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The University of Northern Iowa

Faculty Supervisor Roles

The Cooperative Education/Internship Program is a program available through the UNI Career Services. The program provides students with a means for gaining career-related experience and testing out career options. With oversight from a faculty member, each student's experience becomes more than a part-time job; it becomes a part of his/her academic preparation that links classroom learning with hands-on experiential learning.

The steps below outline basic information on the co-op/internship program and faculty/academic department involvement in the student learning experience through the program. For additional information, contact Al Stamberg, Co-op Program Director. You can also contact the office by calling 273-6041.

Students who take part in the Co-op/Internship Program may participate in either an internship or a cooperative education placement. The program defines the only difference between one of its internships and a cooperative education position as the frequency of placements in which the student participates. One placement is defined as an internship and two or more placements at the same or different organizations as a co-op.

UNI's Cooperative Education Program considers the following dimensions to be common to both an internship and cooperative education placement:

• Student meets co-op and academic department requirements for admission into the program.
• Academic credit is granted through course XXX:179, where XXX represents the academic department number.
• The co-op/internship position relates to the student's major, minor, or perhaps career ambitions.
• A faculty co-op supervisor, assigned by the academic department oversees the internship, admits the student into the program, determines the assignment the student must complete to earn the credit, and provides confirmation to the Registrar's Office that the student has completed his/her assignment and should receive credit. The cooperative education/internship homepage provides a list of co-op/internship faculty contacts by department.

Minimum requirements for students to enter UNI's Cooperative Education/Internship Program are a 2.5 cumulative GPA and a minimum of sophomore status at time of placement. Academic departments may determine any additional requirements they may deem appropriate (e.g., prerequisite courses) for students to enter the program through their department. The cooperative education/internship homepage provides a listing of departmental requirements for participation in the co-op/internship program. Also, each department determines which co-op/internship opportunities will be appropriate for their students.

Students entering the program can seek an opportunity through UNI CareerLink, the UNI Career Services' web based system which lists hundreds of internships, or they can request co-op/internship credit for a position they may have located on their own. To see available internships, go to UNI CareerLink and log in as a guest, as explained on the page. Click on Job Listings and then on Cooperative Education/Internship Opportunities.

In order for students to have access to positions on UNI CareerLink they must first attend an orientation meeting or view a videotape of one of these meetings. The meetings are held both fall and spring semesters.

• Dates, times, and locations may be found by contacting the Cooperative Education/Internship Program at 273-6041 or viewing the Co-op/Internship web page.
• Students receive a Cooperative Education Faculty Approval Form during this orientation which must be signed by their faculty co-op supervisor prior to being admitted into the program. The bottom copy of this form is for the faculty co-op supervisor.

Once an internship or co-op placement has been obtained, a Cooperative Education/Internship Agreement is originated by co-op staff. This form specifies details related to the placement and is a proposal that is presented to faculty for approval. This form requires signatures by the faculty co-op supervisor and the department head of the academic department through which the student is seeking credit. The final copy of this multiple-copy form is kept by the academic department for departmental records. The student is registered for course credit by co-op staff once the signed white and pink copies of the form are returned to the Co-op Office.

Prior to obtaining the faculty co-op supervisor's signature, students are informed that they will be given an academic project by their faculty co-op supervisor. The project is to be submitted to the faculty co-op supervisor and graded by that person. Projects should have enough depth to cause the student to integrate prior course work or guidelines into their work environment. Ideally, such projects will fit the class level of the student. Written papers that students submit for their projects are typically 10-12 pages in length. All students participating through the program must sign up for credit using the number XXX:179.

An evaluation form is sent to each student's on-site supervisor approximately one month before the end of each semester. A copy of this form is sent to the student's faculty co-op supervisor upon receipt by the Cooperative Education Office.

Whenever possible, co-op staff perform a follow-up visit to students on their job sites. These visits primarily occur during the summer when co-op staff members try to visit students within a 300 mile radius of the University. If concerns or problems are observed, a co-op staff member will contact the student's faculty co-op supervisor. Faculty who work with co-op students are encouraged to visit them on their placement, but such visit are required of faculty members.

All academic department heads on campus receive a list of co-op/intern placements near the end of each semester. This list is sent out so that department heads and faculty co-op supervisors are fully aware of the program's intern and co-op activities.

At the end of spring semester, department heads are asked to update co-op academic requirements and/or identify any changes in faculty contact persons for their department.

Final Comments

Internship and cooperative education opportunities reinforce learning that takes place in the classroom and provide a bridge to future career opportunities. Because of this, academic departments are encouraged to make the Co-op/Internship Program available to students in their department without placing too many restrictions on requirements to enter the program. Departments are asked to offer co-op credit as major or major elective credit with a letter grade when possible. When offered on this basis, more students are likely to consider entrance into the program and they will take their academic project more seriously.

Career Services also offers opportunities for students to explore careers prior to entering an internship through job shadowing or volunteering. This program may be particularly beneficial for students who may not be ready to enter the Co-op Program due to class standing, lack of course work, maturity level, or because they lack career direction.