APS 398R Applied Plant Science Internship Information Page and Syllabus
Internship Coordinator for APS Dept. is Benjamin Romney STC310E
208 496-4590 fax to my office:208 496-6017 mobile: 208 313-4287
Email: romneyb@byui.edu
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SYLLABUS
Course Description
APS 398R is a "cooperative work
experience,"
or "internship" experience that is required of all APS
majors.
Included below are the various forms and information that students and
employers are to use in completing the internship:
Explanation of course:
The Internship experience that we have
developed at BYU Idaho for over four decades has become a great help to
the individual students who enter and graduate from our applied
associate
and bachelor programs. It provides an opportunity to meet many of
the people that they will be interacting with as the future
unfolds.
Course objectives:
–To facilitate on-site learning in the
plant industries.
–To provide an opportunity for students
to
gain well documented work experience, with specific goals and
objectives
(determined by the student and the experience provider) leading to
future
employment in similar businesses.
–To provide hands-on, applied
learning
in the real world of the area of study emphasized by the student.
Pre-requisite: Department approval, based on successful preparation of at least one full semester of enrollment in APS programs.
At least the equivalent of one full semester in the Applied Plant Science Department curriculum must be completed with satisfactory grades prior to approval for an internship. This can be verified with your advisor, who can recommend you to submit an Internship Approval Application to the Internship Office through iplan.byui.edu
How many hours do I need to work to fullfil the internship?
The internship requirement for the APS Department is 1.0 credit of APS 398R.
The student intern is expected to work for the equivalent of 10 weeks, 40 hours per week, for a total
of 400 hours, or some other combination of 400 hours accumulated throughout a semester, and possibly through summer session on a part time basis. If you request more than 1.0 credit, your application will be slowed down in the process of approval. Additional credits are only authorized under extenuating circumstances. You should not request additional credits just because you want to fill in some elective credits toward the completion of your degree at BYU Idaho.
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Application Process
Please visit the following link:https://www.byui.edu/internships/internship-approval
if you are familiar with iPlan, you can go directly to iplan.byui.edu
Complete Approval Form on I-Plan
(remember, 1.0 credit, 400 hours, select the faculty coordinator--usually me, and make sure the start and end dates match the semester you are planning for)
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What do I need to do to communicate my progress for this internship experience?
you are responsible to send reports regularly so I know that things are going well, or if there are problems with your internship.
Reports are set up as hyperlinks below; they take very little time to complete and submit. You should complete the First Week Report during or at the end of the first week of work. The Internship Activity Reports are submitted every three weeks.
The weekly updates you send can be very brief. It is very informative if you want to take a picture on your smart phone and email romneyb@byui.edu or text it to me 2083134287 with a brief explanation, and indication of how you are doing. I don't want the reports to be a hassle. There will be times when I am on the road doing visits, so I will rely heavily on your emails and reports to know how your internship is developing.
Also,during the internship, your provider (your employer) can provide you with valuable feedback. We have created the Experience Provider Report as a vehicle for them to communicate your progress. You should ask your supervisor to complete an evaluation of your performance and fill out the form either with you or on his/her own. If you can, it is best to sit down with the supervisor and discuss your experience. This provides a chance for you to communicate any concerns you have, and to receive suggestions your supervisor may have to offer.
These are links to the reports that you need to fill out and submit for your internship.
Just click on the appropriate form:
First Week Report (filled out by
the student)
Internship Activity
Report (filled out by
the student)
Experience Provider Report (filled out by
the experience provider)
When you click on the submit button, the form is sent to me as an email. You may not receive and immediate reply, but I will try to verify with you by email that I have received the report.
