Exploring Career Options^a

                   by            

Josephine A. Ruggiero, Ph.D
Faculty Supervisor to Interns
     and
Helmut E. Reinhardt, M.Ed. 
Former Teacher and Career Educator

This article discusses four types of work experience/career exploration possibilities:

1. job shadowing,
2.  volunteer work,
3. work study, and
4. internships.

We position, and discuss, the options in order of least involvement (i.e., time and commitment) and least control by the student to most involvement and greatest amount of control.

Few would deny that internships and other kinds of work‑related experiences have become increasingly important mechanisms through which students can

• explore career interests,
• get involved in networking,
• increase their chances of obtaining a job in their area of interest, and
• clarify their career goals and expectations.

Employers look at the variety of experiences which prospective job applicants have had.  They take special note of experiences which link students to the world of work.

1.  Job Shadowing

Job shadowing involves a student spending time in an organization or other setting observing or “shadowing” one or more employees and learning about the activities at that site. 

In some settings, job shadowing offers career exploration opportunities. The student observes,

for a short time, the responsibilities and activities of his/her “mentor.”  The student doing the shadowing is a passive contributor.  He or she is there to learn not to work.

______________________

     ^a Revised February, 2008. An earlier version of Exploring Career Options appeared as an article in The PC Student Sociologist , Spring, 2003.

When he was a guidance intern, Helmut discovered that some career exploration sites used students who were shadowing an employee as entry‑level workers at no pay. Job shadowing needs to be clarified as observation and not a "hands‑on" situation.

2.  Volunteer Work

Volunteering is a self‑motivated, do‑when‑you‑can type of work. Volunteering may or may not be linked to academic goals. In some rare cases, volunteering can lead to a job offer.  Work at a volunteer site tends to be low level. Also, volunteers have little or no control of their responsibilities at the organization. Volunteer work can be long‑term or short‑term, depending on the needs of the organization.   Most volunteer sites try to recognize the efforts of its members in some visible way.

One of Helmut’s volunteer positions was with a health care organization in Providence. His work there involved 1) helping a number of departments with accounting, 2) doing some public relations work, and 3) some office work.  One pleasant outcome involved the opportunity for him to save the organization several thousands of dollars! The reason Helmut could do this was that the Volunteer Coordinator saw his dedication to the work and allowed him some flexibility in what he did. This organization acknowledged the contribution of their volunteers at a special Recognition Dinner.  Volunteers were also invited to the organization’s annual Christmas party.

Another volunteer position and his longest to date is that of instructor in the AARP Driving Safety Program.  This position involves finding workshop sites for the instruction of senior citizens on driving safety strategies and finding new materials to add to the AARP manual requirements.

Each class requires eight hours of instructions and two additional hours of paperwork for the instructor.  There are opportunities to advance to mentor of instructor trainees, to become assistant state coordinator, or even state coordinator.  Beginning in 2008, each state AARP Driving Safety Program will recognize an “Instructor of the Year” who will also be recognized at the national level.   

3.  Work Study

Work study is controlled by the job supervisor and the tasks are very specific. Students who do work study usually get paid by either the college (on-campus work study) or by an organizational sponsor (off-campus work study).  The hours may vary from a few (four to six hours per week) to many (about 12-15 per week).  Work study jobs may be either short- or long-term.  Long-term jobs may last for two or more years.   Short-term jobs may last for a year or a summer.

In many work-study jobs, students do routine work like typing, filing, and xeroxing.  In some jobs, however, the work may be higher level-- for example, political consulting work or assisting a faculty member with his/her research. 

Students who get hired to work with a faculty member usually have a combination of research/analytical skills and/or technological (computer) skills.  Working with a faculty member can provide students who are interested in graduate school in sociology with an opportunity to develop or enhance useful skills.  Work-study students also may obtain a good reference or contacts for future work from his/her faculty supervisor.  So, even if you are not interested in going to graduate school right away or at all, obtaining work-study experience as a Research Assistant to a faculty member, or in another capacity, can still be worthwhile.

At Providence College , students have many work-study opportunities.  In the Sociology Department, for example, students may obtain paid work in jobs that involve either doing office support work or working directly with a faculty member on research or teaching-related activities.  Both Professors Riordan and Ruggiero regularly hire students to work with them.

4.  Internships

The Sociology Department is one of a number of departments at Providence College to offer students internship opportunities.  Some departments require all of their senior majors to complete an internship or field experience before they graduate.  Health Policy Management and Social Work are two such departments. Even when departments do not require internships, many of them strongly encourage their majors and minors to complete at least one internship for academic credit before they graduate. The Sociology Department is among the latter group.  

What is an Internship?  An internship is a field placement in an agency or organization in the local community.  An academic internship is an opportunity for students to connect classroom learning with the way life operates outside the classroom and with the world of work.

Sometimes, however, the phrase “internship” is used loosely by both students and organizations. Students need to understand that not all internships offer the same opportunity for quality experiences.  Everything is in the definition of what an internship is, where the internship is, who supervises the interns, what his/her position is in the organizational structure, how much control interns have over the work they do at the site, and what opportunities there are at the site to make a contribution by filling a need that the organization has but may not recognize (i.e., for the serendipitous experience or contribution).

In a high-quality internship, students identify their educational objectives with their individual career interests in mind.  Interns link their Learning Objectives to ideas and perspectives they have learned in/through their course work within or across disciplines.   The intern’s Faculty Advisor and Site Supervisor(s) are both aware of his/her Learning Objectives and assist the intern in meeting these objectives.  The work site is real, structured like a regular job, and the expectations of supervisors and advisors is clear: Do the work to the best of your ability, and treat this job like you would any kind of employment.

