The importance of an internship component in a liberal arts major.

Abstract

Allowing students to gain knowledge outside the classroom enables them to use their liberal arts background of logic, ethics, sociology, history, and literature and apply it to their chosen field. This is usually what is meant by being liberally educated. In keeping with this philosophy, a new Communications major was developed with an internship component as a requirement. With the rising popularity of the Communications major, an internship database was developed to assist students in securing work-study. The development of the major, the database, and the role, significance and success of the internship are discussed.

Introduction

Pace University is a private university made up of six undergraduate and graduate schools and colleges--The Dyson College of Arts and Sciences, The Lienhard School of Nursing, The Lubin School of Business, The School of Computer Science and Information Systems, The School of Education, and the Law School. The environments of Pace are richly varied. There are two distinct campuses--The New York city campus situated in the heart of Manhattan's Wall Street district and the Westchester County campus which embodies both the Lubin Graduate Center and Law School in White Plains, New York, a thriving business community, and the small town Pleasantville/Briarcliff campus.

Pace is situated in the heart of a community which has a number of institutions requiring Communications professionals such as CBS News, MTV, MSNBC, 1010 WINS AM radio, and Conde Nast Publications all offering internships. Young people expect jobs or career changes more often than did their parents. Many see education in life-long habits of learning as the better preparation for working in an economy and a society in flux. The hallmarks of Dyson College and its learning balances address these expectations directly. A bold articulation and implementation of these balances will draw such students to Dyson College, increasing and stabilizing enrollment of the University as a whole. A degree from Pace University, known for excellence in arts and sciences and sensitivity to career imperatives, will be seen as more attractive, expansive, relevant and progressive if students take advantage of all that Pace offers them.

With the multimedia trend increasing, the expectancy is for communication professionals to be experts in the technology wave of the future and understand how to effectively communicate using the new tools that are available. An internship in this field would offer the expertise needed to venture into this new technology and will provide the relevant background skills. An internship of 3-6 credits has recently become a requirement for the major in Communications. Previously, students were encouraged, not required to take an internship. Because of this new requirement, it has been necessary to develop a structured and standardized system for supplying students with the information necessary to apply for, interview, and evaluate the internship. A system was also created to monitor and direct the student while he or she is working away from the classroom.

Development of the Communications Major

Popularity of the Communications Major

According to the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Outlook Handbook, jobs in the Communications field will increase between 21 and 35 percent by 2008. The career options available to a student with a Communications degree are many and varied. Due to the growth and changes in the Communications industry, Pace University Pleasantville faculty felt it was important to create a stand-alone Communications major. Prior to Fall 2000, the Communications major had been paired with an English major. Mirroring the industry occupational outlook, the Communications major at Pace has seen a steady increase in enrollment since its implementation. During the first year of the Communications major (2000), enrollment was 60 students. Since that time enrollment has increased by 20 percent and is expected to increase by at least 60 percent over the next five years. In response to this increase, the Fall 2003 semester will see the addition of a Communications Arts and Journalism major.

The Communications Major

The Communications major was developed with several concepts in mind including enrichment, practicality, enjoyment, career preparation, and disciplined intellectual effort. The practicality component of the major proposes the careful, reflective reading of literature to deepen the students' appreciation of life and sharpen the perception of how language is used. Practicality involves the translation of reading, writing, speaking, and thinking skills students gain in their courses to effective real world communication abilities. The enjoyment segment of the major allows students an opportunity to work with committed teachers whose love of language and Communications is evident in their scholarship, their teaching, and their extra-curricular pursuits. Career preparation is essential to any major and the Communications major (and minor) provides a solid foundation for any career that requires an ability to read, write, think, and analyze. Moreover, the Communications program provides a much needed humanistic preparation for professions such as law, medicine, business, and public service. Disciplined intellectual effort is evident in the Communications program. The program requires that students take courses and develop habits of mind necessitating disciplined intellectual effort that they will carry over into adult life. Finally, the critical thinking they develop as a Communications major/minor is emphasized on entrance examinations for graduate and professional schools.

