By Sara Schneider
Transcript Correspondent
Faculty and staff at OWU have created the Internship Circle to discuss expectations concerning internships.
The group, sponsored by the Office of Academic Affairs, meets every second Tuesday of the month at noon in the Hamilton-Williams Campus Center in room 304; the meetings are open for all to attend.
Professor of Politics and Government James Franklin, who organizes the meetings, said they are a “forum for faculty and staff to meet and discuss issues pertaining to internships.”
In March of 2013, a workshop took place to inform people about internships on and off campus. Following the workshop, faculty and staff said they believed follow-up meetings were needed. The Internship Circle was then created and the first meeting took place in September.
Several different academic departments already offer internships to students, but the Internship Circle encourages additional departments to create internship positions and promote internship opportunities for students off campus.
“Internships allow students to learn about careers in ways that is not possible in the classroom,” Franklin said.
Students have the ability to work alongside professionals in a field that interests them. These internships can lead to quality recommendations and possible future jobs.
According to the Career Services web page, internships are valuable for “building skills and acquiring an understanding of the demands of a particular career field.”
Career Services highly recommends that students complete at least one internship during their college careers.
Senior Chris Litzler has completed three internships with commercial real estate investment funds. He said he thinks they are “opportunities for students to extend classroom learning in a professional setting while preparing students for a meaningful career.”
“These internships have given me a better understanding on the industry and make me a very strong entry level candidate in the real estate space,” he said. “Students cultivate interests in classrooms and internships are avenues for students to test their interests to determine if they are passions.”