History

Internships

History 4900: Internship

Students may receive academic credit and work in an area of their specific interest in order to obtain practical experience in the field of history.

• Students must complete 110 hours of supervised work over the course of a semester to earn three hours of credit toward their BA or BS in History.
• The intern program is designed to help students develop specific skills in the research and/or the interpretation of history by working with archives, museums, historic sites, attorneys, and other relevant professionals.
• Students, working with professionals in the field, will be exposed to a variety of experiences that they would not encounter in the normal classroom.
• The intern program will help further develop critical thinking skills, oral and written communication, and provide access to professional networks that can enhance their professional careers after graduation.

Internship Partners

Students will be assigned to a public or private agency compatible to their interests, and work with that agency for the specified 110 hours. (Internships may be taken once for upper division credit to fulfill the requirements of a BA/BS History degree and a second time as a general elective.) Partners for history internships include: Tennessee Tech Archives, Cookeville History Museums, Putnam County Archives, Upper Cumberland State Historic Preservation Officer (Randal Williams at UCDD), Tennessee Historical Commission, Tennessee State Library and Archives, Tennessee State Museum, Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation, East Tennessee Historical Society, WCTE: Upper Cumberland Public Television (PBS affiliate), Cordell Hull Birthplace Historic Site, Alvin C. York Historic Site, White County Heritage Museum, Wilson County Museum, Smith County Museum, Overton County Heritage Museum, 13th Judicial District Attorney’s Office, 13th Judicial District Public Defenders Office, Upper Cumberland Tourism Agency, Tennessee Department of Tourism, and many others.

• Completion of at least twelve hours of history courses.
• Students must work with a professor to investigate possible intern programs at least three weeks prior to the beginning of a semester.

Requirements (Students Must):

1. Meet with a history professor to discuss placements and requirements.
2. Work with the professor to select their desired agency, conduct interviews with said agency, and arrange work schedule.
3. Provide notification to the department chair of acceptance by a partner agency before the beginning of the internship.
4. The “Agency Agreement” form must filled out by the student and the agency and copies turned in to the departmental office prior to beginning work. This must be completed no later than the end of the third week of the semester.
5. Once a work schedule is arranged, the student must file a copy with the agency and the intern advisor.
6. Must complete a minimum of 110 hours to pass the course, to the satisfaction of the partner agency.
7. Students are required to keep a journal of their experience. Journal entries must include the date and time each work session began and ended, describe work accomplished, relate particularly interesting experiences, and divulge practical skills and knowledge learned.
8. The student must create two typed reports for the supervising professor. The first mid-way through the internship (at 55 hours) and the second after the completion of the internship (at 110 hours). The papers should be three to four pages in length and should include the interns' activities during those periods. Completed reports will be filed in the student's permanent records.  
9. It is incumbent upon the student to make sure that the agency keeps an accurate record of hours worked. At the end of the semester, the professor will meet with the agency supervisor and receive a written evaluation of the student’s performance, which will also be filed among the student’s permanent records.

If, in the first few weeks of the internship, a student is dissatisfied with her/his placement, it is the student’s responsibility to contact the History Department to rectify the situation. Students who meet all the requirements, will be evaluated as follows: two reports 25%, journal 25%, agency evaluation 50%.