Internships & Grants
Internships and applied learning help you build skills that bridge the gap between college and the workforce. These experiences can provide relevant training and allow you to develop the skills that will set you apart as you look to build your career.
The Career Development Center’s applied learning specialist is available to help you explore various opportunities and will work with you to develop a strategy for securing applied learning opportunities that are relevant to your intended career path.
In a recent study conducted by the National Association of Colleges and Employers, 74 percent of employers shared that they preferred to hire students with relevant work experience.
Internships & Applied Learning Opportunities
- Applied Learning Toolkits for Students, Site Supervisors & Faculty Sponsors
These documents explain the basics and the benefits:
- Applied Learning Opportunities
Students have several options when considering an applied learning opportunity. Some opportunities are for credit, others are non-credit. Below is a list of the categories of applied learning opportunities:
Art Performances and Exhibitions: Exhibition or curation of artwork in an organized setting such as a gallery, art museum, or similar. Publication or performances of musical, theatrical, poetic, or literary works in a public venue and including activities involving design, editing, technical production, and arts venue management.
Capstones/Thesis Projects and Classes: A culminating academic/pre-professional experience, usually faculty led, which synthesizes the totality of undergraduate study in a discipline.
Civic Engagement: A teaching and learning focus on educating students as citizens. Classes or programs include meaningful civic education and activities (i.e., voter engagement, social protests) for social good. Classes and projects have components of substantial and sustained reflection and engagement.
Conference Presentations and Publications: Student presentations of papers or posters based on their academic work and under the guidance of faculty at regional or national conferences related to the field of study.
Cooperative Education: A formally recognized academic program integrating classroom learning and productive paid work experiences in a field related to a student’s academic and career goals.
Entrepreneurship: Students in entrepreneurship activities identify, develop and deliver new services and products for commerce.
Experiences Abroad: Including study away/abroad, international travel with emphasis on cultural learning and immersion.
Field Study: Faculty mentored, self-directed work in a field setting that enables students to learn to gather and analyze data, formulate and test hypotheses.
Internship: Productive work experience in a field related to a student’s academic and career goals. The work experience is formally coordinated with a business, agency, or non-profit organization. Provides students with learning experiences integrating theory and practice. May be credit or non-credit, paid or unpaid.
Leadership Opportunities: Performing in leadership roles in any recognized and approved organization on or off campus. For purposes of applied learning, leadership involves assuming the work of change-making, team-management, mission-development, project-management and outcomes assessment. Examples would include: resident assistant, Student Association senator or executive council, orientation leaders, peer career assistants, peer educators, and teaching assistants.
Practicum Placements (including student teaching and clinicals): A supervised, credit-bearing immersion experience related to the student’s immediate career or academic goals. Some offer pay, but most don’t. Almost all are done for academic credit.
Service-Learning: The integration of meaningful community service relevant to a class subject matter. Always for academic credit and requires substantial and sustained reflective learning, as evidenced by a journal or some other method to demonstrate synthesis between classroom content and community application.
Structured Community Service: Volunteerism and community service performed by students for community benefit with clear objectives and purposes, and organized or sanctioned by a university or civic office. This service is not necessarily tied to learning outcomes or a particular program of study and may include structured projects (days of service), smaller group projects, fund-raising events, or individual volunteerism attached to a sustained and organized project and which is acknowledged by the campus.
Research: Faculty mentored, self-directed research or scholarship project that is part of a faculty member’s research program or project, or independent scholarly work by a student under faculty guidance. May include laboratory research, field research or archival scholarship. May be credit bearing or not. Wages may be attached if the research is grant funded and wages are included in the approved expenditures of the grant parameters.
- Internships Available Through Academic Departments & Majors
Nearly all of our majors have internship opportunities available to you. Find out more information by finding your major and visiting their program page.
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B
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- Chemistry
- Childhood Education
- Communication Sciences & Disorders
- Communication Studies
- Computer Science
- Computer Security
- Criminal Justice
- Cytotechnology
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E
- Economics
- Education
- English
- Entrepreneurship
- Environmental Science
- Environmental Studies
- Expeditionary Studies
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- History
- Hotel Restaurant Tourism Management
- Hospitality Management
- Human Development & Family Relations
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- Philosophy
- Physics
- Political Science
- Psychology
- Public Relations
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- Robotics
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- Social Work
- Sociology
- Spanish
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- Theatre
- TV Video Production
- Washington Internship Institute
The Washington Internship Institute is a semester-long experience which allows students to fully immerse themselves in an internship in the greater Washington D.C. area.
