Online Academic Internship

1. Online Academic Internship Karlyn Barilovits, Ph.D. Chair, MSIT Department, Kaplan University Desiree DePriest, Ph.D.Professor, MSIT Department, Kaplan University Mariana CraftStudent, MSIT Department, Kaplan University

2. Overview Dr. Karlyn Barilovits, Department Chair, Master of Information Systems, Kaplan University.

3. Introduction • Two academic measurements of program success used in university settings have been the scholarship of faculty and the scholarship of students. • Faculty who contribute to the body of knowledge in the departmental discipline attract students to the program, keep course presentations current and motivate students to excellence. • Students who participate in scholarly activities serve a positive role in attracting new students and serve as peer mentors to their classmates.

4. Benefits of Scholarly Activities to the University • Benefit faculty in professional development • Benefit students in research methods • Contribute to the overall body of knowledge in the program • Provide opportunities for collaboration • Provide opportunities for community building

5. Traditional Internships • Partnerships are built between the university and industry. • Students train on-site in a given industry. • Guidance is provided primarily by supervisors in the industry.

6. Blended Internships • Physical partnerships that utilize web-based technologies to hold meetings and collaborations between the university and the student. • Student presentations reflect on outcome of hybrid research.

7. Virtual Internships • Students perform research in a purely online environment. • Students collaborate with faculty at the online university in an agreed upon research topic.

8. Types of Internships Two types of online internships are being proposed: • Information Interns – One intern for every one or two faculty members. • Technology Interns – team of interns with one or two faculty members.

9. Information Interns • Work with faculty on research for individual scholarship. • Learn to distinguish scientific peer-reviewed sources from secondary sources such as industry websites. • Gain proficiency in editing, referencing and summarizing.

10. Technology Interns • Collaborate with mentoring faculty and other interns. • Research current topics in a particular area of the field and present newsletter to all graduate and undergraduates in the program. • Build proficiency with desktop publishing, online collaboration tools, and writing skills.

11. Faculty perspectives Dr. Desiree DePriest, Professor of Information Systems, MSIT Department, Kaplan University.

12. Identifying faculty qualifications Information Internships & Technology Internships • Ph.D. in field or related field. • Good standing. • Interested in directing and mentoring student interns. • Committed to full internship term.

13. Directing & Mentoring - Information

14. Directing & Mentoring - Technology

15. Benefits for Faculty • Opportunity to expand research and recognition through the assistance of academic interns. • Opportunity to collaborate with students in more depth through small teams exploring cutting edge innovations in technology. • Mentor the group process holistically. • Developing agile telepresence. • Contribute to academic intern’s experiences in information system and technology processes.

16. Student perspectives Mariana Craft, Honor Student, MSIT Program, Kaplan University.

17. Identifying student qualifications Information Internships & Technology Internships • 3.5 GPA or greater for three semesters or more consecutively. • Good standing. • Completed one year in the program. • Committed to full internship term.

18. Information Interns

19. Technology Interns

20. Benefits for Students • Graduating with marketable knowledge and experience. • Recognition in the field of information systems and technology. • Individualized telepresence with professionals in the field.

21. Conclusions Online Academic Internships offer a number of benefits at little to no cost. Academic Internships will highlight the work of faculty and staff in the field at conferences, workshops and in publications.

22. References • Centre College Internships. Retrieved 12/20/2008 from: www.centre.edu/web/news/2008/internship_plus2.html. • Education Volunteers. Retrieved 12/22/2008 from: http://www.educationpioneers.org/becoming-a-fellow/program-details. • Gatto, K. To go or not to go, when is a virtual internship right for you? Retrieved 12/22/2008 from: http://externs.com/externshipdef.cfm#more. • Go Inside Magazine Internship. Retrieved 12/22/2008 from: http://goinside.com/intern/ • Internship Information Session On-Line, a presentation by Metropolitan State University, Center for Community-Based Learning, retrieved 12/19/2008. • TCC 2009 Call for Proposals, Teaching Colleges, and Community Worldwide Online Conference, received November 22, 2008. • The Mentor Corner, a presentation by Terry Miller, Kaplan University, July 22, 2008. • The virtual internship guide. Retrieved 12/22/2008 from: http://www.virtualinternshipguide.com/. • University of Colorado at Denver and Health Sciences Center, Administrative Policy Statement Academic Internships, retrieved 12/21/2008. • USJournals Internships. Retrieved 12/22/2008 from: http://www.usjournal.com/en/about/internship.html. • Xerox: Internship project Proposal. Retrieved 12/22/2008 from: http://www.xrce.xerox.com/internships/JW-FR.WebBasedCollaborativeColorCorrections.2009.html.

23. Thank you TCC Worldwide Online Conference for the opportunity to present!