As summer approaches, plans are being made for vacations, seasonal jobs, summer-term classes and, of course, internships.
Those who opt for internships this summer and receive credit will have to pay more just because of the season. At $530 per credit hour and the option of up to 16 credit hours per internship, a potential bill of over $8000 can stress out unprepared and underfunded students.
However, there are ways to lessen the financial burden of some seasonal internships.
Internship coordinator of the Center for Career Planning, Ashley Strausser, explained that determining the right time to pursue an internship depends on a student’s experience level and the advice of an academic advisor. According to Strausser, it is most common for students to have an internship the summer before or during their senior year as well as having one, if not more, before graduation.
Some departments such as communications, business and health and sports sciences suggest as many internships or as much hands-on experience as possible for both the professional experience as well as scholarly benefit.
“The more practical experience you have, the more marketable you’ll be,” Strausser said.
For reasons like this, full-time summer internships can be appealing to students. Students who participate in summer internships are sometimes deterred by the fact that they are required to pay Otterbein for the internship credit, but there are some ways to minimize the expense of the credits.
If your internship runs into fall semester, it is suggested you file the internship experience under fall semester. Most schedules can fit in a few credit hours before going over the 18 credit hour maximum. Adding your internship under the fall semester doesn’t add any additional fees to your tuition bill as long as the total credit hours are 18 or fewer.
Changing the price per credit hour just for the summer term and just for internships isn’t a feasible option as it would alter how much Otterbein charges for tuition. Earning any type of credit, whether it is from a class or an internship is going to cost, but if you have some extra room, it can cost less if it flows into the academic year where tuition is already charged to your account.
Kiersten Curtis, a sophomore international studies/cultural anthropology and Spanish major had an internship with the mayor of Westerville’s “New American’s Initiative.”
“I refined my dream of helping people through building community centers that host programs to promote education and act as a resource liaison between all of the resources of the city,” Curtis said.
Curtis is one of many students who have used the Center for Career Planning to find an internship.
“I realized that I did not know what or how I could have discovered the depth of my career without the CRC. I learned how to network, the importance of communication with every single person you meet; I learned that you have to be thorough and concise—there were many times what something that was not clear did not work because it was not understood. Possibly the biggest thing I learned from this experience was that while you cannot please everyone,” Curtis said.
For those still looking for an internship or even job hunting, the Center for Career Planning uses a website to track all available positions as well as sending opportunities to individual departments themselves. The website, Cardinal Careers, currently has nearly 1,000 job postings, and over 300 internship opportunities.
Cardinal Careers can be found at https://www.myinterfase.com/otterbein/student/home.aspx with your Otterbein email as the username and student ID as the password. This website can also be accessed by students after graduation to help in the future.
“Internships are incredibly valuable and integral to students’ collegiate experience, whether students are required to receive credit or select not to receive credit, the important thing is to gain the experience and develop professional skills employers are looking for and allow for the students to become more marketable to future employers,” Strausser said.
Students like Curtis learned valuable skills for her major.
“I feel more holistic and prepared to understand the depth that is political science and relations from the CRC,” Curtis said.
