Published on EGEE 495: Internship D7 (https://www.e-education.psu.edu/egee495)

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Course Outline

EGEE 495 Syllabus

EGEE 495 - Internship

This syllabus is divided into several sections. You can read it sequentially by scrolling down the length of the document or by clicking on any of the links below to “jump” to specific sections. It is essential that you read the entire document. Together these serve as our course "contract."

  • Instructor
  • Course Overview
  • Required Course Materials
  • Assignments and Grading
  • Course Schedule
  • Course Policies


Instructor

Haley Sankey
Haley Sankey
 

Haley Sankey

Lecturer, Department of Earth and Mineral Sciences, John A. Dutton e-Education Institute

  • Office: 415 Earth and Engineering Sciences Building
  • Office Phone: 814-863-1009
  • Home Phone: 814-577-7760
  • E-mail: hjs142@psu.edu [1]
  • Office Hours: By appointment

 

NOTE: I will read and respond to e-mail and discussion forums at least once per day during the work week (Monday through Friday). I will check email on the weekends, but cannot guarantee prompt responses.

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Course Overview

Description: The EGEE 495 Internship is a supervised off-campus, non-group instruction with an energy and sustainability policy focus. The instruction may include individual field experience, employment or internship (paid or unpaid). Students should have positions with energy businesses, government agencies, legislative offices, non-profit advocacy/education organizations, industry associations or sustainability functions within other businesses. The internship must provide the opportunity to employ college level capabilities and proficiencies and must provide a meaningful learning experience in the areas of energy and sustainability policy. The internship must provide 120 hours of work. Students should work hard to ensure that the internship fits their interests, professional aspirations, schedule and location. It is the student's responsibility to work closely with the internship sponsor to identify and define the position's responsibilities, duties and working hours.

This course should prepare students to conduct a successful job search once they have graduated from the ESP program. Internships provide relevant real-world experiences and allow students to interact in a professional environment and gain experience networking. We will also discuss student's strengths, weaknesses, and skill sets while cultivating their ability to interview and relate their internship experience to the ESP curriculum. Students will complete a practice interview session and submit an updated cover letter and resume for review. Finally, upon completion of the online journal, they should have a robust writing sample, multiple internship related artifacts, and a updated resume they can use during their job search.

Learning Objectives

Students who successfully complete EGEE 495 should be able to:

  • Demonstrate (verbally and written) learned knowledge from the internship experience by identifying and providing artifacts and examples of their internship experiences.
  • Examine and articulate the applicability of the internship experiences to the coursework completed to date.
  • Identify any federal, state or local policies that influenced operations or services. Deconstruct the real-world implementation of these policies (feasibility, effects, etc.)
  • Assess the political, environmental, and economic influences that exist and their ability to act as a catalyst or a deterrent in the day-to-day operations and the overall strategy of the organization.
  • Identify and articulate the ways in which the program's five competency areas [2] were experienced as part of the internship.
  • Interpret and articulate their unique professional strengths and abilities.

What I Expect of You

The internship position must include 120 hours of time within one semester. This work can be completed online or in-person. When and how the hours are logged is the responsibility of the student and will be verified by the internship sponsor. Midterm and Final evaluations along with other deliverables for the course must be submitted by the dates agreed upon at the beginning of the semester. The final version of the Internship Journal must be submitted by the end of finals week (see Course Schedule below for details).

Communication is very important for this course. Please keep in regular contact with the instructor. If you are experiencing difficulty logging hours, or the internship is not meeting your expectations, contact the instructor as soon as possible so that the issue can be appropriately addressed. Failure to adequately complete the internship as stated in the Internship Agreement may result in a failing grade.

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Required Course Materials

You do not need a textbook for this course. Use this course website and Canvas as resources for the course. In order to take this course, you need to have an active Penn State Access Account user ID and password (used to access the online course resources). If you have any questions about obtaining or activating your Penn State Access Account, please contact the World Campus [3] help desk.

To set up your profile and manage your notification preferences in Canvas, visit the Canvas link in the menu at the top of the course website. 

Penn State logo

Students who register for this Penn State course gain access to assignments and instructor feedback, and earn academic credit. Information about Penn State's Energy and Sustainability Policy Bachelor's program is available at the ESP Overview Page [4].

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Assignments and Grading

This course will rely upon a variety of methods to assess and evaluate student learning. Grading will be completed by the ESP Internship Coordinator or the course instructor. Refer to the Grading Rubrics in Canvas to understand how points are earned.

Administrative Forms

All forms can be found on the Internship Guidelines page or in the course Canvas site. Forms should be submitted via the designated dropbox in Canvas.

  • Internship Agreement
  • Midterm Evaluation
  • Final Evaluation
  • Cover Sheet/Verification Form

Journal Entries

You are expected to submit weekly electronic journal entries addressing the items as discussed on the Internship Journal page. The purpose of the journal is to help you articulate and record the learning and experiences that occurred during the internship.  All Penn State students are granted blog space on sites.psu.edu and are encouraged to use that space. For more guidance on how to use sites.psu.edu visit the Resources tab. All Journal entries will be reviewed by the Course Instructor and returned with a grade along with comments and suggestions. If a better grade is desired, the suggested edits are to be implemented for the final version.

SWOT Analysis

You are expected to complete a SWOT analysis, evaluating your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. This exercise will better prepare you to speak to these types of questions in interviews as well as identify areas in which you may need some improvement. Additionally, it completing the analysis will help you think more strategically about your career.

Cover Letter and Resume

Create an updated cover letter and resume that reflects your anticipated graduation date and education information as well as prior work experiences is required. A potential employer sees these items far before they meet you, so the importance of getting these right cannot be overstated!

Practice Interview

Using InterviewStream you will complete a mock interview. The interview will help you understand the types of questions that may be asked of you in a job interview post graduation. It will also allow you to evaluate how well you do in an interview scenario and will hopefully make you more comfortable with the interview process. You will be given a few chances to record your response to each question. Once you complete the mock interview, it will be submitted to the instructor for review and feedback.

