Evaluation of the First Year of an On-Campus Internship
Program
Dr. Sharra Hynes, Executive Director, Experiential Learning
Mark Walvoord, Assistant Director, Student Transformative Learning Record
Pair and Share
• What is the state of internships on your campus? • What advantages would
come from increasing internship opportunities on campus?
• How do you differentiate on-campus internships from other on-campus student employment?
Today’s Outline
Context
Funding
Program and Research Goals
Enhancements to Our Program
Participant Implementation Reflection
Context: About UCO
• 17,000 students
• Primarily nontraditional, ~45% work off campus 20+ hrs/week
• Oklahoma’s oldest institution of higher education (126 years)
• 40-50% First Generation college students
Context: About UCO
• Oklahoma City metropolitan area has 1.25 million people
• With 10 Colleges and Universities
• Our graduates need a competitive edge = experiential learning opportunities
Mission: The University of Central Oklahoma exists to help students learn by providing transformative education experiences to students so that they may become productive, creative, ethical, and engaged citizens and leaders serving our global community. UCO contributes to the intellectual, cultural, economic and social advancement of the communities and individuals it serves.
Four Strategic Themes:1) Transformative Learning2) Student Success3) Value4) Place
Context: TL at UCO
UCO’s Center for Transformative Learning (2010)
Transformative Learning:
• Develops beyond disciplinary skills and
• Expands students’ perspectives of their relationship with self, others, community and environment.
Context: TL at UCO
UCO Experiential Learning
Applies classroom knowledge to
practical situations
Provides avenues to transformative
learning
Student Research
In Class Activities
Internships
Clinical Experiences
Volunteer and Service
Learning
GlobalExperiences
through…
Context: Experiential Learning at UCO
StudentLife
Context: History of UCO Internships
• Decentralized (in Departments/Colleges)
• Few with required internships
• Less alignment of Career Services priorities to campus actions
• 2014 move to enhanceexperiential learning opportunities
Today’s Outline
Context
Funding
Program and Research Goals
Enhancements to Our Program
Participant Implementation Reflection
Funding
$7.78 million, DOE Title III grant,
Oct 2014 – Sept 2019
Career ServicesA DIVISION OF STUDENT AFFAIRS
~$110,000 per year
30 positions
Today’s Outline
Context
Funding
Program and Research Goals
Enhancements to Our Program
Participant Implementation Reflection
Program Goals
• Give students work experience in a potential future career field
• Create an internship program that is replicable in other settings
• Enhance students’ employability through increased experientialopportunities
Research Goals
• Analyze students' satisfaction with the University’s attempts to enhance their career prospects
• Determine if program helps students verify career goals
• Quantify increase in students’ employable skills
Data:
Pre- and post-surveys SIS Data
GPA, Major
Block 2
Intern UCO P
articipant PostSurvey
Thank you fo
r participating in
the Intern U
CO program this 20152016 academic year. In
order to
assess how s
uccessful th
is program is,
we are gathering so
me data about your perspective of
UCO, career preparedness,
and confidence i
n future c
areer field. P
lease answer th
e following
prompts as best y
ou can.
In addition to
gathering your responses for internal assessm
ent of Intern UCO, we'll be co
nducting
research based o
n your consent in
our presurvey la
st fall.
This information p
ertains to your
involvement and the re
search will allow u
s to present at co
nferences or to publish
findings.
Identity (please complete):
Name
UCO ID Questionairre
Rate the fo
llowing statements using th
e scale provided:
Strongly
DisagreeDisagree
NeutralAgree
Strongly
Agree
Not
Applicable
I believe that UCO is
committed to helping m
e
succeed academically.
UCO affords me
opportunities to enhance
my resume.
My experiences at and
through UCO will help m
e
get a job in
my chosen
field upon graduation.
One or more fulltim
e
UCO faculty a
nd staff ca
re
Research Goals
• 4 Likert scale prompts for UCO’s contribution to their career readiness
• 10 skills-based Likert scale prompts (3 communication, 3 teamwork, 3 problem solving, 1 leadership)
• Post-graduation plans
Pre- and post-surveys
Research ResultsSignificant skills increases using traditional pre-post
N=24
3.7
3.8
3.9
4
4.1
4.2
4.3
4.4
4.5
4.6
4.7
Expressingideasand
conceptsorally
Engagingwithpeople
whoseideasandexperiencesaredifferent
thanmyown
Workingwithothersto
completeaproject
Interpretingdataand
informationtoapplytomytask
LikertScale(0StronglyDisagree-5StronglyAgree)
SignificantSelf-ReportedSkillsChangesPre-survey Post-survey
Research ResultsAnd ALL increased using retrospective pre-post data
N=24
Research ResultsNo significant change in students’ beliefs about UCO helping them succeed
N=24
3.8
4
4.2
4.4
4.6
4.8
5
5.2
IbelievethatUCOis
committedtohelpingmesucceedacademically.
UCOaffordsme
opportunitiestoenhancemyresume.
Myexperiencesatand
throughUCOwillhelpmegetajobinmy
chosenfieldupongraduation.
Oneormorefull-time
UCOfacultyandstaffcareaboutmyacademic
andcareersuccess.
LikertScale(0SronglyDisagree-5StronglyAgree)
StudentPerceptionofUniversity'sComittmenttotheirSuccessPre-survey Post-survey
Today’s Outline
Context
Funding
Program and Research Goals
Enhancements to Our Program
Participant Implementation Reflection
• Intern UCO Handbook to help students and supervisors stay on track
• Weekly reflections and increased LMS usage• Compile Year 2 data to combine with Year 1• New funding model• Expansion to 8 Off-Campus positions
Enhancements
Today’s Outline
Context
Funding
Program and Research Goals
Enhancements to Our Program
Participant Implementation Reflection
Choose a topic, then go to your corner:• Assessing your existing internship program• Starting a new internship program• Expanding an existing internship program• Ideas for non-internship,
experiential programs
Implementation Reflection
Evaluation of the First Year of an On-Campus Internship
Program
Dr. Sharra Hynes
Mark Walvoord
[email protected]/InternUCO
uco.edu/stlr
@ucostlr