Importance of Internship Component

The Role of the Internship

Allowing students to gain knowledge outside the classroom enables them to use their liberal arts background of logic, ethics, sociology, history, and literature and apply it to their chosen field. Pace believes that this is what is meant by being liberally educated. A student is allowed to take what has been learned in the classroom and apply that knowledge in the field. Students then make the connection to what they have been taught to how they will use it. John Dewey believes that "all genuine education comes through experience" (Kraft & Kielsmeir, 1995, p. 10). According to Jackson and Caffarella (1994), "The field based components of a program, such as internships, should become as important or in some cases the primary focus in many formal programs" (p. 90). In its simplest form, experiential learning means learning from experience or learning by doing. Its intent is to encourage learners to develop new skills, attitudes, or new ways of thinking. Experiential learning allows students to link learning and thinking with doing.

Students must then play an active role in their learning. Not only do students pick up knowledge of the industry in which they will one day be employed; they also learn social interaction skills and personal growth. In an internship setting, it is the job of learners to analyze and synthesize information as it is occurring around them. They are not given information freely as is done in the academic arena. The experiential learning is effective if the student comes away with the education that was intended. A study of students at Loyola College conducted by Ciafalo (1992), found that "85% agree that internships gave them a feeling for what it's like to be a Communications professional; 83% agree that their work as interns made a significant contribution to the company's mission; and 77% agreed that their bosses treated them like entry level professionals" (p. 40).

Significance of Internships

Caela Farren, founder and CEO of career development consulting firm MasteryWorks believes students who have practical work experience and can step in and produce results will be more attractive to recruiters and hiring managers. According to Farren, "Young people need to get more real-life experience that goes hand-in-hand with educational experiences through internships and co-ops" (http://www.naceweb.org/events/Mgt_TechForum2003/brochures.htm).

Another testament to Farren's ideas can be seen in Meeske's (1992) findings, "Nearly all of the radio-television departments polled (a survey of 319 institutional members of the Broadcast Education Association) in a recent nationwide survey say they offer a professional internship program" (p. 77). The Cooperative Education and Internship Association (2002) conducted a survey of colleges and universities that have internship/cooperative education programs to determine the trends that have emerged since 1998. Findings indicated that 42% of students accepted full-time positions with their cooperative education/internship providers. This is up 33% from 1998. Survey respondents indicated they worked with a combined 16,540 in business and industry, 4,409 in government, and 5,081 in nonprofit community organizations. Since 1998, government involvement increased 10% and nonprofit employers decreased 34% (http://www.ceiainc.org/). The latest figures from the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) indicate that 55% of new hires in 1999 to 2000 had internship experience. In addition, nearly 80% of employers offered internships and 25% of those converted their interns to full time employees (http://www.naceweb.org).

Internships at Pace

In designing the new Communications major at Pace University, faculty strongly felt an internship component should be a requirement. As part of that requirement, advisors meet with each student individually to determine their career path. Professors advise students on which internship will benefit them and then direct them into their chosen field. During the advisement process, professors stress the benefits of an internship citing invaluable contacts, connections and real-life experience. Professors also connect students with alumni in their field of interest. The Communications department also offers networking activities for students and informs them of career fairs offered by the University, as well as outside organizations such as Women in Communications.

The Internship Database

Development of Database

Two students workers were employed to develop the internship database. One student served as a liaison among the English end Communications Department and the Pace Co-operative Education and Career Services departments. This student was responsible for sending various mailings to prospective internship sites and processing all incoming mail from those sites. The same student was also responsible for inputting collected data for later webpage construction. A second student developed the webpages and created the website. Website features include a searchable internship database, links to campus Co-Operative Education and Career Services, links to other internship websites, and a student registration page. A link from the Communications department homepage to the internship database was also added.