Bibliography

Compile a list of resources utilized during the internship (textbooks, references, documents, websites, software, etc). Annotate each resource explaining what it is and how/why it was utilized. Keeping a list of the resources you used while interning can help you better prepare for interviews down the road. If you're able to "talk the talk", using correct terminology in your interviews, you'll be more likely to land the job!

Grading

Grading will be completed by ESP Internship Coordinator/Course Instructor.

Letter grades will be based on the following percentages:

Letter Grades and Percentages
A 90-100%
A- 87.5-89.9%
B+ 85-87.4%
B 80-84.9%
B- 77.5-79.9%
C+ 75-77.4%
C 70-74.9%
D 60-69.9%
F <60%
X Unsatisfactory (student did not participate)

Percentages refer to the proportion of all possible points earned by the student.

Grading Scale for Individual Assignments

Grading Scale
Assignment Weight
Administrative Forms 5%
Journal Entries 55%
SWOT Analysis 10%
Mock Interview 10%
Cover Letter and Resume 10%
Bibliography 10%

* Note: Percentages refer to the proportion of all possible points earned by the student

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EGEE 495 Course Schedule

imagePrintable Schedule

Below you will find a summary of the primary deliverables for the internship and the associated time frames. This course is twelve weeks in length, and requires you to complete a minimum of 120 hours of work at your internship in addition to the weekly assignments.

NOTE: Actual dates may vary; schedule will be posted in the Canvas Syllabus.

 

Course Assignment Schedule
Date Deliverables
Before the first day of class
  • Find an internship.
  • Submit the job description to the ESP internship coordinator for review and approval.
  • Work with the ESP internship coordinator and your internship supervisor to determine the scope of your internship.
  • Complete and submit your Internship Agreement Form well in advance of the First Day of Class.
  • Ensure your personal blog space is activated and you can post to it without issue.
End of week 1 (Monday)
  • Journal Entry (blog post) #1
End of week 2 (Monday)
  • Journal Entry (blog post) #2
End of week 3 (Monday)
  • Journal Entry (blog post) #3
End of week 4 (Monday)
  • Journal Entry (blog post) #4
  • SWOT Analysis
End of week 5 (Monday)
  • Journal Entry (blog post) #5
End of week 6 (Monday)
  • Journal Entry (blog post) #6
  • Midterm Evaluation Form
End of week 7 (Monday)
  • Draft of Updated Cover letter and Resume
End of week 8 (Monday)
  • Journal Entry (blog post) #7
End of week 9 (Monday)
  • Journal Entry (blog post) #8
End of week 10 (Monday)
  • Complete your Practice Interview (using Interview Stream)
End of week 11 (Monday)
  • Journal Entry (blog post) #9
End of week 12 (Monday)
  • Journal Entry (blog post) #10
Last day of classes
  • Annotated Bibliography
  • Final version of Resume
  • Final version of Journal Entries (blog posts) 1-10
  • Final Evaluation Form

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Course Policies

Missing Work

Students must complete all of the assigned items in the course syllabus.

Late Policy

All course-related submissions must be provided by the assigned date. No late work is accepted and no extra-credit is provided.

Citation and Reference Style

Please use MLA citation and format style. Info can be found on Purdue's Online Writing Lab [5] (link is external).

Technical Requirements

For this course, we recommend the minimum technical requirements outlined on the Dutton Institute Technical Requirements page [6], including the requirements listed for same-time, synchronous communications. If you need technical assistance at any point during the course, please contact the Outreach Helpdesk [7] (for World Campus students) or the ITS Help Desk [8] (for students at all other campus locations).

Internet Connection

Access to a reliable Internet connection is required for this course. A problem with your Internet access may not be used as an excuse for late, missing, or incomplete coursework. If you experience problems with your Internet connection while working on this course, it is your responsibility to find an alternative Internet access point, such as a public library or Wi-Fi ® hotspot.

Mixed Content

This site is considered a secure web site which means that your connection is encrypted.  We do however link to content that isn't necessarily encrypted.  This is called mixed content.  By default, mixed content is blocked in Internet Explorer, Firefox and Chrome.  This may result in a blank page or a message saying that only secure content is displayed.  Follow the directions on our technical requirements page [6] to view the mixed content.

Penn State E-mail Accounts

All official communications from the Penn State World Campus are sent to students' Penn State e-mail accounts. Be sure to check your Penn State account regularly, or forward your Penn State e-mail [9] to your preferred e-mail account, so you don't miss any important information.

Academic Integrity

This course follows the guidelines for academic integrity of Penn State's College of Earth and Mineral Sciences [10]. Penn State defines academic integrity as "the pursuit of scholarly activity in an open, honest and responsible manner." Academic integrity includes "a commitment not to engage in or tolerate acts of falsification, misrepresentation, or deception." In particular, the University defines plagiarism as "the fabrication of information and citations; submitting others' work from professional journals, books, articles, and papers; submission of other students' papers, lab results or project reports and representing the work as one's own." Penalties for violations of academic integrity may include course failure. To learn more, see Penn State's "Plagiarism Tutorial for Students. [11]"

Course Copyright

All course materials students receive or to which students have online access are protected by copyright laws. Students may use course materials and make copies for their own use as needed, but unauthorized distribution and/or uploading of materials without the instructor’s express permission is strictly prohibited. University Policy AD 40, the University Policy Recording of Classroom Activities and Note Taking Services addresses this issue. Students who engage in the unauthorized distribution of copyrighted materials may be held in violation of the University’s Code of Conduct, and/or liable under Federal and State laws.

For example, uploading completed labs, homework, or other assignments to any study site constitutes a violation of this policy.

Accommodations for Students with Disabilities

Penn State welcomes students with disabilities into the University's educational programs. Every Penn State campus has an office for students with disabilities. The Student Disability Resources (SDR) website provides contact information for every Penn State campus: Contacts for Disability Resources at all Penn State Campuses [12]. For further information, please visit the Student Disability Resources (SDR) website [13].

