SESP Adds International Practicum Site
Undergraduates at Northwestern University’s School of Education and Social Policy have a new option for their junior year practicum: Milan, Italy.
The new program is a collaboration between the School of Education and Social Policy, Northwestern’s Global Learning office, and IES Abroad. For the first time, students can simultaneously complete their experiential learning and global engagement requirements.
SESP’s much-loved off-campus practicum–a quarter long off-campus internship coupled with an academic seminar–has jump-started the careers of countless alumni. But some students found it difficult to complete the practicum and study internationally.
IES Abroad’s Internships Milan program makes it possible to do both and gives students a global work experience in a relevant field.
More than 40 percent of SESP students have historically studied abroad, learning from an immersive experience in another academic and social culture. Since 2019, SESP undergraduates have been required to fulfill a global engagement requirement by either studying abroad or completing one year of college level foreign language or equivalent.
In 2020, SESP introduced a remote option for the junior year practicum due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The addition of the Milan internship means SESP students can fulfill their practicum requirement by working for an organization in any city in the US and internationally in Milan.
“Because of the pandemic, the practicum seminar was offered in both in-person and remote (Zoom) modalities, which meant students could complete their US-based practicum from Evanston or any city of their choosing,” said Mindy Douthit, assistant professor of instructor and faculty director of the SESP practicum. “Teaming up with Global Learning and IES Abroad lets students experience working internationally while attending an in-person internship seminar abroad.”
For more information, contact Funmilayo Ojikutu, associate director of academic advising and experiential learning.