The Internship Learning Proposal

An internship promotes experiential learning. The first steps in finding an internship are self-assessment, and defining your goals. The Learning Proposal is a helpful tool in this process. It should also be used as a guide for discussions with a supervisor.

Purpose of the proposal:

• Assist in defining a focus for the internship

• Preparation for resume; cover letter writing, and interviewing

• For use with defining internship expectations and goals with supervisor

Components of the Learning Proposal:

• Your overall goals

• More specific objectives

• Strategies to meet the goals

Set Goals:

What do you hope to gain from an internship this summer?

You might want to meet one or more of these internship goals. Do you want to:

• Extend and apply skills learned at Brown, including problem posing, analysis, and synthesis

• Explore career options to help clarify and refine career objectives and goals – test your “fit”

• Begin to develop competencies (skills and knowledge) specific to a career or environment

• Develop skills necessary for any work environment, including communication, writing, interpersonal connections, teamwork, time management, and goal setting

• Build skills necessary for a job search, including, resume writing and interviewing

• Start to build a network of professional contacts

Define Objectives :

Goals are broader statements; objectives identify more specific details. Some examples are:

• Learn about specific areas or departments of an organization

• Learn about the tasks that people do

• Develop research skills

• Work on a team

• Design and implement a project

Generate Strategies :

Strategies are activities that will allow you to meet the goals and objectives you have set. They provide a good road map for a productive, satisfying internship. Some examples of strategies are:

• Attend staff meetings; request to go to training sessions

• Conduct information interviews

• Read related journals/magazines

• Have regular meetings with supervisor

For example: A learning proposal

Goal:

• To learn about the advertising industry and develop job search skills

Objectives:

• To understand the differences between the creative and business sides of advertising

• To learn about entry level positions, career paths and lifestyles

• To work with a team on a project and make a substantial contribution

• To begin to build my Brown network

Strategies:

• Identify five people in the organization to talk with about careers

• Read Ad Week, and find other magazines

• Set up weekly meetings with my supervisor and design a project

• Learn to use BRUnet, find alums, and conduct 10 information interviews

KC 08/05