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How to receive internship credit

In order to receive credit for an internship, a FTVM Major must:

  1. Find an internship.
    It is the FTVM student’s responsibility to procure their own internship – the Department of Film, Television, and Media does not locate internships for FTVM students. The Department will send the FTVM major's letter of credit for their internship directly to the company upon request.
  2. Submit a one-page proposal describing the internship.
    This proposal should focus on how the internship is related to the FTVM major’s course of study and what the student expects to gain from the internship experience. It should also specify a detailed job description and include the name and phone number of the FTVM major’s internship supervisor. This written proposal must be approved by the sponsoring FTVM faculty member before the student begins the internship. Internship credit is not retroactive – credit will not be granted for work done prior to approval.
  3. Register for internship credit as for any other course.
    Internships are elected as FTVM 480, under the sponsoring FTVM faculty member's section number. After the student proposal has been approved, the sponsoring faculty member will ask the FTVM office to issue an override. Internships must be elected as “Credit/No Credit”, for 2 CREDITS ONLY. The Department of Film, Television, and Media will sponsor no more than a total of six credits of internship per student. Students typically register for internship credit in the semester during which they are interning. However, students interning in spring or summer, who are not taking other courses, are allowed to elect the FTVM 480 credits on their fall schedule. Please be aware that though the credits will not appear until fall grades are posted, both the retrospective paper and evaluation letter should be received by the second Friday of fall semester.

  4. Evaluation letter.
    Arrange for the internship supervisor to send a letter of evaluation to the sponsoring the Department of Film, Television, and Media faculty member at the completion of the internship. This letter must be received by the last day of classes for the term in which the student is registered for the internship. The letter should include:
    1. A job description detailing the intern’s responsibilities.
    2. The duration of the internship. Minimum requirement is approximately 15 hours per week over a 14-week term or the equivalent (210 hours).
    3. An evaluation or assessment of the intern’s performance.
      The letter should be:
      1. On letterhead or original stationery.
      2. Signed by the internship supervisor.
      3. Sent directly to the FTVM faculty sponsor via an email attachment
        or via regular mail:
        Attention: (faculty sponsor’s name)
        U-M Department of the Department of Film, Television, and Media
        6330 North Quad, 105 S. State Street
        Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1285

        IMPORTANT:
        It is the student’s responsibility to inform the internship supervisor of this requirement at the onset of the internship. It is also the FTVM major’s responsibility to see that the letter is received no later than the last day of classes for the term in which the student is registered for the internship. If an appropriate letter is not received by the deadline; the student may receive “No Credit” for the internship.

  5. Submit a 5 to 7-page paper to the FTVM faculty sponsor.
    Following participation in an approved internship, students will be expected
    to write a final retrospective on their experience. The paper must be
    received by the FTVM faculty sponsor by the last day of classes for the term in
    which the student is registered for the internship. The paper should include
    the following:
    1. Your goals and expectations going into the internship
    2. A brief description of the duties of the internship
    3. Discussion of how the various facets of the internship related to issues or topics covered in your courses in the Department of Film, Television, and Media
    4. An assessment of the internship experience: how your goals and expectations were met or not met by the experience and why; how the internship experience might influence your future study; whether or not you would recommend this internship to other students (Note: these papers might be made available to other students considering a similar internship)

      Handwritten papers will not be accepted. Please proofread for errors and staple in the upper left-hand corner. Be sure to keep a copy of the paper for your own records. Late papers will not be accepted.