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Please use this schedule for sending reports,
or adapt it to your unique situation, as approved by your department coordinator:
This schedule is for a typical 14 week full semester internship:
Week 1: First Week Report, submitted within the first week of beginning the internship
Week 2: weekly update to APS Department Internship Coordinator
Week 3: weekly update to APS Department Internship Coordinator
Week 4: submit Internship Activity Report;
submit Experience Provider Report
Week 5: weekly update to APS Department Internship Coordinator
Week 6: weekly update to APS Department Internship Coordinator
Week 7: submit Internship Activity Report;
submit Experience Provider Report
Week 8: weekly update to APS Department Internship Coordinator
Week 9: weekly update to APS Department Internship Coordinator
Week 10: submit Internship Activity Report;
submit Experience Provider Report
Week 11: weekly update to APS Department Internship Coordinator
Week 12: weekly update to APS Department Internship Coordinator
Week 13: submit Internship Activity Report;
submit Experience Provider Report
Week 14: submit Final Report (see details about the Final Report Information below);
complete Internship Office Self Evaluation (you will receive a notice to complete this from the internship office toward the end of the semester; your provider will receive a similar request, so make sure they are aware to complete that for you--these are separate from the APS Department reports)
This schedule can be accelerated or adapted for shorter or longer periods of time as needed. Please verify your intentions with
the Department Coordinator
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Documenting your Internship
the
Final Report
The most important aspect of experiential learning is the experience. Documenting it becomes important for you, to track the process of learning, and for the Department, to validate the credit awarded for the experience. There are several interesting ways to document a learning experience.
1. You can create a blog or website, and enter information at least weekly during the internship, then you will need only to summarize the final report in an email or create a word document to avoid including personal or proprietary information on a blog. Either way, you can show your learning experience, update photographs of your work, and measure your progress from beginning to end, in accordance with the final report outline.
2. You can create a powerpoint® or Prezi® that reflects the learning experience, and includes written and photographic documentation of all points of the final report outline.
3. You can create a thorough written word document that reports on all points of the final report outline. It is helpful if you include in your writing some photographic information as well.
If you have another idea of how you would like to report on the learning experienc, please get approval for your idea with the assigned APS Department Internship Coordinator so you have a clear path for successfully documenting and completing the internship. Your grade depends on the timely submission of all the reports, and particularly this final report.
This report must be submitted to the department coordinator (the person at BYUI who supervised your internship experience) at the conclusion of your internship experience so a grade can be determined for APS 398. The Internship Office will also email you, and ask you to complete an exit survey. Please make sure you complete it as soon as you are given notification. It is a good idea to keep a journal while on internship and draw from your journal entries for this final report. The Final Report is a collection of your experiences and observations.
Please review the following information at the beginning of your internship, and include it in your report:
Describe your internship provider, and supervisor, including names, background, education
Tell a little about the business
. Size of business - number and type of employees
. When established and background
. Location
. Nature of business
. Product and service lines
. Organizational structure (who is in charge, who makes decisions, etc.)
. Layout of Physical Facilities
Internship Provider management and business practices
. What were evidences of good management- planning, execution, evaluation
. Were the objectives of the firm clear?
. Were labor and management relations good?
. What is the firm doing especially well?
. Outline the routines of the business - personnel training, orientation, meetings, etc.
. Review any staff meetings and consultations between you and the management
. Were there seasonality problems in the business? How were these handled?
. What part of the business (depts., merchandise lines, service, etc.) Were most profitable?
. What type of advertising and sales promotion methods were used?
. Discuss special merchandising techniques used such as employee uniforms, plant identification signs, display techniques, etc.
. Was their record keeping system used to get information for management in decision making?
Your part of the experience
. Did you meet all of your Internship Objectives
. Did you have a rewarding experience?
. What did you do on the job that was most valuable?
. What new skills did you acquire?
. What leadership responsibilities were you given?
. Did you have adequate exposure to the management?
. Did you meet people in industry such as growers, salespeople, field reps, etc?
. How was your relationship with the other employees?
Connect this internship experience to your university education
. Were you adequately prepared for your internship experience?
. What courses best helped you to prepare yourself for the internship?
. List skills you learned at BYU Idaho that were especially useful while serving as an intern?
. What additional skills would have been helpful?
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There are several ways to reach me:
Email is usually the best way to reach your Department Internship Coordinator. You should also use your school email address. That is how I will communicate with the entire class--through the University email.
here's my email link: romneyb@byui.edu
I also have an alternate email address: romneyb@gmail.com
(In case the university email is not working)
If you need to send a hard copy, here are some other choices:
Fax to my computer: (208) 496-6017
APS Department on campus: Applied Plant Science Department Office: STC 320A 208 496-4581
Post: Ben Romney / BYUIdaho Applied Plant Science Department 525 S. Center 1410 Rexburg, ID 83460
Office phone and voicemai: (208) 496-4590
my mobile in case of urgency: 208 313-4287 (You can also text me at this number for your regular updates)
Please keep in touch.
The outcome of the internship is your responsibility. How you report about your educational experience, the timeliness of your reports, and the thoroughness with which you document your work will determine the final grade you receive.
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