College of Liberal Arts and Sciences

External Internship Steps

1. Read the internship checklist
2. Get your resume ready
• Research online on how to write an effective resume
• Consult with your academic advisor
• Consult the IU South Bend Career Services (click here for help)
3. Search for an internship position
• Visit the department job opportunities webpage and Department Bulletin Boards in the Northside 2nd and 3rd floor.
• Search for positions in local and national company/organization/university websites
  • Contact the IU South Bend Career Services (click here for help)
  • Local organizations: CRC @ nd.edu, 1st Source Bank, TCU, Innovation park, Ignition Park, etc.
  • National organizations: Google, Microsoft, Apple, IBM, CISCO, Amazon
• Search using websites such as indianaintern.net, dice.com, indeed.com, etc.
4. Consult with the department internship coordinator to learn about specific requirements
• Complete and submit the checklist and the external internship proposal
• The internship site and the position must be approved by the internship coordinator
5. Interview with perspective employers
• Upon receiving an offer for internship, request that the employer complete the position description form and submit it to the internship coordinator for approval
6. Work with the internship coordinator to find a suitable internship faculty supervisor (or instructor). Keep in mind that faculty do the internship supervision as a service and their availability may be limited during summer.
7. Register for the CSCI-Y 398 course under the faculty supervisor
   
8. Schedule a weekly meeting time with your internship faculty supervisor
• NOTE: You should let your employer know that you will need 2 to 3 hours a week in order to come to IU South Bend and meet with the internship faculty supervisor. Allow enough time for the commute. You could also meet with your faculty supervisor online if that option is available.
9. Must submit weekly report forms to your faculty supervisor
• Print and fill out a weekly report form and send it your faculty supervisor
• NOTE: Don't forget to ask your supervisor at work to sign the form.
10. Meet with the internship faculty supervisor at the agreed upon time. (weekly)
    
• During the meeting the internship faculty supervisor will identify various topics for further study and research. These topics will directly relate to activities performed at work.
• Students will be asked to prepare a 2 to 5 page report on each topic. These reports provide the students with the opportunity to further explore the ideas and concepts discussed. A total of 5 or 6 reports will be prepared during the semester. The actual number will depend on the depth and quality of the reports and will be determined by the internship faculty supervisor.
• The faculty supervisor will review the reports, and often the student is asked to revise and resubmit the reports. One of the reports will be selected by the faculty supervisor and the student to be used as the final paper. This paper will be about 15 to 20 pages long and will be on a topic of general interest to computer science students. This paper may be posted on the internship bulletin board, as well as the internship reports archive.
• The format of the reports: All reports should be typed. All figures, tables, etc. must be done in a professional manner (i.e., use a CASE tool or a drawing package.) The reports must have the following format:
  
  • Cover Page
  • Table of Contents (optional)
  • Introduction
  • Body
  • Conclusion
  • References

     (Note: The "cover page" and the optional "table of contents" do not count as two pages of your report!)

11. At the end of the semester/internship the faculty supervisor will assign the final grade for the course based on your work and reports

Students are strongly encouraged to take a reduced course load during their internship.

For more information contact the Department Internship Coordinator