Internship Requirements
What is an Internship?
The JBU Department of Visual Arts has established an internship requirement for graduation. An internship is simply on-the-job-training. It is our experience and expectation that this internship will prove to be a beneficial experience for both you and the company you work for. For the student the potential benefits will include:
- work experience
- hands-on learning/working opportunities in your chosen field
- a broader educational experience
- an appreciation for opinions and techniques other than those of your JBU professors
- gaining a familiarity with the workplace environment and the demands of real deadlines
- development of materials for your professional portfolio
- beginning to develop a circle of contacts in your chosen field
- 3 hours of JBU credit upon successful completion of the internship program
How Much Work is Involved?
The degree requirement is 3 credit hours which translates to 135 hours of work or approximately 9 hours per week for one semester. This can also be accomplished in approximately one month of full-time work during the summer. It is also possible to work on your internship during school breaks. It is possible to break your internship experience into more than one job - for instance, you might wish to work for a few weeks at one place of business and finish the rest of your hours at another place of business.
When Can I Do It?
This internship may be done in either semester of the senior year or during the summer prior to the senior year. If an internship is accomplished during the summer the student may register for the course ART 4423 either as a May term course or during the Fall semester following the internship.
Where Can I Work?
All internships must be approved by the faculty advisor prior to beginning work. The Visual Arts faculty have established relationships with a number of companies willing to hire interns. Junior level students in their spring semester should contact their advisor to discuss internship opportunities. Your faculty advisor will help you try to find the most appropriate experience. Faculty advisors will recommend qualified students to the companies and can help arrange an interview for the student. As work loads permit, companies hiring students will interview, hire, and assign students to areas that will best suit the mutual needs and interests of the student and the company. Some companies will offer a salary, some will not. It is not necessary that the internship be arranged through the advisor or located in the vicinity of Siloam Springs however the advisor must approve any intended internship opportunity and must receive a written explanation of the job description from the company. Students are encouraged to find an internship opportunity in their own home town or in the area in which they would like to relocate following graduation.
What are the Requirements?
In order to realize any or all of these benefits it must be understood that the student will be expected to be working primarily in the physical environment of a creative advertising/design workplace and in a capacity that will encourage their creative, technical, and professional development. It is our intention that this experience not be simply practice in a workplace which has needs of the skills the student already possesses but will be a place where the student is challenged and taught by the professionals they are working with.
Paper
In addition to successfully completing 135 hours of work, verified by the company supervisor, each student is required to keep a journal of their experience to by typed and submitted to the professor. This journal should be in the range of 10-12 pages, explaining the kinds of work done, skills learned, and experiences that impacted you. An appendix may be attached to include samples of projects worked on. A final requirement will be a successful evaluation by their company supervisor.
Forms
A JBU Internship Learning Agreement must be completed prior to commencing work. If you are arranging an internship away from Siloam Springs and during the summer then you must contact your advisor by phone, e-mail or mail to have the proposed internship approved and you must have the JBU Internship Learning Agreement signed by yourself and your internship supervisor and returned to your advisor at JBU. In addition, upon completion of your internship, you must request your site supervisor to write a short letter on company letterhead verifying your satisfactory completion of 135 hours of work.
To Receive Credit
Upon completion of your internship it is your responsibility to deliver to your JBU advisor your typed 10- 12 page journal and your letter of satisfactory completion from your site supervisor.