When students enter the internship database, they are prompted with a popup screen asking them to fill out a registration form before logging in. This window also contains a reminder to check with an advisor before registering for the internship. The registration page was created as a way to monitor student use of the database. After registering, students are then directed to a page that provides guidelines for securing an internship. These guidelines include researching a field of interest to applying for an internship. This page also includes buttons for major Communications fields where internships are available such as radio, public relations, advertising, television, film, publication and a category for miscellaneous internships. Once a student clicks on a button of interest, a page appears with contact information and links detailing available internships. Once a student clicks on an internship company name, basic information about the internship is provided including whether or not a stipend is offered, the number of hours required, and internship duties. Often a brief description of the company and/or a link to the company's website is also given on this page. Links are updated each semester. The internship database is located at http://appserv.pace.edu/execute/page.cfm?doc_id=3762.

Monitoring Students On-line Using Blackboard

Students are monitored and are able to stay in touch with their professors while in the field using the distance learning technology of Blackboard. In addition, students are able to discuss their internship experiences on-line with other students who are enrolled in an internship the same semester. This technology allows students to post to discussion boards and share concerns with fellow students in the field. The professor can than monitor the student and answer any questions and/or concerns that may arise.

Conclusions

Success was looked at across three areas--the number of students registering for internships, the number of internship opportunities, and the number of students securing jobs as a result of their internships. First, the number of students registering for internships has increased dramatically in the last two years due to the increase in the number of Communications majors. From the inception of the program, the number of majors has increased from zero to 68. Some of this success can be attributed to the creation of the internship database. Prior to the database, internship information was contained in a folder in the Communications office. In order to search the department's internship offerings, students had to come to the office and sift through paperwork. The database eliminates this process and enables the student to glean information at their leisure.

Furthermore, the availability of internship opportunities has increased. Prior to the creation of the database, the department offered approximately twenty internships in the local area. With the creation of the database, the department now offers over forty internships in the tri-state area. Given Pace University's prime location in the nation's largest media market, communication organizations are constantly looking for student labor. With the increase in multimedia opportunities, organizations are reaping the benefits of work for credit. Our research has indicated that, once students were able to get a foot in the door, they were more likely to secure a job upon graduation. Approximately one third of the Communications alumni questioned indicate that the only reason they gained employment was because of their internship experience. The creation and maintenance of the internship database has been a worthwhile endeavor. Internship participation has added to the liberal arts experience and in many cases led to employment. The success of the database is encouraging and serves as a hallmark for other majors at Pace and other institutions.

References

The Cooperative Education and Internship Association (2002). 2002 Survey of Internship/Co-op Professionals in Higher Education. Retrieved March 27, 2003 from (http://www.ceiainc.org/research/CEIASurveyRpt.htm).

Jackson, L., & Caffarella, R. S. (Eds.). (1994). Experiential Learning: A New Approach. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Kraft, R. J., & Kielsmeir, J. (Eds.). (1995). Experiential learning in schools and higher education. Association for Experiential Education. Boulder, Co: (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED 385 415)

Meeske, M. D. (1992) Update: Broadcast intern programs and practices. In A. Ciafalo (Ed.), Internships: Perspectives on experiential learning (pp. 77-80). Malabar, FL: Krieger Publishing.

National Association of Colleges and Employers. Retrieved March 27, 2003 from http://www.naceweb.org.

United States Department of Labor's Occupational Outlook Handbook: Retrieved February 18, 2003 from http://www.bls.gov/home.htm.

Michelle M. Pulaski, Pace University, NY Maria Luskay, Pace University, NY

Pulaski, Ph.D., is an assistant professor of Communications. Her research and teaching interests include news media, media ethics, new communications technologies, and media theory. Luskay, Ed.D., is an associate professor of Communications. Her research and teaching interests include service learning, media production and industrial video.