In order to receive consideration for reasonable accommodations, you must contact the appropriate disability services office at the campus where you are officially enrolled. You will participate in an intake interview and provide documentation, see Applying for Services from Student Disability Resources [14]. If the documentation supports your request for reasonable accommodations, your campus’s disability services office [12] will provide you with an accommodation letter. Please share this letter with your instructors and discuss the accommodations with them as early in your courses as possible. You must follow this process for every semester that you request accommodations.

Counseling and Psychological Services

Many students at Penn State face personal challenges or have psychological needs that may interfere with their academic progress, social development, or emotional wellbeing.  The university offers a variety of confidential services to help you through difficult times, including individual and group counseling, crisis intervention, consultations, online chats, and mental health screenings.  These services are provided by staff who welcome all students and embrace a philosophy respectful of clients’ cultural and religious backgrounds, and sensitive to differences in race, ability, gender identity and sexual orientation. Services include the following:

Counseling and Psychological Services at University Park  (CAPS) [15]: 814-863-0395
Counseling and Psychological Services at Commonwealth Campuses [16]
Penn State Crisis Line (24 hours/7 days/week): 877-229-6400
Crisis Text Line (24 hours/7 days/week): Text LIONS to 741741

Reporting Bias-Motivated Incidents

Penn State takes great pride to foster a diverse and inclusive environment for students, faculty, and staff. Acts of intolerance, discrimination, or harassment due to age, ancestry, color, disability, gender, gender identity, national origin, race, religious belief, sexual orientation, or veteran status are not tolerated (Policy AD29 Statement on Intolerance [17]) and can be reported through Educational Equity via Report Bias [18].

Military Personnel

Veterans and currently serving military personnel and/or spouses with unique circumstances (e.g., upcoming deployments, drill/duty requirements, disabilities, VA appointments, etc.) are welcome and encouraged to communicate these, in advance if possible, to the instructor in the case that special arrangements need to be made.

Inclement Weather

In case of weather-related delays at the University, this online course will proceed as planned. Your instructor will inform you if there are any extenuating circumstances regarding content or activity due dates in the course due to weather delays. If you are affected by a weather-related emergency, please contact your instructor at the earliest possible time to make special arrangements.

Connect Online with Caution

Penn State is committed to educational access for all. Our students come from all walks of life and have diverse life experiences. As with any other online community, the lack of physical interaction in an online classroom can create a false sense of anonymity and security. While one can make new friends online, digital relationships can also be misleading. Good judgment and decision making are critical when choosing to disclose personal information with others whom you do not know.

Participation in Peer-to-Peer Activities

This course follows the Energy and Sustainability Policy programs' Constructive Participation in ESP Peer-Peer Activities policy [19] for student participation in peer-to-peer activities in ESP courses, such as group discussions, team projects and peer reviews of another’s work. In all peer-to-peer learning activities, students are expected to participate constructively with others in the practice and development of effective communication skills. This means NO personal attacks, NO name calling, and NO threatening language of any kind. Consequences may include losing the opportunity to participate in (and earn credit for) all remaining peer-to-peer assignments for the duration of the course. Any instance of threatening language will be reported to the Penn State Office of Student Conduct.

Deferred Grades

If you are prevented from completing this course within the prescribed amount of time, it is possible to have the grade deferred with the concurrence of the instructor. To seek a deferred grade, you must submit a written request (by e-mail or U.S. post) to your instructor describing the reason(s) for the request. It is up to your instructor to determine whether or not you will be permitted to receive a deferred grade. If, for any reason, the course work for the deferred grade is not complete by the assigned time, a grade of "F" will be automatically entered on your transcript.

Attendance

This course will be conducted entirely online. There will be no set class meeting times, but you will be required to complete weekly assignments with specific due dates. Many of the assignments are open for multiple days, so it is your responsibility to complete the work early if you plan to travel or participate in national holidays, religious observances or University approved activities.

If you need to request an exception due to a personal or medical emergency, contact the instructor directly as soon as you are able. Such requests will be considered on a case-by-case basis.

Diversity, Inclusion, and Respect

Penn State is “committed to creating an educational environment which is free from intolerance directed toward individuals or groups and strives to create and maintain an environment that fosters respect for others” as stated in Policy AD29 Statement on Intolerance. All members of this class are expected to contribute to a respectful, welcoming and inclusive environment and to interact with civility.

For additional information, see:

  • Penn State Affirmative Action non-discrimination statement [20]
  • Policy AD 85 Sexual and gender-based harassment and misconduct, Title IX [21]
  • Policy AD91 Discrimination and Harassment, and Related inappropriate Conduct [22]
  • Penn State Statement on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusive Excellence [23]
  • Penn State Values [24]
  • Penn State Principles [25]
  • All In at Penn State: A Commitment to Diversity and Inclusion [26]

Mandated Reporting Statement

Penn State’s policies require me, as a faculty member, to share information about incidents of sex-based discrimination and harassment (discrimination, harassment, sexual harassment, sexual misconduct, dating violence, domestic violence, stalking, and retaliation) with Penn State’s Title IX coordinator or deputy coordinators, regardless of whether the incidents are stated to me in person or shared by students as part of their coursework. For more information regarding the University's policies and procedures for responding to reports of sexual or gender-based harassment or misconduct, please visit Penn State's Office of Sexual Misconduct and Prevention & Response [27] website.

Additionally, I am required to make a report on any reasonable suspicion of child abuse in accordance with the Pennsylvania Child Protective Services Law [28].

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Disclaimer

Please note that the specifics of this Course Syllabus can be changed at any time, and you will be responsible for abiding by any such changes. All changes will be communicated with you via e-mail, course announcement and/or course discussion forum.

Internship Guidelines

Before You Start

  1. Identify an internship opportunity that suits your interests, professional aspirations, schedule and location. With your prospective sponsor, discuss your responsibilities, duties and working hours. Is the proposed arrangement clear to you both? Will it provide college level experience and meaningful learning? Will it provide 120 hours of work? How is it relevant to energy and sustainability policy?
  2. Contact the ESP Internship Coordinator/Course Instructor, Haley Sankey (hjs142@psu.edu [1]) to review the proposed arrangements and receive preliminary approval or guidance for revisions.
  3. Complete the Energy and Sustainability Policy Internship Agreement [29]. Submit completed form, signed by student and sponsor, to the ESP Internship Coordinator.
  4. Take all necessary steps to comply fully with Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA) requests from your sponsor (if applicable).
  5. Register for EGEE 495. Because registration for this course is departmentally controlled, you will need to ask the internship coordinator to process the registration on your behalf.

