Internship Guide
The MES Internship Preparation Guide is also available as a pdf document:
http://mes.cofc.edu/documents/MESInternshipGuide.pdf
Table of Contents
Academic Internship Option
Preparing the Internship Report
Timeline: Internship Completion Meeting
Timeline: Internship Presentation and Defense
Arrangement of Manuscript
1. Title / Approval Page
2. Table of Contents
3. Abstract
4. Dedication and/or Acknowledgements
5. Text
a. Introduction
b. Literature Review
c. Materials/Data and Methods
d. Results
e. Discussion
f. Summary or Conclusion
6. Literature Cited
7. Appendices
Preparation of Final Copies of the Internship Report
1. Number of Copies
2. Paper
3. Fonts
4. Corrections
5. Spacing
6. Margins
7. Justification and Hyphenation
8. Pagination
Deadline for Final Submission
Sample Internship Title Page
Academic Internship Option
Students may perform an academic internship (“internship”) as part of their course of study. The objective and purpose of this part of the program are to obtain a breadth of knowledge and experience of environmental studies in an applied setting (typically, but not limited to, an off-campus institution). This differs from an academic thesis structure which requires a depth of inquiry into a specific area of environmental research.
As soon as the student has elected the internship option, he/she will select an Internship Advisor. The Internship Advisor may be, but is not required to be, the same person as the Academic Advisor. The student, in consultation with the Internship Advisor, will select an Internship Advisory Committee. The Internship Committee should be comprised of the student's Internship Advisor and two additional faculty members, one of whom should be from outside the student's particular area of interest. For example, a student concentrating in Policy may comprise a committee of two Political Science faculty members and one Geology faculty member. At least one member of the Internship Committee must be a roster faculty member at the College of Charleston. Additionally, the student's supervisor from the sponsoring institution will serve on the Internship Committee. In some instances, revisions to the Program of Study will be made.
In consultation with his/her Internship Advisor and the MES Internship Coordinator, a student will ordinarily be expected to seek and arrange his/her own internship. Students are encouraged to use the Internship Resource List and the “Positions Available” posting board and discuss these options with their advisor. Internships must have the approval of the student's Internship Advisory Committee and the Program Director.
Students completing an internship will work in an applied setting other than at the College of Charleston under the direct supervision of an approved mentor. As part of his/her internship experience, the student will work six-hundred (600) hours or more in the internship setting and will be expected to complete an academic assignment to be approved by his/her Internship Advisory Committee. Completion of the academic assignment and six-hundred (600) work hours has been delineated as equivalent to six (6) credit hours of graduate study. Note: in order to craft a viable internship proposal, substantial effort toward the topic goal will be required; this effort is not considered part of the 600 hours of internship activity. Only after successful presentation of the internship proposal and acceptance by the student’s committee will the student be released to perform the 600-hour project activity and allowed to register for 6 credit hours of the internship (EVSS 690).
Students should write an Internship Proposal according to the guidelines listed on the Internship Proposal Approval form (MES-7) in consultation with their Internship Advisor. Internship proposals should be approved by the Internship Advisory Committee and the Program Director no later than two (2) weeks prior to the internship start date. The signed approval form and a copy of the Proposal must be submitted to the MES Program Office no later than two (2) weeks following the internship start date.
Students may register for internship credits only in the semester in which the internship report is successfully defended. Students will not be allowed to register for Internship credit unless an Internship Proposal Approval form (MES-7) is on file in the MES Program Office.
Note: The process of securing an internship with an outside agency requires that the student work closely with their Academic Advisor to be sure that their proposal is approved before the majority of the internship activity is conducted. This usually requires a careful scheduling balance between the student’s progress toward their Program of Study through planning of course credits, when to complete the Academic Internship Proposal, and coordinating the actual internship activity hours with the sponsor. Here is a hypothetical example (actual Internship experiences will vary depending on conditions and agency needs):
Bill R. begins the MES program in the Fall semester and in early February he is offered an internship position with the Bureau of Nature Management. The project involves resource assessment of public lands in South Carolina with a target completion date by December 31. Bill’s BNM supervisor will serve as Internship Supervisor. Bill and his supervisor are targeting June of the following year for Bill to complete his Academic Internship report. He soon begins his literature review and writing his proposal, he identifies three other advisors (two faculty and another BNM manager) to serve on his committee, he presents the proposal and receives faculty and MES approval in August, and he registers for 6 hours of Internship credits (EVSS 690) for the Fall semester (in addition to an elective class that he has identified for his program of study). Bill also sets up a schedule with BNM to work 40 hours per week for July and August and then 10 hours per week for September through January.
While the final format of the internship report is determined by the student's Advisor, some general formatting guidelines are included in the Internship Report Preparation Guide below. Students are encouraged to review and discuss these with their Advisor.
Internships will be graded on a “Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory” basis. Grades will be awarded by the academic advisor in consultation with the approved mentor. Should a student receive an “Unsatisfactory” evaluation for his/her internship, no credit will be awarded towards the degree.
