School of Education & Social Policy

Internships

internship presentation
Students in the Higher Education Administration and Policy Program gain valuable professional experience through internships. Students new to higher education administration utilize their internship experiences to try out different areas of higher education and enhance employment credentials. The internship experience also gives students an opportunity to connect what they learn in the classroom to its real-world implications in professional practice.

Students are required to complete at least one credit-bearing internship of a minimum of 200 hours. Many students elect to pursue a longer, more in-depth internship experience or have more than one internship in order to gain experience in multiple areas of higher education administration. Most internships are paid, either through federal funding or by the department or institution employing the intern. Some internships also include free housing, such as placements in Residential Life. The program provides internship placement assistance and works to match students to internships that meet both their academic and financial needs.

Students who are already working full-time in higher education or who have had significant experience may choose to waive their internship requirement in favor of taking another elective course. However, even those who are currently working in higher education may elect to complete the internship in order to gain experience in a different area.

A wide variety of internships is available to match the interests of students. Higher Education Administration and Policy students have interned in areas such as these:
  • student affairs
  • international education/ study abroad
  • career services
  • admissions
  • student conduct/judicial affairs
  • fraternity and sorority life
  • financial aid
  • change management
  • athletics administration
  • government relations
  • alumni relations and fundraising
  • new student orientation
  • faculty development/ teaching and learning centers
  • institutional effectiveness/ research
  • student activities
  • residential life
Our students intern at a variety of institutions in the Chicago area, such as Northwestern University, Lake Forest College, Loyola University Chicago, University of Chicago, University of Illinois-Chicago, the City Colleges of Chicago, the Associated Colleges of the Midwest and Human Capital Research Corporation. Students have also interned in governmental organizations such as the Department of Education and the U.S. Agency for International Development.

Because of their qualifications, experience and energy, interns from the Higher Education Administration and Policy Program are often assigned a great deal of responsibility:
  • planning events
  • advising students individually and in groups
  • designing workshops and programs
  • leading teams
  • supervising student workers
  • conducting student conduct hearings
  • evaluating programs - qualitatively and quantitatively
  • improving and/or streamlining operations
  • managing projects
  • creating and implementing marketing campaigns
  • monitoring policy and legislative initiatives
  • researching best practices
  • developing and distributing surveys; analyzing and presenting results
  • conducting strength, weakness, opportunity and threat (SWOT) analyses
  • developing databases