During Your Internship

  1. Post weekly electronic journal entries (see Journal Assignments page)
  2. With your sponsor, complete the Energy and Sustainability Policy Internship Midterm Evaluation [30] form. Submit the completed form, signed by student and sponsor, to the ESP Internship Coordinator via the dropbox on the course Canvas site. This form is due by the end of the 6th week of the academic term.
  3. Complete the other assignments (SWOT Analysis, Resume, Practice Interview, and Annotated Bibliography) by the due dates assigned.

Completing Your Internship

  1. Revise and improve any drafts incorporating the feedback provided by the course instructor.
  2. With your sponsor, complete the Energy and Sustainability Policy Internship Final Evaluation [31] form. Submit completed form, signed by student and sponsor, to the ESP Internship Coordinator via the dropbox on the course Canvas site. This form is also due by the last day of class for the academic term.

Internship Forms

  1. ESP Internship Agreement [29]
  2. Midterm Evaluation [30]
  3. Final Evaluation [31]
  4. Cover Sheet/Verification Form [32]

If you have difficulty with the electronic signature portion of the form, follow the Creating a eSignature directions [33].

Recommendations:

  • Keep a secondary copy of your internship journal. There is no guarantee that your space on sites.psu.edu will exist forever, so plan accordingly. Print it out, or make an electronic copy of each entry.
  • Create a contact list. Keep the contact information for individuals and organizations that you encounter during your internship (and throughout your career), for future reference. Ideally, you can reach out to these contacts for a reference or a job lead when you are job searching.
  • If your internship experience has you learning new jargon, start a list of the terminology with definitions so that you can "talk the talk" when interviewing for similar positions. You can include terms related both to your work and your place of employment as well any new "language" you learned while on the job.

Journal Assignments

Assignment Details

You are expected to post to your personal journal weekly (URL to be uploaded to Canvas). You can see more about what content is expected in your posts below, but first I want to express why this weekly journaling assignment exists. First, we want you to have a record of what you accomplished on the job! You may think you will easily recall everything when the semester is over, but the experiences you have now may benefit you years down the road, so it is important to have a good record of what you've learned and what you have experienced! Additionally, your journal can serve as a product that you can use to demonstrate to future employers and academics your accomplishments, approach to work, and ability to communicate. You may also find the contents to be a useful reference for future projects and research.

Secondly, one of the first interview questions you will inevitably be asked is about your degree. "I see you have a B.A. in Energy and Sustainability Policy; explain the program and how it relates to this job..." While you may have a good understanding of the degree and it's learning competencies, and you may already be applying much of the information in your current job, being able to communicate the connection between your education and your real-world experience may be a challenge. By reflecting weekly on how what you did relates to your coursework and the program overall, you will be versed in connecting the dots. That way, when you're in the hot seat, that question will be one of the easiest you address!

Journal Requirements

Students are expected to set up a blog site to journal about the internship experience. You can use sites.psu.edu to set up a personal blog space, or you can choose another blogging site. If you would like to use the Penn State Sites, first you need to [34]Activate Penn State Personal Web Space [35]and then you can create a blog at sites.psu.edu [36].

For the journal entries themselves, please provide as much detail as you can without compromising any proprietary or private information. It is expected that if you adequately address the weekly topics and other requirements as outlined below, your post will be 800+ words in length. Please refer to the syllabus and grading rubric (in Canvas) for further information regarding the level of effort that is expected for your journal. In short, it should be a formal, polished product that you would be proud to hand over to a potential employer as an exhibit of your abilities and experiences. The journal entries should include:

  • Summarization of weekly events, providing details regarding your role and responsibilities.
  • Personal Reflection:
    • Summary: What did you enjoy doing this week; what responsibilities did you dislike? What did you do well? What do you need to work on? Are you learning anything new? Are you growing your skill set? Your confidence? Are there assumptions you've made in the past that are being challenged by your current experiences?
    • Challenges: What responsibilities were challenging to complete? What are some of the road blocks you encountered this week? How did that affect your ability to do your job? What areas do you need to learn more about in order to do this job more confidently?
    • Discuss ideas or theories related to your experiences/observations: How does what you've seen/experienced connect to what you already knew? What was suprising, and why? Have you drawn any new conclusions? How does what you've seen/experienced connect with material you've learned in your coursework?

  • Responses to the weekly topics and how your experiences connect to the program core competencies [2]. See Grading Rubric for more info.
  • Photos, links, pdfs, and any artifacts that help make your journal more visually appealing and will serve as examples of your work that may be of interest to potential employers. Be sure to state your role in creating or using the artifact. If the artifact is the result of a major project you were involved in, reflect on the creation process, quality and utility of artifacts. (e.g. If you created a flyer for an event, was it effective in recruiting attendees?). Include complete annotations for each artifact including date, description, purpose, intended audience and your role in creating or using the artifact. If the artifact is the result of a major project you were involved in, reflect on creation process, quality and utility of artifacts.
  • Connections. Who did you meet? What can you learn from this person? Did you start up a conversation with him/her? (Be sure to save names, titles and contact info for future reference.)

Grading and Submission

Grading

Each Journal will be graded out of 40 Points.

A detailed rubric is available to you on the dropbox pages in Canvas. Below is a summary of how you can earn full credit. Your journal post must:

  • be submitted on time (weekly on the established day) - no late work is accepted and no "extra-credit" is provided;
  • adequately address the topic provided using the assignment prompts as a content guide;
  • be cited properly (in-text and as a reference list), if appropriate using the MLA citation and format style. A link can be found on the Citation Styles page [37] of the Resources menu in Purdue's Online Writing Lab [5]; and
  • be well-written and largely free of any grammatical or other typographical errors;

What do we mean by "well-written?" Your submissions should always be a scholarly piece of polished work. Your post should demonstrate that you've not just simply typed it into the text editor box as you went, with little regard for organization, syntax, or spelling mistakes. It should be written with the tone and style that is appropriate for college coursework, not a text message. In summary, it should be work you'd be proud to share with a potential employer.

