Urban Studies Internships

 

All Urban Studies majors are required to complete an internship over the course of their study. This ‘real world’ complement to academic studies allows students to gain practical experience with the theories and issues they encounter in their classes. The internship also allows the student to explore potential career paths, gain valuable work experience, develop contacts in the professional world, and prepare for summer fellowship experiences, honors thesis research, or senior project work.

The internship must consist of substantive work. Students work with a supervisor, establish learning goals, and create products – such as papers, reports, presentations, or models – demonstrating that they have achieved those goals. In accordance with university policy, internship credit is awarded upon completion of the final deliverable for the internship. No transfer credit is awarded for internships.

The Urban Studies Internship Guide provides more details on internship criteria and how to get credit for internships. For the most up-to-date information, please consult an Urban Studies adviser.

Criteria for the Capstone Internship:

• The minimum time commitment is 80 hours, to be completed over approximately 10 weeks. Students are encouraged to work with their organization longer than 10 weeks, but the 80-hour minimum should not be spread out over a longer period, except in special cases such as research projects.
• Internships must be completed before the beginning of winter quarter of senior year, or two quarters before graduation.
• Urban Studies majors may conduct their internship in an office of a government agency or a non-profit/community organization relevant to the major.
• Students who intern for a for-profit business may receive credit for URBANST 194, but not for URBANST 201A or B.
• Recommended: Meet with the Program Manager for Service Learning and submit the Placement Objectives Agreement prior to the internship.

How to Fulfill Capstone Requirements:

• Complete an internship in the Spring Quarter while enrolled in URBANST 201B;
• Enroll in an approved service-learning course such as URBANST 164 or ANTHRO 112;
• Propose an independent internship and receive credit through URBANST 201A;
• Complete an Urban Studies Summer Fellowship or a fellowship offered through the Haas Center and receive credit through URBANST 201A; OR
• Conduct research with the guidance of a faculty mentor.

Capstone Seminar Internships

Students are encouraged to complete their internship while enrolled in Urban Studies 201B (Spring Quarter) as they carry out their internships. Students choose their internship site in winter quarter of their junior year based on their areas of personal and research interest, and many will draw on aspects of their research proposals in selecting and carrying out their internships. Every student in URBANST 201B must have an internship site selected and approved by the end of winter quarter.

The sequence of the proposal seminar in winter followed by internship in spring enables students to build an internship experience that reflects their personal and research interests. Your internship can also help you reflect on your research questions and methods, provide you with contacts in the field, and help you obtain funding for specialized research grants, such as a faculty-student fellowship for community-based research.

Past internship sites have included:

• A small community development organization working with the Pacific Islander community in San Francisco.
• An education and training program for youth within or at-risk of entering the juvenile justice system.
• The environmental planning department of a local city government.
• A network for direct community organizing around issues of neighborhood safety in San Francisco.
• An urban design non-profit that solicits public participation in order to design sustainable neighborhood plans that meet residents’ specific needs.

Academic-Year Internships

For students completing internships outside of URBANST 201B, communication with the Program Manager for Service Learning is required. All internship criteria apply. Students must complete the basic Placement Objectives Agreement.

With prior approval, students may complete their internship under the auspices of one of the following:

• Stanford in Washington: SIW includes a substantive internship in a wide range of governmental and non-governmental organizations.

• Stanford Overseas Programs: Students who are enrolled in or completed an overseas program may have access to overseas internship opportunities in their country of study.

• The Archaeology Program sponsors an internship through ANTHRO 112, Public Archaeology: Market Street Chinatown Archaeology Project. This is an especially appropriate internship option for students in the Cities in Comparative and Historical Perspective Concentration. Contact Prof. Barbara Voss for more information.

Students may also propose an independent internship through URBANST 194. Students who are interested in setting up their own internship should contact the Program Manager for Service Learning and complete the basic Placement Objectives Agreement. See Online Resources for links to organizations and government agencies.

Summer Internship and Fellowship Opportunities

Whether you are planning your first internship, you want to continue a project you began as an intern during the year, or you want to try working in a different organization - summer is a great time to work as an intern. Summer internships usually allow for more substantive work since students are able to work more hours, and there are often opportunities to secure funding for a summer internship.

Urban Studies Program Summer Fellowship

The Urban Studies Fellowship provides undergraduates with the opportunity to complement their academic studies with a full-time, paid, internship experience. For majors this experience fulfills the capstone requirement in the major. Learn more.

Haas Center Fellowships

The Haas Center for Public Service offers summer fellowships that fund students’ work in a variety of public service endeavors. Many, though not all, Haas fellowships can translate into internship experiences that meet the Urban Studies internship criteria. The following is a list of fellowships commonly pursued by Urban Studies students, though we recommend students explore the full list of fellowship offerings.

• Urban Summer and Daher Memorial Fellowship: Fellows have the opportunity to spend a summer working at an organization addressing urban issues.
• Public Interest Law Fellowship: Fellows have the opportunity to spend a summer working fulltime in the field of public interest law.
• Philanthropy Fellowship:
  The Philanthropy fellowships provide fulltime, nine-week placements in various Bay Area foundations.
• Education and Youth Development Fellowship:
  Fellows spend the summer doing direct service as staff of Haas Center programs for local youth. Fellows work with either East Palo Alto Stanford Academy (EPASA) or the Upward Bound Program.
• Stanford In Government:
  SIG provides students with meaningful exposure to the public policy process by placing them in government and nonprofit agencies in the Bay Area, Sacramento, Washington D.C., and internationally.

Applications for the Urban Studies Program Fellowship and Haas Center Fellowships are due in early February. Please allow sufficient time to arrange a placement, solicit letters of recommendation, and write your proposal.

Online Resources

 

Contacts

Deland Chan

Program Manager for Service Learning

Office: Bldg 120, Room 210D

(650) 724-6252

deland@stanford.edu

 

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