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Academic Internship Program AIP
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Academic Partnerships

AIP partners with academic units and individual faculty members to facilitate internship and experiential learning opportunities for students that meet curricular and course objectives.  Our department serves as a resource to the campus community for the development and implementation of such opportunities, and is eager to collaborate on new programs. 

Examples of current and past collaborations include:

  • Partnering with Thurgood Marshall College on the development, implementation, and coordination of an internship requirement for the Public Service Minor
  •  Collaborating with the Political Science Department and other campus and UC-systemwide partners on the recruitment and coordination of the UCDC program
  • Working with faculty to develop relevant fieldwork opportunities for students participating in a Sociology of Immigration course
  • Establishing a Biology Research Internship Program in partnership with the Division of Biology that creates opportunities for students to receive elective credit toward their major for research internships with designated off-campus partners.

Internship Resources for Departments

AIP collaborates with department and program heads, faculty and advisors on ways to incorporate academic internships and other forms of experiential learning into the curriculum for your major or minor, and/or to determine how best to serve your students’ internship needs.  AIP’s staff expertise and our resources for posting, vetting and tracking internships provide the infrastructure to support academic internships. The AIP welcomes the opportunity for conversations regarding the nature and structure of internships in your department, and related topics including: 

  • identifying or developing internships that meet your department’s academic criteria
  • structuring a course, seminar, or workshop for students participating in internships
  • tracking student participation in academic internships or related experiential learning
  • sharing best practices regarding  internship standards, development, monitoring and evaluation
  • piloting internship and experiential learning programs and partnerships

Community Engaged Learning

AIP will collaborate with faculty who want to engage students in the community as an integrated component of a specific course through our AIP in the Classroom model.  AIP partners with faculty to develop fieldwork experiences linked to the learning objectives of a course, and aligned with needs identified by community partners.  This active approach to learning can

  • provide opportunities for students to directly observe or apply concepts covered in class
  • challenge students to think more critically and deeply about the subjects they are studying
  • integrate theory and practice while emphasizing civic responsibility, and learning with and from community partners

AIP works with individual faculty members to develop mutually beneficial partnerships with community partners, and facilitates the opportunity for students to earn academic credit for the experience via enrollment in our two-unit AIP 197T course.

Collaborative Programming

AIP coordinates with academic departments to deliver customized workshops giving students the opportunity to recognize career options and understand the role of internships in their academic and career development.  Contact the AIP if you would like a brief presentation to be made in your classroom, or a more comprehensive presentation for students in your department. Examples include:

  • AIP Orientation for students in your department or program
  • Presentation on internship options and opportunities specific to your major/minor, and how to prepare for these opportunities
  • Customized information session on special programs such as UCDC and UC Center Sacramento.

AIP Faculty Advisors

The academic component of AIP requires that students work with a faculty member to produce a research paper or project relevant to the internship experience, intended to apply an academic perspective to practices encountered at the internship. The AIP faculty advisor
  • helps the student create a structure to investigate a particular research question or interest related to the internship
  • provides guidance on the paper/project throughout the quarter and evaluates the final product 
  • serves as a mentor and sounding board for the student as he/she navigates through the internship

Faculty serving as advisors to AIP students must have a current teaching appointment at UCSD, and should have expertise relevant to the student’s internship field and/or related research interest.  Students typically approach potential faculty advisors independently; you can also contact the AIP if you would like us to refer students who match your area of interest.