EUSA Summer Interns 2015
Catherine Kehoe
Hi all at Coder Dojo DCU HQ,
I’m contacting you from an education organisation, EUSA Dublin, which arranges unpaid internships for American college students looking for work experience in exchange for academic credits.
We have placed our students within various areas & industries before, and the feedback from those organisations has been overwhelmingly positive. We have a few this year who are interested in gaining some experience in the Coding/ UI/ UX/ Education industry - they are looking for any experience they can get, with a hands-on approach, they are all open to doing some admin/ marketing etc tasks also. I wondered if you could take on one (or more) for 6-8 weeks over the Summer - from the start of June onwards)?
I have included more detailed information about our programme below for your information.
If you feel that you may be interested in participating in our programme by taking on an unpaid intern, please let me know and we can arrange a time to discuss the process in more detail at your convenience.
This could be either over the phone or at your offices, depending on what suits you best.
Thanks for your time in reading this and I look forward to hearing from you.
Best wishes,
Catherine
EUSA internships are…
• UNPAID
• Undertaken for academic credit
• Covered by a professional liability insurance
• For university students between 20 and 23 y.o.a.
• Usually for 4 or 5 days per week for 6-8 weeks
• Include housing and social programmes organized by EUSA
• Subject to approval at interview by supervisor
WHO ARE EUSA?
EUSA – European Study Abroad is the largest independent provider of placements in Europe, with offices and staff in five cities. We place more than 2,100 students per year in a broad spectrum of industries.
THE STUDENTS
The students come from competitive universities all over the USA. They are normally ‘juniors’ (3rd year) or ‘seniors’ (4th year) and some are graduates. This means that the average age of our students is 21 years. Experience has shown that students accepted onto programmes in Dublin are mature, motivated, and enthusiastic. They are capable of undertaking real responsibilities and demanding work.
Students who come on the programme have often had considerable related work experience in the USA either as employees or as interns (i.e. working in a firm or organisation during their summer holidays). They arrive, therefore, with high expectations and hope to take on a range of duties and projects – after a period of getting to know the organisation. They do appreciate, however, that they must be adaptable and willing to do whatever is asked of them and that some of the placements will involve fairly routine tasks.
THE PLACEMENT PROCESS
Placements are made by working with each student on an individual basis. The Placement Team makes a considerable effort to match each student to an appropriate placement and to monitor the students throughout the semester.
Placements are undertaken for academic credit from their home university and are strictly unpaid. In addition to their duties at work, students will also have some form of academic work to submit for credit: anything ranging from a portfolio of their work and a critical analysis of their on-the-job experience to 35 page research papers. Depending upon the programme, students may also attend classes in the evenings or one day per week (usually Friday).
Placements range in duration from 5 to 14 weeks, with 8 weeks being the average length. Students work a “full day” (however the placement organisation defines that) either Monday through Thursday or Monday through Friday, depending upon the academic component of their programme. We can accommodate non-standard working hours for organisations that require them, and students are always encouraged to work late when required (provided this doesn’t interfere with academic commitments).
THE NEXT STEP
If your organisation would be interested in participating in our programme, we would be delighted to provide you with further information. Initially you should contact our Placement Team. You can do this online by going to our website (http://www.eusa-edu.com/companies/english/request-a-student.html), or simply telephone us. After discussing the type of experience you feel you might be able to offer a student, the Placement Team will match you up with a suitable student and forward the details about that student. We would then arrange an interview between you and the student. If the interview is satisfactory to both parties, a starting date can then be confirmed.
PLACEMENTS
To give you an indication of the range of placements our students undertake, here is a list of the categories of agencies that have taken students:
BUSINESS/ECONOMICS/LAW: Banks, Stockbrokers, Law Firms, Legal Centres, Management and Financial Consultancies
POLITICS: Local Government, Pressure Groups, Think Tanks, Lobby Organisations, Political Public Relations, Political Parties
COMMUNICATIONS: Television Stations, Radio, Independent Production Companies, Advertising Agencies, Public Relations Companies, Newspapers, Magazines, Publishing Houses, Marketing Agencies
PSYCHOLOGY, HEALTH CARE, AND SOCIAL POLICY: Voluntary Organisations, Local Authority Social Services, After-Care Facilities, Occupational Therapy, Physical Therapy, Counselling Services, Hospitals
THE ARTS: Commercial Galleries, Auction Houses, Museums, Architectural Firms, Design Companies, Arts Campaigning Groups, Theatre Companies, Music & Dance Companies, Art Centres, Film and Photographic Archives, Event Production Companies
HOSPITALITY: Hotels, Airlines, Travel and Tourism Public Relations Firms, Tourist Boards, Tour Guide Companies, Tourism Publications
PLACEMENT SUPERVISORS
Normally one person in an organisation would become the supervisor for the student’s placement period, acting as a contact person between EUSA and the organisation and overseeing the student’s work during the placement. The Placement Directors at EUSA like to maintain close contact with the placement supervisors including on-site visits as and when convenient, along with regular contact via telephone or email to stay informed as to the intern’s progress. We ask that placement supervisors complete a short report on the student’s performance at the end of the placement period. We also produce guidelines for supervisors to help them gain maximum benefit from the placement, which can be viewed on our website: http://www.eusa-edu.com/companies/english/placement-supervisors/28-companies/companies-english/120-guidelines.html
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Catherine Kehoe
Dublin Placement Manager
EUSA – Academic Internship Programs
The Capel Building
Suite 335
Mary's Abbey
Dublin 7
Tel. +353 (1) 894 3353
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