Internships: An Introduction from Program Director
An internship is the integration of theory and practice; an opportunity for you to take what you have learned in your courses and to use this knowledge in more practical ways at an organization of your choosing. The internship experience can be one of the most challenging and rewarding aspects of your graduate program. This is the time when you have an opportunity to enhance your technical skills, experiment with a variety of authority relationships, and in some instances you might have an opportunity to work with others to achieve a common organizational goal. As you begin thinking about your experience as an intern, be aware that the faculty and staff in the Leadership Studies Program are available to support you, so please do not hesitate to ask. We look forward to helping you apply your learning of theory with real world experiences.
Cheryl Getz
Chair, Department of Leadership Studies
To Navigate the Internship content, please hover your mouse over the Internships Link to the left for a pop-out menu.
"The experience helped me to better understand the dynamics of being a leader and how to balance certain roles and responsibility. There is quite a bit of flexibility and creativity involved in the internship. I really enjoyed it!"
-Dana Gordon (Site: Mindful Mentoring)
"The Center for Creative Leadership provided me with an internship where i was given the opportunity to explore new arenas in the corporate world. I was provided with clear direction and guidance, allowing me to explore areas of interest that I chose."
-Angela Chiarenza (Site: Center for Creative Leadership)
"My site supervisor guided me during the internship more as a practicum - hands on experience. His personal commitment to develop leaders for Catholic education is greatly appreciated."
- Gregory Heidenblut, O.S.A. (Site: Saint Augustine High School)
"Because I've already been working in this office for two years, the opportunity to create a new workshop series and take the lead on all aspects of its planning and implementation has been very valuable. I doubt I would have experienced this growth as a leader this quickly without this internship opportunity."
- Melissa Calderon (Site: Eleanor Rooevelt College Academic Advising, UCSD).
"My supervisor gives me the opportunity to have a lot of autonomy in what I am doing. The learning has been great; it has given me insights into learning about authority dynamics and its expectations. My supervisor was helpful at mentoring me along and letting me make my own decisions."
Johan Bodaski (Site: UCSD - Express to Success)
"I have been able to get some practice with concepts I've studied in the leadership studies program, such as boundary spanning, organizational structure, and organizational culture. The supervisors are not shy about giving an intern responsibility and discretion, and they subscribe to the leadership theories taught at SOLES."
- Ryan Moscoe (Site: University of San Diego Residential Life)
"Perhaps the most useful aspect was in learning how to begin to lead in an environment in which I am not a subject matter expert. I've started to learn how to bring out the expertise in the people whom I work with. I've also started to explore how to negotiate as an outsider coming into a well-stablished culture. It has been one of the most beneficial experiences in my doctoral program. My only regret is not having taken an internship earlier in my studies - I think it really would have informed my research."
-Karen Robinson (Site: Palomar College Human Resources)