Internships may be either paid or for academic credit.  Paid internships may be supported by a federal grant or by funds from the site organization.   When they are for academic credit, the incentives for doing an internship are obtaining a grade and, of course, the unique, career-relevant experiences that s/he acquires in the specific work setting.

As a student teacher while a senior in college, Helmut had to learn how to teach Earth and Physical Science to seventh and eighth grade students.  He also had to learn the organizational structure of the school system, apply what he had learned in courses in college, and learn to take constructive criticism from both his college mentor and teacher‑mentors.

He got a grade, but no pay, for teaching four classes of 35 students each for a six‑week period. The work was enjoyable.  However, it was NOT flexible.  Rather, it was tedious, tiring and required long hours of effort.

As a guidance intern for his graduate degree, Helmut worked at two different high schools in Rhode Island for an entire year.  One high school was middle class, the other was working/lower class in regard to social class background of the students.

At those sites, he had a multitude of responsibilities.  For example, he counseled students on either career choices or college choices.  He also provided guidance about types of classes.  

In addition, Helmut developed job sites for a Career Exploration Group.  Part of this work included organizing and restructuring a resource area for the Guidance Department. Sometimes he ran individual and group counseling sessions with a variety of students.  He also substituted for a absent guidance counselor who was on leave.

For his efforts as a intern, Helmut got a grade and some grant money.   He gained valuable experience about the field, received excellent references from supervisors, and made a credible impact at both sites. Plus, he and other interns were asked to attend a banquet for being part of Career Exploration program!

In an article in the Providence Sunday Journal, Andrea Perera (May 12, 2002, Section H) points out that completing an internship is virtually becoming a prerequisite to finding a job after college graduation.  She bolsters that statement with numbers: Referring to a nation-wide survey of 1,000 college graduates conducted in the year 2000, Perera reports that 77% of the students who were then seniors said that they expected to complete at least one internship, and 66% of them said that they expected to participate in two internships before they graduated.                             

At Providence College, students may earn up to six credits toward their degree through academic internships.

What Opportunities for Doing Internships Does the Sociology Department Offer?  

The Sociology Department offers students opportunities to do TWO internships:

SOC 450 (Sociology Internship) and SOC/WMS 451 (Internship Focused on Women and Family Issues).   Both courses are offered on a request basis either in the fall or the spring semester of the academic year.

Background

Courses identified as internships became available for sociology credit in the Spring of 2000. Prior to that time, internships were available either through the Uses of Sociology/Applied Sociology course or through the Independent Study option.

The first internship course was designed for Women’s Studies minors, sociology majors, and other interested students as a theme course. Subsequently, Professor Ruggiero developed and received approval for students interested in Criminology and Criminal Justice as well as other areas to do an academic internship through Sociology 450.

Between Spring, 2000, and Spring, 2008, close to 60 students have completed, or chosen to do, an internship under the direction of Dr. Ruggiero, Intern Faculty Advisor.  Many interns are sociology majors or minors.  Others have come from Women’s Studies, the Social Sciences major, other social sciences--including Economics, Political Science, and Psychology, the humanities (English in particular), and Health Policy Management.

Where and How Can I get More Information About Doing An Internship in Sociology?

Interested students

1. Should pick up a copy of the Guide to Academic Internship Information for either Sociology 450 or SOC/WMS 451 from the holder outside of Professor Ruggiero’s office (Howley 216). 
2. After reading the Guide, they should locate one or more internships of interest to them. Here are some suggestions about how to locate internships of interest to you:
   1. Use eFriars , the web-based system. 
   2. Check out the Internship Binders in the Career Services Office (CSO).   These binders contain hard copies of the information posted on eFriars.
   3. Look at the Book of Lists also located in the CSO.  This book identifies the top organizations in the state of Rhode Island and other areas and provides contact information.  See a CSO staff member for help. 
   4. Speak with Patti Goff, the college’s Internship Coordinator.  You can reach her at (401) 865-1031.
   5. Speak to students that have already done internships. They are in the best position to discuss the  pluses and minuses of their internship experiences and to evaluate the internship site where they worked.
   6. Contact Professor Ruggiero at jruggier@providence.eduor atextension 2514. Dr. Ruggiero has established relationships with a number of agencies and organizations in the greater Providence area where previous interns have worked.
3. Students are expected to locate their internship placement before they register for either SOC 450 or SOC/WMS 451.

More About Academic Internships

Interested students should keep in mind that academic internships are supervised learning experiences. As such, interns develop specific learning goals in conjunction with their Faculty Supervisor/Advisor and the Internship Site Supervisor.  Although the site organization benefits from the Interns involvement, the primary benefit is to the student.

Internships may be arranged during either the junior or the senior year. We encourage students NOT to wait until their senior year to do their first internship.  We encourage seniors to plan their internship during the fall semester rather than in the spring, when thoughts of graduating and the pressure to find a job become imminent.

In conclusion, when considering different options for work-related experiences, keep the following in mind:

1. Quality of the work site: Choose a setting or opportunity that will challenge you. Be prepared to do the best you can in the setting you choose.
2. Level of experience: Aim high.  Be open to opportunities. Learn the organizational structure (both formal and informal).  Fit into the "chain of command."
3. Etiquette of work site: Dress accordingly, meet your obligations at the site, and interact professionally and effectively with your Site Supervisor as well as with other staff at the site.  Be cooperative and pleasant.
4. The Whole Picture: Put your work experience in perspective.  For Academic Interns: Remember that the site experiences are part not all, of the picture. The other part of the internship experience involves the academic component: How you make sense of the work experiences in relation to your Learning Objectives and how well you fulfill the academic obligations of the internship as specified by your Faculty Advisor in the course syllabus.