LD5009 - London Campus UG Internship

The internship module is delivered across a 12 week period, based in the workplace, and which will provide you with the opportunity to:

• Experience the environment of a real workplace which will help you decide the type of career you would like to follow after graduation
• Develop your organisational and interpersonal skills required to enable you to work efficiently as a member of a team
• Acquire and develop relevant technical skills associated with the nature of your work
• Identify, analyse and discuss with experienced practitioners how theoretical concepts are adapted and applied to suit practical requirements
• Apply knowledge that will help you to plan and evaluate future study and career development.

You will gain hands-on experience of the working world which will be invaluable to entering into your chosen career. You will learn more about how organisations operate, especially their culture and values; you will enhance your existing skills and develop new ones, in particular team working, communication and problem solving. You will develop a better understanding of how your studies fit in to the real work environment and you’ll gain a deeper understanding of the industry that you are keen to work in on graduation.

The learning and teaching methods will be dependent on the placement. The learning and teaching on your placement will be recorded in the training agreement signed by the you, your internship provider and your internship tutor.

A range of approaches are adopted to accelerate your learning in this module.

Prior to your start of Internship semester, you will attend relevant presentations (including a compulsory Health and Safety briefing) given by the internship manager and Module Tutor and other Faculty staff as appropriate.

During the internship support will be provided by the host employer. Additionally, you will be provided with supervisory guidance from a member of the Faculty’s academic staff who will act as a mentor providing academic and pastoral support, and the Internship Module Tutor who will maintain contact with you throughout the semester.

The formative and summative assessment strategy will be outlined as will a refresher on key academic skills and resources critical to your success as a learner on this module. You will work closely with your academic supervisor who will visit you at least once whilst your are on work placement and also make a contact with your work supervisor and you very early during your work placement.

In summary, during this module you will get support including:
• Academic supervisor support
• Module tutor guidance in relation to assignments via VLE
• Development of key resources, made available through the VLE
• Formative feedback on your work by your academic supervisor and also general feedback on your work by your work supervisor.

All modules at Northumbria include a range of reading materials that students are expected to engage with. The reading list for this module can be found at: http://readinglists.northumbria.ac.uk
(Reading List service online guide for academic staff this containing contact details for the Reading List team – http://library.northumbria.ac.uk/readinglists)

Knowledge & Understanding:
1. Critically reflect upon, challenge and extend existing personal knowledge and technical learning of your discipline.
2. Demonstrate and evidence an in-depth understanding of your discipline through the application of existing knowledge in unfamiliar learning environments and through developing new knowledge and perspectives derived from experience out-with your formal taught programme.

Intellectual / Professional Skills & Abilities:
3. Demonstrate critical awareness and self-direction of your own learning by identifying and managing tasks individually or as a member of a team in order to achieve your personal goals.
4. Critically analyse and communicate complex ideas in a professional environment.

Personal Values Attributes (Global / Cultural awareness, Ethics, Curiosity) (PVA):
5. Demonstrate self awareness of your personal development.

Formative assessment:
You will be able to get feedback from your academic supervisor especially during their visit to you at your work placement or online via weekly meetings.

Summative assessment
1. Portfolio Report:
You will provide a 2,000 word portfolio report along with evidence of your learning during your internship activity. This will clearly articulate and evaluate achievements related to goals identified in your personal learning contract (MLO1,2,3,5). (70%)

Guidance will be provided to enable you to understand what is expected in your portfolio of evidence and how your reflective account will be assessed.

2. Poster
You will deliver a 10 minute poster presentation to staff, including your academic mentor. The poster will focus on the core learning derived from your internship but should also detail the experiential learning journey (MLO4). (30%)
You will be provided with written, electronic, feedback on your work which you can use to improve your future assessments in this subject area.

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In an increasingly competitive graduate recruitment market you’ll need more than a good degree to get the job you want. Graduate employers are increasingly looking for evidence of relevant work experience as well as academic achievement in candidates. A semester internship enhances your employability prospects, making you more appealing to graduate employers.

You’ll get practical experience in your chosen field whilst developing many of the skills that you will need in the workplace. You will also gain a better understanding of how organisations operate and you will be able to apply this knowledge directly to your studies.