Master of Arts in Sociology internship option

Instead of authoring a thesis, you can participate in an internship that will allow you to gain further experience in sociology an apply the new theories and objectives you learned in your master’s degree.

Upon completion of all coursework requirements and having the course of study approved by your graduate committee, the committee and the internship coordinator will assist you in finding an appropriate setting for the internship experience.

The internship placement is usually not a paid position and should not be at your place of employment. An exception to this general rule would be the case where you do your internship in a substantially different area of service at your place of employment.

Requirements

In order to complete this option, you must:

• Have “Regular” standing with the Office of Graduate and Professional Studies—if you have a “Provisional” standing, you may not register for internship units.
• Have completed all 31 units of coursework required for the degree as documented in your course of study form.
• Not have an outstanding “Incomplete” or “In Progress.”Exception: If you must maintain “full-time” status, you may petition your graduate committee to admit you to register for internship hours with 28 hours of coursework completed. However, you must take your final three hours of coursework at the same time you are pursuing your internship hours.
• Have a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.0 on all graduate coursework.
• Register for 6 credit hours of SOC 696 during the internship.
• Work at the internship for a minimum of 20 hours per week for 15 weeks (or 30 hours for ten weeks in the summer).
• Complete an internship manuscript which can be written in any of these areas:
  • Proposal for a program evaluation (needs assessment study or analysis of the agency);
  • Grant proposal for funding;
  • Research report
• At the end of your internship and when you have completed your paper, the graduate committee will request an internship defense for approval.

Apply now

Once you have met the requirements above, you will need to take these steps:

1. Register for SOC 696: meet with the coordinator, Dr. Janine Schipper, when you are nearing the end of your first year of coursework.
2. Investigate the internship possibilities in Flagstaff or the location where you intend to live. See more internship opportunities for placement ideas.
3. Ask three full-time faculty members to be on your committee. When requesting faculty to be on your committee, consider their expertise in terms of methods and topical area. Ask one of these members, who must be a sociology faculty member, to chair your committee. The committee chair will serve as your internship supervisor and be responsible for facilitating your proposal, an agreement with the internship site, and your final paper.
4. Write the internship proposal and get approval and signatures from your committee.
5. You, the agency supervisor, and your committee chair must complete and sign the internship agreement.
6. File your proposal, the Internship Agreement, and the thesis/internship permission to register with the Department Office. The form should be signed by all three committee members and will signify their approval of your proposal.

All documentation required must be approved by your graduate committee and on file in the Department Office before you can register for SOC 696. Once the documentation is on file, contact the Internship Coordinator to receive a permission number to register for 6 units of SOC 696.

During your internship:

1. Work your hours. Be sure to keep a log of your activities to contribute to the later sociological analysis. You must complete 300 hours of internship hours to receive 6 units of SOC 696.
2. Write your internship manuscript. The content depends on what kind of internship you do. Regardless of the type, you will want to bring a sociological analysis to bear upon your experience.
3. Plan to give all three committee members sufficient time to review your final manuscript and provide feedback for rewriting the paper.
4. Schedule a defense with all three committee members. This allows you to present and discuss your internship experience and manuscript. Sharing this professional accomplishment by advertising the presentation and discussion is also recommended. After the defense, your committee will need to sign the master’s oral exam. File this form with the Office of Graduate and Professional Studies.
5. Give a copy of your internship manuscript to the Department of Sociology to keep in their thesis/internship cabinet.
6. Follow the graduation procedures on page 9 of the student guide. File your application for graduation. In order to file this form, you also need to meet with the graduate coordinator to complete a final copy of the course of study form.