Submissions

Submit the url to the appropriate week's "Original Draft Journal" Dropbox in Canvas by the date specified on the course calendar. Once your original draft is graded, you will have an opportunity to edit your journal and resubmit for a higher grade. The updated journal MUST be submitted to the appropriate week's "Final Draft Journal" Dropbox in order for it to be regraded.

Schedule of Journal Topics

Week 1:

Keep in mind that your journal entries may be searchable by anyone on the Internet, so this opening post should not assume that the reader knows anything about you or the organization in which you are working.

  • Introduction — Introduce yourself, provide some academic and work background info, and provide some info regarding basis for this internship (why you're doing an internship and keeping a journal about it).
  • Sponsoring Entity description — description of sponsoring entity and its organization, products/services offered, markets served, locations, size of company (employees and revenue), company history. Introduce your sponsor and place him/her and your internship/position in context of sponsoring entity's overall organization.
  • Internship Job Description — provide an overview of the tasks and responsibilities associated with the internship.
  • Identify what you hope to accomplish during the internship.

Weeks 2-12

Other than the first week (see "Week 1" above) and the last week of the semester (see "Last Journal Entry" below), journal entry topics can be chosen from the topics listed below (see Topics 1-5 and "Remaining weeks"). The topics directly relate to the program learning competencies [2] and your prior coursework. The point is to get you to think through how what you are doing daily relates to the coursework you have already completed in the program and how you can convey that information in an interview-like scenario. Use the prompts below (if applicable) to guide your post. The prompts are intended to help you think through ways in which you used a specific competency or addressed a learning objective while fulfilling your internship responsibilities. When you are discussing the weekly topic provided, be sure to include experiences related to that topic, to date, at the internship - not only the happenings of that week. For example, for week 6, discuss all ways in which you have gained energy industry knowledge so far this semester. These journal entries are meant to be polished pieces of academic work, therefore, no yes/no answers. Include any other relevant/interesting information regarding your experiences and learning to date.

Contact me immediately if you have questions regarding journal content.

Topic 1:

Have you had any experience utilizing your communication skills in the following ways? If not, how have you been using your communication skills in your position?

  • Were you challenged to effectively explain to diverse audiences – orally, in writing, or through maps and other information graphics – the intended and unintended consequences of energy policy and regulation?
  • Did you have the opportunity to listen to and learn from other members of diverse teams?
  • Were you able to use your foreign language abilities in the professional setting?
  • Were there any examples of something you learned in your coursework that you implemented?
  • What artifacts can you include to demonstrate the use of your communication skills?

Topic 2:

Have you had any experience utilizing your analytical skills in the following ways? If not, how did you use your analytical skills to fulfill your job duties/responsibilities?

  • Were you able to find, read, understand, interpret and synthesize policy and regulations related to your position/the organization?
  • Were you asked to review regulatory compliance for your department or organization?
  • Did you identify any federal, state or local policies that influence operations or services? If so, address the real-world implementation of these policies (feasibility, effects, etc).
  • Were you asked to identify advantageous practices/processes/procedures/partnerships?
  • Include any artifacts that demonstrate how you utilized your analytical skills.

Topic 3:

Have you consciously employed your sustainability ethic in your current position?

  • Were there any compromises made during a decision process that demonstrated the idea that corporate interests can be reconciled with social and environmental interests? If so, explain the situation and the compromise that was made.
  • Have you had the opportunity to advocate for the broader good? If yes, did you do so? If not, examine why.
  • Were you asked to make a business case for sustainable practices or were you forced to do so in order to justify an expense or practice? If so, explain the situation to the best of your ability without compromising privacy concerns.
  • Include any artifacts that demonstrate how you employed your sustainability ethic.

Topic 4:

What are the broader, global implications of your job/the services/products provided by the organization?

  • Consider the scalability of your work and it's applicability in other geographical settings; would the same business be feasible elsewhere? Why or why not?
  • Discuss the challenges or advantages that may be discovered by implementing a similar business in another geographic location, especially one with differing energy resources.
  • Discuss how the organization's product or service can or does affect social and environmental systems at home and abroad.
  • Include and annotate any relevant artifacts.

Topic 5:

Are you gaining knowledge in the energy industry?

  • What business and technical knowledge have you gained to date in this position?
  • Were you able to recognize and/or correct misinformation about resources, prevailing and emerging new technologies, policies, practices, etc. related to your job or the industry?
  • Assess the political, environmental, and economic influences that exist and their ability to act as a catalyst or a deterrent in the day-to-day operations and the overall strategy of the organization.
  • Were you involved in any discussions regarding financing of energy ventures? If so, what political, legal and regulatory considerations, tax and accounting policies, and performance of energy technologies were discussed?
  • Have the principles of energy and environmental economics, including pricing of non-market values, cap and trade, and social discounting been discussed? Or were you asked to provide information in any of these areas?
  • Do you have any relevant artifacts to include?

Weeks (6-9):

There are no designated topics to discuss during these three weeks. Quality posts are still expected, but you have been given the freedom to pick the subject. Some ideas of topics include:

  • Address how you have utilized information learned in your coursework and the ESP program during your internship.
  • A description and overview of a specific project you have been assigned.
  • A review of a conference you've attended recently (topics covered, networking, etc).
  • Any relevant artifacts.

Last Journal Entry (due the last day of the regular semester):

This is your last week of journal posts. It will serve as a Summary. Some questions you may want to address include:

  • Has your internship experience this semester influenced your career plans?
  • Did the internship meet your expectations:
    • Were the responsibilities as you envisioned?
    • Did you enjoy/excel at them as you presumed?
    • Did the journaling help you make the connection between your courses and your internship experience?
    • Were you able to sharpen skills/knowledge areas? Have you identified a new skill or fostered a new knowledge area as a result of the internship?