Upon completion of the internship and all academic requirements outlined by the Internship Advisory Committee, the Fulfillment of Internship Requirements form (MES-10) must be signed and submitted to the MES Program Office.
If a student is unable to complete the internship defense during the semester in which he/she is registered, a grade of IP (in progress) will be issued until the internship requirements are fulfilled. After a grade of IP has been assigned, the student has one semester to complete the requirements.
Preparing the Internship Report
The submission of your Internship Report is one of the last steps in the program leading to the completion of the MES degree. The report is a scholarly statement of the results of the student's internship work. The Master of Environmental Studies (MES) Program (Graduate Studies) has established guidelines for uniformity in the format of the manuscript. These guidelines were designed to ensure that all papers were high in quality and consistent in the arrangement of the contents.
The Internship Report must be a professionally finished work equivalent in quality to a thesis, in format, style, spelling and appearance, as the finished document reflects on both the student and the University. The format of the manuscript should be consistent with the guidelines presented herein. Failure to follow these instructions may result in either rejection of your Internship Report or revision.
Timeline: Internship Completion Meeting
Within one month of completion of the work for the Internship Sponsor, the student should organize a follow-up Internship Completion Meeting with his/her committee in order to inventory the requirements of the Internship Report, and to provide guidance for its preparation. It is recommended that the student plan to complete the Internship Report one month after the date of the Internship Completion Meeting. It is also important for the student to communicate frequently with his/her committee regarding Report review schedules and planning the Internship Completion Meeting and the Internship Defense meeting (see below).
Timeline: Internship Presentation and Defense
One month prior to the Internship Presentation and Defense, the student should submit his/her final Internship Report to his/her committee. This Internship Presentation and Defense will provide an opportunity for the student to place in context and review his/her internship experience with his/her committee members and other interested faculty and students.
If the committee determines that the internship requirements designated at any previous time have not been met, they may require that the student remediate to fulfill these requirements. For example, the committee could require the student to complete an additional literature review, relevant to the internship.
The steps toward the conclusion of the Internship Report Presentation and Defense process include:
1) Submit the completed Internship Report to the Internship Committee for initial review in a timely fashion.
2) Work with the Committee to determine the day, time, and location of the Internship Report Presentation and Defense, and get the Committee signatures on the Defense Notification form.
3) Provide the MES Office with the signed copy of the Defense Notification form at least two weeks before the defense.
4) The date of the Defense should be held at least two weeks before the deadline for submitting the final copies to the MES Program Office. This final deadline is the same as the Thesis deadline noted on the Graduate School list of deadlines each semester.
5) When the Defense has been completed and the Intership Committee has approved the final completed Internship Report, the Committee signs the Fulfillment of Internship Requirements form, and the Internship Advisor provides a grade for the six hours of Internship credit.
6) The original and two (2) copies of the final Internship Report must be submitted to the MES Program Office by 5 p.m. of the Thesis deadline noted on the Graduate School's list of deadlines each semester.
To expand upon the example provide above on page 3, Bill R. could follow this possible timeline for his second Spring semester after the completion of his internship:
Arrangement of Manuscript
1. Title / Approval Page
One original title page, prepared in the same format as the sample Internship Title Page, must be submitted with the original signatures of all members of the Internship Report Committee. (There must be at least three members of your committee, members of the MES Program faculty, and the committee must be approved by the Program Director.) The title page is numbered i, but the page number is not displayed. The date on the title page will depend on the semester you will receive your degree.
2. Table of Contents
Both reports are expected to have a Table of Contents for the convenience of the reader. If plates or illustrations (i.e. maps, diagrams, charts, photographs, etc.) are scattered throughout the text, include a separate List of Figures or Table of Illustrations after the Table of Contents.
3. Abstract
An abstract must be included with each copy of your internship report. The abstract must (a) state the problem or problems that you worked on; (b) describe your activities; (c) summarize the findings. Limit it to 350 words (about 2,450 characters) in length. The abstract should include your name and internship report title. It should be double-spaced, using only one side of the paper, and should be within the internship report margin requirements. The abstract must adhere to the 350 word limit. Its pages should be assigned a place in the small Roman number sequence for the preliminary pages, but the numbers should not be displayed on the abstract pages themselves.
4. Dedication and/or Acknowledgements
If you wish, you may include a page with a brief note of dedication or acknowledgment of help received from particular persons. (See Section 11 under Preparation of Final Copies, Published Material regarding acknowledgment for published material). The pages of this section should be assigned a place in the small Roman number sequence for the preliminary pages, and the numbers should be displayed on the pages in the usual way (centered in the bottom margin).
