ANSC 499: Internship
Prerequisites: Students must complete 12 hours of Anthropological Sciences and have permission of the program coordinator. Students must obtain approval from the Anthropological Sciences program director regarding the proposed program and agency—this should occur in the semester preceding that in which the internship is anticipated
Credit Hours: (3-12)
Note(s): The course may carry 3 to 12 hours credit a semester and may be repeated to a maximum of 12 hours credit. No more than a total of 12 hours credit from ANSC 493, ANSC 498, and ANSC 499 may be counted toward the 38 hours for the anthropological sciences major. Offered as needed.
Detailed Description of Content of Course
The anthropology internship includes a field placement in a private or public agency related to the student's area of study and a bi-weekly seminar. The student works with designated agency personnel, receives an overview of agency functions, and completes assigned tasks within the agency. The seminar provides an opportunity for interns to meet as a group with the internship coordinator to discuss common issues across all agency settings. The internship coordinator will assign readings on topics which directly or indirectly affect various professional settings. Aspects of organizational behavior will be considered to enable the students to better understand on-the-job experiences, as well as to provide an opportunity to relate anthropological theory and methods to practice.
Detailed Description of Conduct of Course
The major instructional strategies in this course are field experience and cooperative/group learning. Through field experience, students will be exposed to the qualifications and work requirements of various public and private agencies. The student will apply the theory and methods learned in their prior course work to a practical work setting. Participating agencies will permit students to become involved in the work of their agency and, when possible, make contributions to the agency. In the bi-weekly seminar, students will discuss their internship experiences and through cooperative group learning will exchange theoretical and practical information for the purpose of creative problem solving at their individual work sites.
Goals and Objective of the Course
After successful completion of ANTH 499, students will have:
1. participated in a seminar which will introduce them to a variety of agencies in
the private and public sector which may utilize the training of anthropology graduates;
2. comprehended the communications, decision-making, and problem-solving mechanisms
used by agencies in providing services for their clients;
3. observed the styles used by agency staff in interacting with clients and other
staff members;
4. applied anthropological theory and method in a practical work setting.
Assessment Measures
The above student outcomes will be assessed as follows:
Goal #1: This goal will be assessed by written assignments designed to interrelate
the variety of internship experiences which will be discussed in the bi-weekly seminar.
Goal #2: This goal will be assessed by a mid-semester and end-of-semester comprehensive
evaluation by the supervising staff at the agency of placement.
Goal #3: This goal will be assessed by a daily journal which will include observations
of agency staff and the intern interacting with clients and other staff members.
Goal #4: This goal will be assessed by a term project designed by the agency supervisor
with the student intern and approved by the internship supervisor. This project will
relate the course material to the practical work setting.
Other Course Information
None
Review and Approval
September, 2007
December, 2009