College Internship Grades: A is not for Automatic

Every college intern should make an A for the course, right? A is not for Automatic.

While you might think there's no content in the course, just process, this is the place where your content courses culminate. In short, your internship is where you apply the content you've learned in previous classes.

There's more to an internship, of course, and that's where your site supervisor plays a crucial role: evaluating your performance on the job. Some colleges count that evaluation in the semester grade while other schools downplay its importance for the academic record. (The reason is a pretty simply one: there may be little consistency in evaluation across all the internships so it's not a level playing field for everyone in the class.)

Best protection for the internship grade: understand the criteria for grading. Best sources of information: the professor and the syllabus.

The content on this blog is not offered as legal advice or guidance. Consult your college, advisor, or internship supervisor for help with issues surrounding internships. © 2008 Mary Bold, PhD, CFLE. Dr. Bold is a co-author of the book Reflections: Preparing for your Practicum or Internship, geared to college interns in the child, education, and family fields. More about Dr. Bold can be learned at www.marybold.com