If you are an English major interested in interning for course credit, you should register for ENG 4900: Internship in Writing and Editing in your junior or senior year. Along with deciding where you want to intern for a semester, you must also choose when to do your internship. Arranging an internship with an organization takes time and planning, so you must contact Dr. Melissa Barth, the director of the internship program, a semester before enrolling in the course. You have the choice to intern during the spring, summer or fall, and this article will help you discover which semester is best for you.

Many seniors choose to intern during their last semester at Appalachian. An internship seems to be the appropriate finale to attending classes and learning about professional writing for three and a half years. Some students have a lighter course load, which works well with a demanding internship. Also, organizations may choose to hire their own interns who will graduate at the end of the semester. One of the only drawbacks for interning your last semester is that, if for some reason you do not accumulate enough internship hours, you will be given an incomplete and will not graduate until that incomplete is removed from your records.

To earn the required three hours of academic credit, students must intern at an organization for 150 hours in the fall and spring semesters. In the summer, internship time is reduced to 120 hours. Another advantage for a summer internship is that students can choose to intern at an organization in their hometown or another city other than Boone. This provides more opportunities to the student who cannot find an applicable internship in the surrounding area of Boone. The only drawback to interning in another city is that it will be difficult to complete your hours in the fall if you fail to finish them over the summer.

Preparation and planning are essential for a successful internship. Students must carefully choose a semester in their academic career where they will have adequate time to work in a professional environment. Consider your upcoming schedule of classes and the commitment that an internship requires. While an internship is demanding, it is also very rewarding, so start planning early to make your experience worthwhile.