SWOT Analysis

Required Reading

First, read through the article titled "Don't Rely On Luck At Work: Define Your Career Aspirations And Goals." Once you've considered the questions presented in the "Don't Rely On Luck" article, read "How To Conduct A Personal SWOT Analysis."

For further guidance, view the video and read the article titled: "Personal SWOT Analysis: Making the Most of Your Talents and Opportunities."

You may have heard of a SWOT analysis before, maybe at your place of employment or with one of the groups you are involved with outside of work. The basic premise and purpose of a SWOT analysis is to assess potential growth and limitations. SWOT is the acronym for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats. This SWOT assignment has you turning the lens back on yourself; what are your strengths and weaknesses? What opportunities or threats do you see when looking down the road towards your professional goals?

Part of being successful is understanding what you're good at, what things you need to work on, and what opportunities are available to you. While we all may think we know our strengths and weaknesses, somehow putting them to paper can increase our awareness of them and allow us to address each with confidence. After completing this exercise, you will have a strong answer when you are in an interview and you get the age old question, "What are some of your strengths?" or "Tell us about your weaknesses."

Personal SWOT Analysis

Matrix of SWOT Analysis. Strenghts = Helpful with internal origin, Weaknesses = Harmful with Internal Origin, Opportunities = Helpful with external origin, Threats = Harmful with External Origin
Click for a larger version of the image [38]
Click for text version
SWOT Analysis
-- Helpful to Achieving the Objective Harmful to Achieving the Objective
Internal Origin
(attributes of the Organization)
Strengths Weaknesses
External Origin
(Attributes of the Environment)
Opportunities Threats

Complete a Personal SWOT analysis. You are expected to thoroughly examine your Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats using the questions at the bottom of the page to help guide you through the process. Once you have identified your strengths and weaknesses, you can then use that information to identify opportunities and threats that may exist in the pursuit of your desired career. An easy way to think of it is this: strengths and weaknesses are directly attributable to you, your personality and your experiences. Opportunities and threats are less personal things that, while you may be able to influence the outcome, you don't necessarily have control over. For example, a strength would be that I have the ability to speak and understand American Sign Language. A weakness would be that I have a tendency to be impatient. An opportunity would be that 40% of the workforce is slated to retire in the next ten years. A threat is that corporate is eliminating duplicate positions in my division. (NOTE: None of this is truth, just random examples I chose in a variety of situations to help you better understand the type of information you should be considering).

Your SWOT analysis should be guided by the questions listed below. Be sure to incorporate any additional information you feel may be useful in presenting the SWOT analysis. You can use a matrix [39] which may initially help you work through the analysis. You can also incorporate photos and other visuals if you'd like. Be creative and resourceful. Have fun with this!

NOTE: Feel free to do your own search if you still are unclear about the purpose and implementation of this activity. There are many great resources available to you.

SWOT ANALYSIS GUIDANCE QUESTIONS
STRENGTHS
  • What do you do well?
  • What experiences and expertise can you utilize? (skills, certifications, education, etc)
  • What do others see as your strengths? (Ask at least 2 other people who know you well for input.)
  • What accomplishments are you most proud of?

WEAKNESSES

  • What could you improve?
  • What tasks do you avoid because you don't feel confident doing them?
  • What education/skills training do you need to improve upon/build confidence in?
  • What are your negative work habits? (easily distracted, late arrival, unorganized)
  • Do you have personality traits that could be a detriment in following your desired career path?
  • What do others around you see as your weaknesses? (Ask at least 2 other people who know you well for input.)
OPPORTUNITIES
  • What opportunities are available?
  • What trends could you take advantage of?
  • How can you turn your strengths into opportunities?
THREATS
  • What obstacles do you foresee encountering on your way to acquiring the desired position?
  • What trends could prove detrimental in your quest?
  • Do any of your weaknesses make you more exposed or prone to threats on the horizon?
ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS
  • What is a real-life example of a time you successfully used one of your strengths?
  • What is real-life example of an instance when your weakness was a concern? How did you overcome your weakness?

Activity

Present your SWOT analysis as a narrated PowerPoint, Prezi or product of any other presentation-type of software. Learn more about how to do so by visiting the "Creating a Presentation" link under the Resources tab at the top of this page. You do not need to personally appear throughout the video, but your voice must be used to talk through and discuss the SWOT analysis findings. You may choose a recording technology and format that best suits your skills and equipment. Please show the SWOT matrix you've completed.

For some helpful tips on creating a presentation, visit the Creating a Presentation page, found in the Resources section of the course website. You can also access Lynda.psu.edu for help with powerpoint if you need it.

Grading

The SWOT analysis will be graded out of 50 points. A detailed rubric can be found in Canvas.

Submission

Upload your file to the "SWOT Analysis" dropbox in Canvas by the date specified on the course calendar.

Resume Assignment

Required Viewing and Reading

  • Log onto lynda.psu.edu. Use your PSU username and password to log on. Then use the search window to find "Writing a Résumé." Feel free to watch the whole course if you'd like, but you are required to watch Section 1, "Basic Components of a Résumé" and Section 2, "Customizing the Basic Résumé Components."
  • Additionally, review the Penn State Career Services website on résumés and Cover Letters [40].
  • Then, complete the exercise outlined below.

Résumé writing isn't what it once was; there was a time when you could put together your résumé, consider it done, and attach it to your carefully crafted cover letter and then wait by the phone. But nowadays, you are expected to customize your résumé to every position you apply for. This requires a good deal more time, but provides the employer with better insight into your experience, qualifications and writing abilities.

Did you know?

World Campus offers career counseling services through the Career Services office. Be sure to review the Career Services website [41]. If you'd like to speak with a Career Counselor, fill out a Career Counseling Referral Form [42].

For this assignment, you will be job searching. You are expected to complete a cover letter and résumé. You can use the ad provided below, or you can find another job that you're interested in. If you use a different ad, be sure to include it in your submission.

