Internships
Internships
Internships are important items for your resume and can boost your application for graduate education and professional schools. Because internships require you to put many hours per week into the field, they help employers and admission staff know that you have good time management skills because you can hold on to your GPA, do field work, and possibly even work part-time. If you are interested in an internship, see the information below for internship description and requirements.
Legal Studies Majors
The Legal Studies Internship is a cooperative effort between the Legal Studies program at the University of West Florida and a public or private law-related office. The purpose of the Internship is to give students the opportunity to apply their education to actual work situations. The student intern works under the overall supervision of a licensed attorney in a traditional paralegal internship or other legal professional in a non-traditional paralegal internship.
Requirements: Students must have 1) the permission of the Intern Coordinator to enroll; 2) a minimum grade point average of 3.0 in the Legal Studies major and a minimum cumulative grade point average of 3.0 as calculated by UWF; and, 3) successfully completed PLA 3003-Paralegal and the Legal Profession, PLA 4263-Evidence, PLA 4201-Litigation and PLA 4103-Legal Research and Writing. There are also several factors considered by the Intern Coordinator in determining whether a student qualifies for a particular internship opportunity. Those factors include, but are not limited to: 1) the number and type of law-related courses completed before the semester the internship is scheduled; and 2) the nature of the internship. Click here for Internship Syllabus(doc).
Criminal Justice Majors
The Criminal Justice Internship is a cooperative effort between the Criminal Justice program at the University of West Florida and public or private criminal justice agencies. The purpose of the internship is to give students the opportunity to apply their education to actual work situations. The student works under the supervision of the criminal justice professional. Students receive academic credit and pay the required credit hour fee as they would a regular course.
Requirements: Students must have 1) a minimum grade point average of 3.0 in the Criminal Justice major and a minimum cumulative grade point average of 2.5 as calculated by UWF; and 2) successfully completed at least 12 hours in criminal justice courses (9 hours from core). There are also several factors considered by the Intern Coordinator in determining whether a student qualifies for a particular internship opportunity. Those factors include, but are not limited to: 1) the number and type criminal justice-related courses completed before the semester the internship is scheduled; 2) the nature of the internship; and 3) perceived ability of student to successfully complete the internship. Click here for Internship Syllabus(doc).
Internship Application Process
If you meet the above requirements and would like to be considered for an internship please follow the instructions below:
Internship Semester Application Deadline: Fall-May 1/ Spring-October 1/ Summer-February 1*
*For internships with federal agencies the application must be submitted a year in advance of the semester you plan to intern.
The following documents are required for internship placement. Please read the internship syllabus (above) for requirements before applying.
1. Application Form: Internship Application doc).
2. Typed list of you top three placement choices and why.
3. Agreement and Release Form: Internship Consent (doc).
4. Current Resume
All internship application materials should be turned in to Professor Tatum(LS) or Lisa Mayes (CJ). Internships will be filled on a first come/first serve basis and depend on availability from the agency or organization.
Sample papers by type of agency are available. These will give you an idea of what will be expected with the internship paper, but this may vary by agency type and job duties. Please discuss the paper requirements with the internship coordinator once you have been placed.
Click here to view sample papers.
Internship Forms
Once you are successfully placed with an agency the following forms will be required as per the internship syllabus.
Placement Contract
This form must be completed IN FULL and returned to the CJ or LS internship coordinator after your initial interview with the internship site or once you begin the internship.
Internship Form and Contract(doc)
Internship Journal/Log
Interns are required to maintain an internship journal/log. The internship journal/log provides a daily assessment and discussion of activities completed for the internship. While this can include minutia such as traveling, lodging meals, etc., the purpose of the journal is to provide a reflective forum for understanding the internship and project process, the tools applied and the experiences learned.
Daily Journal(doc)
Daily Log(doc)
Evaluation Forms
Evaluation forms are utilized by the Department of Justice Studies to evaluate the performance of students participating in the internship program.
The two student evaluation forms used during the internship placement are the Mid-Term Evaluation and the Final Evaluation. It is the students' responsibility to provide the agency supervisor with the evaluation forms prior to the mid-point and end of the semester, respectively.
The student will also be required to complete an evaluation of the internship agency by using the Student Evaluation of Internship Placement form.
If you have any questions or concerns regarding the evaluation process, please contact the Internship Coordinator.
Student Evaluation of Agency Form(doc)