The program is open to students from any major. If you are accepted into the program,
the Washington Internship Institute staff will work with you to secure an internship
in an area of interest.Along with your internship, the Washington Internship Institute includes two academic courses, provides optional housing, and offers many site visits and guest speakers throughout your experience. Students who participate typically earn 15 academic credits.
The Washington Internship Institute is offered in the fall semester, spring semester and over the summer.
Interested?
If you are interested in the Washington Internship Institute, be sure to schedule an appointment with the Career Development Center’s applied learning coordinator to get an overview of the program and what is required to apply.
Required Forms:
- Washington Internship Institute Application
- SUNY Plattsburgh Washington Internship Institute Contract
To learn more about the Washington Internship Institute, visit their website at: wiidc.org
Cardinal Career Grants
The Cardinal Career Grants are made available through the support of the SUNY system and the Plattsburgh College Foundation, and administered by the Career Development Center (CDC). Cardinal Career Grants are available to students to provide financial support related to under or unpaid applied learning experiences. Preference is given to opportunities in public service and high-demand nonprofit sectors, as well as first-time applicants.
Applications are accepted on the 15th of each month (except June). Be sure to check the application for specific due dates.
- About Cardinal Career Grants
Established in the fall of 2015 and generously supported by the SUNY system and the Plattsburgh College Foundation, Cardinal Career Grants fund students in their pursuit of an internship or other applied learning opportunities. The application process is competitive.
Previous recipients have used the funds to conduct internships abroad, for commuting costs to and from an internship site in Plattsburgh, and range of experiences in between. Students who are interested in applying for a Cardinal Career Grant should read the information below (qualifying expenses and eligibility criteria) before filling out an application. Applicants are also encouraged to meet with the Career Development Center staff before submitting their application.
- Qualifying Expenses
- Examples of applied learning (also known as experiential education) include: internships, service learning, extended job shadowing, apprenticeships, mentored/supervised research, co-ops, clinical/field placements, art performances and exhibits, and/or sustained volunteering. Please work directly with your academic department for specific requirements and/or the CDC to determine if an identified opportunity meets the defined standard for applied learning. Opportunities analogous to on-campus temporary service and/or work-study positions and casual opportunities (seasonal workers, baby-sitting) will not qualify.
- Allowable expenses include: wages for unpaid activities (except on-campus jobs), tuition and/or fees for institutes or similar offered by non-SUNY entities; commuting costs to and from an internship, housing for experiences at locations at least one hour from Plattsburgh N.Y., wherein you would be required to relocate to that location for the duration of the experience; travel (train, airfare, bus); costs associated with visa or work permits; supplies needed to complete the responsibilities of the experience and which are not provided by the site supervisor and which will be retained by you.
- Disallowed expenses: SUNY tuition and affiliated fees; wages for on-campus appointments which are analogous to temp-services or work-study; commuting costs within reasonable walking distance of SUNY Plattsburgh campus; meals and clothing. No monies may be used for personal entertainment, purchase of controlled substances (including alcohol), or acquisition of materials or supplies.
- Eligibility Criteria & Impact on Financial Aid
- Applications will be reviewed based on clarity and persuasiveness of essay, reasonableness of proposed budget, previous applied learning experiences, relevance and robustness of culminating learning artifact, and compliance with eligibility standards. A Cardinal Career Grant committee will review all applications; decisions are final. NOTE: applications submitted late, incomplete, or not conforming to the instructions will not be considered.
- Applicants are strongly encouraged to review your application with the CDC before submission. Schedule an appointment in advance; factor this into your timeline in developing your application and in meeting application deadlines.
- Eligibility: (all criteria must be met)
- Any full-time matriculated (degree-seeking) undergraduate or graduate student
- Completed at least 12 academic credits
- Achieved a minimum 2.0 cumulative GPA
- In academic good standing
- In good standing with Student Accounts Office
- Completed any sanctions required by Student Conduct Office.
- You are hereby notified that receipt of an Cardinal Career Grant may significantly impact financial aid packages. You are strongly encouraged to talk with a financial aid counselor to fully understand potential ramifications.
- Award disbursement may not equal award requests. Currently, award amounts range from $500, $1,000, $1,750 & $2,250 depending on the type of experience and eligibility.
- Cardinal Career Grant Application Form
Below is a link to apply for the Cardinal Career Grant. Applications are due on the 15th of each month (except June) at 4 p.m. and will be reviewed soon after the deadline. Decisions will be communicated to you via your Plattsburgh email account.