NGSCleaders

Internships

Next Generation Service Corps Internships

In order to link the academic curriculum with real-world experience, NGSC members complete one internship in each of the public, private, and nonprofit sectors throughout their time at the university.

 

WHAT IS AN INTERNSHIP?

An internship is a planned, short-term learning experience that allows students to take the knowledge and skills learned in the classroom and apply them in a professional work setting. Internships offer students the opportunity to learn from professionals and explore potential career options in a wide-variety of disciplines and industries.  

An internship should be recognized as a professional development opportunity where the student is directly supervised and mentored by a staff member at the organization. Interns are given responsibilities beyond basic administrative or clerical tasks and focus on more project-based experiences.

 

 

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INTERNSHIP BENEFITS

  • Gain hands-on experience that deepens what you've learned in the classroom, including the strengths, weaknesses, and values of each sector
  • Learn about your chosen career field
  • Expand your network
  • Become an attractive recruit to future organizations!

 

INTERNSHIP PARAMETERS

Because Next Generation Service Corps members have a wide variety of backgrounds and interests, the parameters for internships are necessarily broad to ensure that students can seek out opportunities that both fit within and augment their academic and career plans.

All NGSC-eligible internships must allow students to:

  • Observe the values of the organization and, by extension, the sector in which it exists; 
  • Be intertwined in the day-to-day operations of the organization or company; 
  • Explore and understand the decision-making processes of that organization from an insider's perspective; and
  • Serve a minimum of 70 hours.

 

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TIME COMMITMENT

Students must serve a minimum of 70 hours at their internship. Students' internship experiences should allow them to spend significant amounts of time within the organization so they are able to be immersed in that organization's culture.  

In partnership with their internship supervisor, students may build an internship schedule that allows them to work the 70 hours in a variety of ways: some of our students complete their internships within one semester or even 1-2 weeks, while others may have a shorter hourly commitment every week but work at the organization for several months. Most students generally work somewhere between 70-120 hours.

 

 

COMPENSATION

Unpaid internships in the public sector and for non-profit charitable organizations, where the intern volunteers without expectation of compensation, are generally permissible. However, we strongly support paid internships to allow participation by an economically diverse student population who might not be able to accept an unpaid internship.

In the private sector, the rate of pay for students must be at least federal, state, or local minimum wage (calculated over any time scale - hourly, weekly, semi-monthly, monthly or annually).

 

 

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FINDING AN INTERNSHIP

We utilize Handshake as our primary way of connecting students with internships. This both protects our students (by ensuring internships are properly vetted through the University) and exposes them to a larger number of opportunities. Handshake is made available to all ASU students at no cost and is an invaluable resource. We encourage all NGSC students to establish a Handshake account at the start of their ASU experience and to make use of the many resources available through our partners at Career and Professional Development Services.

 

 

STUDENT LEARNING

NGSC Members will complete a Values and Reflection Assignment at the end of their internship to transform their experiences into genuine learning and enhance their ability to assess their own values, goals, and progress. Students are responsible for completing this assignment and will submit it directly to program staff.

 

 

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NGSC students have completed internships in the following organizations, just to name a few:

 

Private Sector:

Charles Schwab, Zero Mass Water, Northop Grumman, Salt River Project, Various Law Offices, Mayo Clinic, Intel Corporation, ON Semiconductor

Nonprofit Sector: 

Defend our Future, Million Dollar Teacher Project, St. Vincent De Paul, Project C.U.R.E., Center for the Future of Arizona, 33 Buckets, Phoenix Symphony, Arizona Sustainability Alliance

Public Sector: 

Arizona House of Representatives and Senate, NASA, City of Phoenix, National Park Service, Arizona Attorney General's Office, Maricopa County Office of the Medical Examiner, Various ASU internships, Maricopa County Community College District


Are you interested in recruiting NGSC students to your internships or looking to have NGSC students help on a project? Visit our NGSC Community Partners page for more information and to schedule a discovery call with our Program Director.