5. Text
The format for the text of the thesis-style Internship Report follows. Its first page, typically the first page of either an introduction or a first chapter, should be numbered “1” in Arabic numerals.
a. Introduction
The purpose of the Introduction is to introduce the reader to the problem. The Introduction is a concise statement of the problem and an outline of the scope, aim, and nature of the research. Mention of the previous literature should be included here.
b. Literature Review
A review of the literature pertinent to the subject should be discussed and used to provide context for the internship report.
c. Materials/Data and Methods
The purpose of the Materials and Methods is to recount, in a concise manner, the materials and/or data and methods employed in the research. It should also include sufficient information so that the study could be repeated.
Care should be exercised not to include superfluous information. Also, extreme caution must be used to avoid including results and/or conclusions. Specimens or data deposited in a museum or library should be cited here.
d. Results
The results reflect the findings of the student's investigation only, not the findings of other researchers in the area. This is a summarized form of extensive data that may appear in the figures, tables and/or appendices.
e. Discussion
The Discussion section is for an analysis of the data acquired. In this section, the student may draw comparisons with findings of other researchers in the field or even speculate to some degree and, if appropriate, suggest additional research.
f. Summary or Conclusion
The Summary or Conclusion is a final brief statement which draws together the objectives and findings of the entire research project. Care should be exercised to draw conclusions pertinent to the problem and to avoid personal bias.
6. Literature Cited
The style and format of this section will ordinarily depend on the practice of the journal to which the paper based on the internship report is submitted. See Style suggestion section. In general, the guidelines of the CBE Style Manual or the Chicago Manual of Style should be followed.
7. Appendices
A last section may contain supporting data for the text in the form of one or more appendices. Examples of appendix material are data sheets, questionnaire samples, illustrations, maps, charts, etc. If the appended data should include oversize illustrations or maps several alternative methods of inclusion are available.
Preparation of Final Copies of the Internship Report
1. Number of Copies
Each candidate shall submit the original and two (2) complete and signed, bound (you may have them bound at a local copy shop), copies of his/her Internship Report to the MES Program Office.
The copies will be distributed as follows:
Original: MES Program Office
Copy 1: Primary Advisor
Copy 2: Internship Advisor
2. Paper
The original Internship Report must be printed on standard size, white, 8-1/2 x 11 inches, non-glossy, non-textured acid-free paper of twenty (20) pound weight, 100% rag content. The two (2) copies must be clean photocopies on at least 20% rag content, acid-free paper. (Your internship report will be on file for a time that may stretch into hundreds of years, and acid-free paper is essential to prevent premature deterioration.) Only one side of the paper may be used. The paper must be of the appropriate grade, acid-free, plain white, with no ragged edges.
3. Fonts
No particular choice of font or typeface is mandated; any clearly legible font that is not ornate or fancy, in a size between 10 and 12 points, is acceptable. However, fonts should not be mixed inappropriately. Consistency of the font is vital. Scientific names of genera and species should be underlined or printed in true italics. Either underlining or italic typeface may be used for purposes of emphasis or for distinguishing section headings.
4. Corrections
Make corrections with the greatest care.
5. Spacing
Use double spacing throughout except in footnotes, indented quotations set off from the text, bibliography entries of more than one line, and materials such as captions or tables and appendices of data.
6. Margins
Every page of the internship report must be kept within margins set as follows: A minimum margin of 1-1/2 inches (for binding purposes) on the left side of the page; 1 inch at the right side; 1-1/4 inches at the top and bottom of the page. Any page submitted with less than the minimum margins will be rejected.
7. Justification and Hyphenation
The internship report will have a straight-line left margin and a ragged right margin, with no word of the text less than one inch from the right edge of the paper, nor even a single letter of a word. The right margin may be justified (straight) if this improves appearance and legibility. Each paragraph must be indented five (5) spaces. Do not end a line of a page with a hyphen.
8. Pagination
All pages except the title page, copyright page, and abstract page are numbered. This includes full page photographs, charts and graphs, the bibliography, and appendices. For the preliminary pages, use small Roman numerals (ii, iii, etc.). Page i is the title page (see sample Internship Title Page), but the page number is not printed on this page. Page ii is the copyright page or a blank page (showing no page number) if you are not copyrighting your work. The Table of Contents follows the copyright page (or blank page if you are not copyrighting) and is numbered with the page number(s) displayed. The abstract follows and is numbered, but the page number(s) will not be displayed.
The first item on the Table of Contents list will be the Abstract. This will be followed by any dedication or acknowledgment section you may wish to include. This is numbered in the small Roman series, with the page numbers displayed. The remainder of the internship report is numbered with Arabic numerals (1, 2, etc.).
The page numbers that are displayed must be centered at the bottom of each page, within the bottom margin. Note that no words, punctuation, or diacritics of any kind accompany the page number: it says “4”, not “-4-” or “4.” or “Page 4”.
Deadline for Final Submission
All candidates for a degree must submit the original and all copies of their final Internship Report to the MES Program Office by 5 p.m. of the thesis deadline date for the semester you wish to receive the degree (varies by semester; the Graduate School Office can provide this date).
Sample Internship Title Page
Please see the sample Internship Title Page for an example of the appropriate Title Page format.
