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Internships/Practica

1. Internships and Practica are intended to provide a bridge between the academic world and the world of work primarily in off-campus settings. Internships and practica carry a 190 course number and may be offered through the Internship Office or through individual academic departments. In addition to providing practical experience, these courses should provide students with the opportunity to read and think about issues of calling and reflect critically about what it means to be a Christian in the workplace.
2. Restrictions:
   1. In order to receive academic credit for an internship/practicum, a student must file a completed Internship/Practicum Learning Agreement Form (ILAF) with the Director of Internships and Practica within the first four weeks of the semester.
   2. All practicum work must be conducted under the oversight of both an academically qualified Westmont supervisor and a professionally qualified on-site supervisor. Depending on departmental goals and expectations, the academic supervisor should maintain ongoing contact with the on-site supervisor and conduct at least one on-site visit.
   3. A maximum of 12 units of practicum credit may be applied toward the degree. This includes student teaching, practicum field experience (includes San Francisco Urban Studies internships, E&B IBI programs, etc.), elective internships and serving society internships.
   4. All work must be performed in the term for which the student is enrolled.
   5. No incompletes may be given unless the original internship plan specified work that extended beyond the end of the semester.
3. Expectations: Depending on the number of units and departmental goals, internships should conform to the following guidelines.
   1. Early in the semester, a Learning Plan or Contract must be in place. In the case of a formal internship program within a department, this may consist of the course syllabus. In all other cases, the student should develop the plan in consultation with the practicum faculty advisor. This plan should include:
      1. The goals for the semester including academic, skill and career-related goals.
      2. The resources to be used and activities to be performed (including assigned readings).
      3. The means by which work will be evaluated.
   2. As a general rule, a student earns one unit for every three hours-per-week of on-site work. The amount of on-site work should be reduced in cases where significant additional writing, reading or class attendance is required.
   3. A student should meet with the Westmont academic supervisor at least twice for each unit of academic credit.
   4. Every student doing a practicum should produce a final project in the form of a portfolio or a term paper. Each intern is encouraged to use the final project as the basis for an oral presentation in which the student substantiates the learning activities performed during the practicum. The portfolio should include, but is not limited to:
      1. The learning contract.
      2. Journals or logs.
      3. Documentation of learning/work accomplished.
      4. The on-site supervisor will provide a written evaluation of the student’s work