 Job posting. See text version for the text
Click for a Text Version of the Classified Ad

Classified Add for Troy's Consulting

Troy's Consulting has an immediate opening for an entry level Licensing and Regulatory Coordinator in our Portland, Oregon office. The successful candidate will support Troy's regulatory team in the renewable resources department.

Qualifications:

Demonstrated communication and relationship building skills, including interaction with clients and stakeholders (public, state and federal resource agencies, non-governmental organizations).

BA/BS Degree- Understanding of local, state, tribal, and federal permitting processes

Demonstrated abilities to:

- develop strategies for addressing regulatory issues arising from multiple use objectives
- effectively communicate in writing to a variety of audiences around complex science and policy issues
- assist in managing multiple projects
- work effectively as a member of a multidisciplinary team
- use commonly available software such as Microsoft Office products

Requirements:

- Some travel will be required
- Current authorization to work in the United States
- Current Drivers' License and or Passport

Other Experience Desired:

- General knowledge of hydroelectric operations, regulatory processes and compliance for hydroelectric, water (e.g. irrigation systems) and other energy projects
- Environmental policy and planning, particularly for aquatic resources; and, National Environmental Policy Act process and documentation

Troy's Consulting is a premier provider of engineering, regulatory and ecological services to the Energy and Water Resources Markets in the United States and Canada. The company offers a competitive salary, benefits package and opportunities for advancement in a growing, national consulting firm.

Activity

Create an updated cover letter and résumé.

  • Upload your completed résumé to the appropriate dropbox in Canvas.
  • Submit the cover letter via email to Lynn Atanasoff [43] (lma100@psu.edu [43]) at Career Services using your PSU email and copy the instructor on the email (hjs142@psu.edu [1]). In the email, request feedback on your documents.

Grading

The Résumé and Cover Letter will be graded out of 50 points. A detailed rubric for the résumé can be found in Canvas. 

Submissions

Upload your file to the "Cover Letter & Résumé: Original Draft" dropbox in Canvas by the date specified on the course calendar. Once your original draft is graded, you will have an opportunity to edit your presentation and resubmit for a higher grade. The updated submission MUST be submitted to the "Cover Letter & Résumé: Final Draft" Dropbox in order for it to be regraded.

 

Interview Assignment

Interviews can be the most stressful part of job hunting, and for good reason - an interview can be the most important step in the process of getting hired! If you're lucky enough to get some face time with a potential employer, we want you to be prepared! As you know, explaining the ESP program to others can be challenging. Add in other difficult questions, and then sprinkle nerves into the mix and things can get messy quickly! Penn State Career Services says, "The keys to interviewing success are knowing yourself, researching the employer and preparing for and following up after the interview" (2015). The SWOT analysis assignment will help you with knowing yourself, and this interview assignment will help you prepare for the main event - the day when you're in the hot seat, interviewing for the job of your choice!

Penn State has a subscription to InterviewStream. This program allows you to simulate an actual interview scenario. While it sounds torturous, in reality, practice is the only real way to get better at anything, hence this assignment, a mock interview. I think you will find that the InterviewStream program is easy to use. The week the assignment is due, you will receive an email from the course instructor inviting you to complete the job interview. You will need a working microphone and web camera in order to respond to the questions posed. You will only have one try at each question, because the questions are listed below for you to review ahead of time. While having the questions before the actual interview isn't typical, if you do enough research on the organization and the position you applied for, you can usually garner the type of questions you will be asked. So, while you may not have the exact questions ahead of time in the real world, you will hopefully have done your homework and have a good idea of the general topics and types of questions that will be posed during the interview.

Required Viewing

  • Log on to InterviewStream [44].
  • On the Welcome page of InterviewStream, there is a host of Resources provided at the bottom of the page. One is a video link called "InterviewSuite." Watch these videos - all three groups of videos - (Key Questions, Interview Tips, Interesting Topics) before completing the interview.

Activity

This mock interview will be based on the position at Troy's Consulting you saw on the Resume Assignment page [45].

  • Click on the links in the email you received from the course instructor and sign in to InterviewStream.
  • When you log on to complete the interview, you will be directed to the assigned interview.
  • NOTE: In order for your interview to work and save properly, follow the InterviewStream Technical Requirements [46] suggestions, including:
    • Browsers: Chrome 57+, Firefox 53+, Safari 10.1+ (On Mac), IE 11+, Edge
    • Flash: most up to date version. If using any browser other than Chrome you will need to also install the latest version of Adobe Flash Player [47]. 
    • Cache: Clear your browser cache before beginning the interview
  • You will be prompted through a series of technical checks. Follow them carefully.
  • Now you will see a slide with some text. Click on the link to review instructions.
  • Follow the directions to complete the assignment (listen to each question and respond to the best of your abilities).
  • Follow prompts to submit your completed interview.
  • Finally, watch your interview and complete the self assessment. You can do so by clicking on the "Watch My Interview" button. Once you have viewed your interview, complete the Self Assessment found at the bottom of the page. In the comments section provided, please discuss the interview experience, your performance, and anything you learned from completing the exercise (300 word minimum). There is a 400 word limit for that space, so you may want to type out your response in Word or a Google Doc before pasting it in that space to ensure a good fit and that there are no spelling errors.
  • Be sure to save the Self Assessment (which I will be able to see).

Interview Questions:

  • Tell me a little bit about yourself.
  • Tell me about your degree in ESP and explain how the courses you’ve completed will make you successful in this position.
  • What interests you about this job?
  • Do you think that developing renewable energy technologies makes sense? Why?
  • Describe a failed project that you have been involved in at work, in your courses, or even with a local non-profit group, and explain why it was not successful.
  • Why should we hire you?
  • What questions do you have for me?

NOTE: Zoom the camera in close enough so that it only captures your upper torso and face. (P.S. this is where you can get away with wearing sweatpants with your shirt and tie.)

Grading

The Practice Interview will be graded out of 50 points. The following link will take you to a detailed rubric [48].

You will be assessed on the following items: eye contact, posture, demeanor, self confidence, grammar, use of filler words, ability to emphasize strengths and describe past experiences, and your skill in focusing on your ability to learn quickly. You will also be graded on your self evaluation at the end of the interview.

