OREGON STATE UNIVERSITY
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Human Development and Family Sciences undergraduate program
Site supervisors are a vital part of the educational experience for HDFS students at Oregon State University.
We welcome your feedback to help create places where everyone can feel comfortable and included, and students can engage in regarding learning opportunities that help prepare them for helping careers.
An internship is a learning opportunity that helps students transfer skills from the classroom to the workplace. Giving students hands on experiences allows them to learn more about their field of study, and prepare for their future career by developing practical skills.
A practicum (HDFS 310) involves lower level helping skills and is 4 credits. This course requires students to complete 90 hours of fieldwork over a 10-week term.
An internship (HDFS 469) is a larger, hands-on experience and is 12 credits. This course requires students to complete 300 hours of fieldwork over a single 10-week term, or they can split the hours across 2 terms and complete 150 hours in each.
Develop a position description.
Send the position description to Tasha Galardi, the HDFS internship coordinator. She will share it as an option for students. From there, work through the steps below.
If a student contacts an organization about an internship, follow the steps below.
Before offering an internship opportunity to a student, please double check the organization's requirements (affiliation agreement, background check, drug testing, format, etc.). Make sure to communicate this to the student and let them know if they are responsible for any costs or specific documentation, as well as the expected timeline for getting all required steps completed.
We highly recommend an affiliation agreement for any HDFS internships site, but they are not required by the university.
Creating a new affiliation agreement requires collaborating with the Procurement and Contract Services Office on campus.
Due to the volume of affiliation agreements that this office is responsible for, please allow several weeks to months, depending on complexity.
The affiliation agreement lasts 3 years and allows professional liability coverage to follow the student to the site.
It is not OSU policy to perform background checks or hold medical records for vaccines for OSU students. OSU does not certify or vouch for the background of the students who participate in internships.
You must conduct your own background check and obtain other information from the student if it is a site requirement.
The internship site must designate at least one supervisor for the student who will work with them during the entire internship experience and is available to sign paperwork, provide adequate training and support during the onboarding process, and meet with the student regularly to provide mentorship and feedback.
It is the responsibility of the internship site to provide the student with a workspace, in addition to outlining expectations regarding work schedule and responsibilities as well as the policies of the site.
It is important that the student has appropriate supervision, and is not left alone without someone available to answer questions.
The site supervisor is responsible for making sure the internship student is given adequate opportunities to complete the required field work.
A wide variety of activities can be counted toward fieldwork hours. These hours can include the student attending staff meetings, engaging in professional development opportunities, attending any training (whether on site or remote/online), relevant committee meetings, conferences, workshops, etc.
The site supervisor is expected to meet regularly with the student through phone, video chat, or in person. Most students strongly prefer in person meetings, and these should occur at least a few times throughout the term.
The site supervisor and student should set up regular meeting times to discuss activities, answer questions, debrief challenging experiences, and provide feedback.
In person meetings must be scheduled to complete the required forms.
Most students will be seeking employment after their internship, and it is vital that they receive ongoing constructive feedback regarding their performance and skills.
It is the expectation that internships students come ready to learn, be flexible, and demonstrate compassion for clients.
Feedback should highlight what the student is doing well, in addition to any areas for improvement. It is best if the person providing the feedback actively supervises the student and has an opportunity to observe their work first-hand.
Complete the paperwork before and throughout the term with the student by the designated deadlines in the student’s course Canvas portal.
The paperwork to be completed includes:
The Placement Agreement (Form A) is due before the student starts their internship.
It is due by Week 8 the term before the internships starts, and is an agreement between the organization, student, and HDFS Internship Coordinator.
Must be fully signed (no typed names allowed) by both the student and their site supervisor.
The Learning Plan (Form B) is due in Week 2 of the term.
The student and site supervisor should meet to fill this form out together, which outlines the specific ways the internship activities will help the student meet the course learning outcomes.
The Mid-Term Evaluation (Form C) is due in Week 5 of the term.
This is an opportunity for the student and their site supervisor to sit down together and discuss how the internship is going, as well as things that the student wants to work on for the remainder of the term.
The Final Evaluation (Form D) is due in the final week of the term.
It is crucial that this form be discussed and signed during an in-person meeting, with adequate time to discuss how the internship went from both the student and the site supervisor’s perspectives.
The internship timesheet is an essential component of the document, which verifies that the student completed the required number of hours.
The timesheet, as well as the evaluation form, must be signed (no typed names allowed) by both the student and the site supervisor.
Contact the HDFS internship coordinator with any questions! Tasha Galardi is available throughout the process to meet, answer questions, and do virtual or in-person site visits (depending on geographic location).
Our students are expected to hold a high level of accountability and if they fall short, the coordinator is here to help put things on track.