Internships

ANTH 393: Directed Internship

Students enrolled in ANTH 393 “Directed Internship” may contribute to workplaces of all kinds, including corporations and businesses, schools and educational programs, artists and arts organizations, nonprofit organizations, activist or advocacy groups, academic or private sector research projects or initiatives, social welfare organizations, government agencies, etc.

Q. How do I enroll?

Find an organization with which to volunteer or intern. Start looking the semester before you want to take ANTH 393! 

We can help – contact anth-DGS@dornsife.usc.edu, for a mentoring appointment.

Q. What do I do once I've found an internship?

Complete the Internship Agreement Form including tasks/responsibilities and work hours. You must return this form, signed by both you and your internship supervisor, to anth-DGS@dornsife.usc.edu to receive D-Clearance to enroll in the course. 

Q. What are the course requirements?

1. Complete internship work hours and tasks as agreed in your Internship Agreement Form.
2. Meet regularly with your Academic Instructor and complete journal assignments as assigned, roughly once every 3-4 weeks.
3. Complete at least one interview with a colleague or client. This will be the basis for the Ethnographic Interview Paper (5 pages).
4. Complete a final research paper of the required length (see below) that investigates a topic related to your internship experience. This paper may incorporate independent ethnographic research, such as interviews or observations, but must build in a substantive way on original scholarly research in Anthropology. 

Q. How will I be graded?

• Work evaluation provided by your internship supervisor: 50%
• Academic instructor meetings (3 minimum) and Journal assignments (as assigned): 15%
• Ethnographic Interview Paper: 10%
• Final Research Paper: 25%

Q. What does my internship supervisor need to know?

• Internship hours completed before or after the start and end of the USC semester cannot be counted toward course credit! 
• The internship supervisor will approve your timesheets, and provide a final evaluation (50% of your grade) at the end of the internship. 
• Research assignments for the course are completed largely outside of internship hours, unless otherwise desired by the internship sponsor. 
• Work responsibilities and schedule are determined by the student and internship supervisor, prior to the start of the internship.

Note: The number of hours worked per week is in practice flexible, provided the student completes the agreed total number of cumulative work hours by the last day of classes for the semester. Work hours must be confirmed by the internship supervisor.

For more information, please contact anth-DGS@dornsife.usc.edu, or Kim Vinson (vinson@usc.edu) Anthropology/Global Studies Academic Advisor.