Each individual question will be graded on the following items: message content was appropriate, your responses were clear and concise, and you answered the question fully and didn't deviate in a confusing or inappropriate way.

Submission

Your submission will be done through InterviewStream. Please follow the directions carefully to make sure the instructor is notified of the completed interview.

Additional Interviewing Resources

Penn State's Career Services Office has put together some very helpful tips to help you be successful on an interview. Visit the Interviewing page to learn more about how to properly prepare, make a good first impression, and how to follow up after the interview. They have also listed some common interview questions that could be directed at the candidate as well as some examples of questions candidates can ask the interviewers.

Lynda.com also has a wealth of useful resources. This business skills tutorial regarding good body language is especially helpful in ensuring that you are sending the right message, even when you aren't speaking a word! This snippet is part of a larger course called "Acing Your Interview." Feel free to watch the whole course if you'd like! Log onto lynda.psu.edu. Use your PSU username and password to log on. Then use the search window to find "Demonstrating good body language." If you have difficulty accessing it, please be sure to let me know!

You can also check out 50 of the most common interview questions (and how to answer them). [49]


References:

Career Services interviewing page [50]

Bibliography Assignment

You will be using a host of resources during your internship such as text books, reports and documents, websites, and software, some of which you may have never used before. Others you may be comfortable using and rely on them regularly. Either way, it can be helpful to have a catalog of these resources to refer back to when job searching or at a later point in your career. Believe it or not, in the future you will be very pleased when it is easy to find that website that you relied heavily upon for the work completed during your internship. Also, having a list to refer back to can really help in an interview when you're asked to provide real-life examples of how you tackled a challenge or managed an assignment.

Visit the Purdue OWL [51] for more information and samples of annotated bibliographies in the MLA format.

Activity

Create an annotated bibliography of resources used during your internship.

Grading

The Bibliography will be graded out of 50 points. A detailed rubric can be found in Canvas.

Submission

Upload your file to the "Annotated Bibliography" dropbox in Canvas by the date specified on the course calendar. Since this is due the last week of class, you will NOT have an opportunity to edit and resubmit your assignment.

 


Source URL: https://www.e-education.psu.edu/egee495/node/198#comment-0

Links
[1] mailto:hjs142@psu.edu
[2] https://esp.e-education.psu.edu/node/25
[3] http://www.worldcampus.psu.edu/Contact.shtml
[4] http://www.worldcampus.psu.edu/degrees-and-certificates/energy-and-sustainability-policy-bachelors/overview
[5] https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/01/
[6] https://www.e-education.psu.edu/techspecs
[7] http://student.worldcampus.psu.edu/student-services/helpdesk
[8] http://service.psu.edu/
[9] http://kb.its.psu.edu/node/2303
[10] http://www.ems.psu.edu/undergraduate/academic-advising/forms-and-procedures/academic-integrity
[11] http://tlt.its.psu.edu/plagiarism/tutorial
[12] http://equity.psu.edu/student-disability-resources/disability-coordinator
[13] http://equity.psu.edu/student-disability-resources
[14] http://equity.psu.edu/student-disability-resources/applying-for-services
[15] http://studentaffairs.psu.edu/counseling/
[16] http://senate.psu.edu/faculty/counseling-services-at-commonwealth-campuses/
[17] https://guru.psu.edu/policies/ad29.html
[18] http://equity.psu.edu/reportbias/
[19] https://esp.e-education.psu.edu/node/947
[20] http://www.psu.edu/dept/aaoffice/statements.htm
[21] http://guru.psu.edu/policies/AD85.html
[22] https://guru.psu.edu/policies/AD91.html
[23] http://equity.psu.edu/diversity-statement
[24] http://universityethics.psu.edu/penn-state-values
[25] http://www.psu.edu/this-is-penn-state/penn-state-principles
[26] http://allin.psu.edu/
[27] http://titleix.psu.edu/
[28] http://www.legis.state.pa.us/WU01/LI/LI/CT/HTM/23/00.063..HTM
[29] https://www.e-education.psu.edu/egee495/sites/www.e-education.psu.edu.egee495/files/ESP-Internship-Agreement-Final.pdf
[30] https://www.e-education.psu.edu/egee495/sites/www.e-education.psu.edu.egee495/files/ESP-Internship-Midterm-Evaluation-Final.pdf
[31] https://www.e-education.psu.edu/egee495/sites/www.e-education.psu.edu.egee495/files/ESP-Internship-Final-Evaluation-Final.pdf
[32] https://www.e-education.psu.edu/egee495/sites/www.e-education.psu.edu.egee495/files/ESPInternshipCoverSheetVerificationForm-Final.pdf
[33] http://kb.its.psu.edu/node/2127
[34] https://www.e-education.psu.edu/egee495/node/477
[35] https://www.e-education.psu.edu/library/node/699
[36] https://www.e-education.psu.edu/library/node/712
[37] http://www.e-education.psu.edu/egee495/node/471
[38] https://www.e-education.psu.edu/egee495/sites/www.e-education.psu.edu.egee495/files/SWOT2.gif
[39] https://www.e-education.psu.edu/egee495/sites/www.e-education.psu.edu.egee495/files/SWOT.gif
[40] http://studentaffairs.psu.edu/career/students/resumes.shtml
[41] http://student.worldcampus.psu.edu/student-services/career-services
[42] http://student.worldcampus.psu.edu/a-z-index/career-counseling-referral-form
[43] mailto:lma100@psu.edu
[44] https://outreach-psu.interviewstream.com/
[45] https://www.e-education.psu.edu/egee495/node/478
[46] http://training.interviewstream.com/2016/10/04/technical-requirements-prep/
[47] https://get.adobe.com/flashplayer/
[48] https://www.e-education.psu.edu/egee495/479
[49] https://www.recruiter.com/i/50-interview-questions-and-how-to-answer-them-part-1/
[50] http://studentaffairs.psu.edu/career/students/interviewing.shtml
[51] https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/614/1/