that relationships are essential to strategic partnerships. The more ways we find to connect businesses and organizations to great talent and superior resources, the better synergies we are able to foster between our organizations. These mutually beneficial relationships allow us both to achieve even greater success.

What is the difference between and Externship and an Internship?

An externship is brief, and offer no pay or academic credit. An internship is usually 3-6 months in duration, and can be paid or for credit. However, if you would like more information about the Internship Program, please click here.

What students are eligible to participate in an externship?

All students at Boston College, first-year through senior, are eligible to participate in the Externship Program. It is up to the discretion of the externship host to decide the academic standing of the student with whom they are interested in working.

How much time does an externship involve?

An externship generally lasts from one to five days in duration. We have provided suggested activities for each day below, however the structure is at the discretion of the sponsoring company. The externship is designed to be a short-term interaction to foster career education, shadowing, and mentoring. If you currently have an externship program in place that is different from our one to five day program, we are still interested in your participation. Please simply notify us of your program in the application process.

As an externship sponsor, do I have to select from a pool of students?

Not at all, the only thing that is required of you is to complete the application as thoroughly as possible so that we may understand what type of student you will be interested in working with in the Externship Program. We will use this information to match students to organizations as closely as we can, based on the interest of the students and the industry, function, and interest of the externship sponsor.

What is the procedure for understanding when a match has been made?

The Boston College Career Center will be responsible for ensuring that the students and the externship sponsors receive all the information necessary to move forward in the externship process. After we have reviewed application materials from the student and sponsor, our office will review for matching, and inform both student and employer of our decision regarding their placements. The students will contact sponsors directly, but only after you have been informed of the outcome of our review process. It is the responsibility of the students to contact you prior to the externship once the decision has been made and contact information has been provided. Students will not be given contact information during the application process.

Is there any cost associated with participating in a Boston College externship?

There is no cost associated with participating in a Boston College externship. Students are wholly responsible for transportation and any other cost associated with participation.

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Suggested Activities and Experiences for Externs:

To give students a sense of the work environment and allow them to explore career interests and goals, we suggest the following activities and experiences:

     ·Sit in on staff meetings
     ·Have externs participate in office tasks or assist with projects
     ·Conduct informational interviews of both professional and administrative staff
     ·Observe client interactions
     ·Tour the facilities
     ·Review organization’s mission/vision statement and organizational charts
     ·Explain office policies and procedures
     ·Review current trends in the profession
     ·Explore potential career paths within the organization and the profession
     ·Provide externs with career guidance

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Externship Application:

Externship Sponsor Application

Please note: We are seeking Externship sponsors in the CT/NY/NJ and MA areas only. We hope to expand to other states in 2009.

Application Deadline:

October 1, 2008

Externship deadline dates/application will be updated in March/April to reflect the 2008 Summer Externship.
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For More Information:

If you are interested in the program and hosting a student AND you are in the CT/NY/NJ or MA we would love to hear from you!

Contact Benny Belvin II, benny.belvin@bc.edu 617-552-0917