Academic Internships in Mathematics (MATH 388 and MTEC 388)

An Academic Internship is a course for academic credit which offers a student an individualized educational experience in conjunction with a structured employment situation. Academic credit is awarded for the educational component, not directly for the employment situation. The university policy for credit for internships can be found here.

To initiate an academic internship, students should arrange their structured employment situation first. With an internship offer in hand, students will then find a faculty member willing to supervise the academic component of the internship. The student and faculty will work together to request a 388 internship course (MATH 388 for math majors or MTEC 388 for math-econ majors) for department approval. International students on nonimmigrant student visas will need to complete curricular practical training (CPT) authorization in the process of 388 approval.

Student Procedures for Arranging an Academic Internship   

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  • STEP 0: Declared Major

    To receive MATH 388 credit, you must be a declared math major during the period of your internship experience. Likewise, to receive MTEC 388 credit, you must be a declared math econ major.

    • First year students seeking an academic internship during the summer must complete a separate Exception to Academic Policies petition to attempt to declare their major early. Such petitions are considered by the petitions committee individually and there is no guarantee the petition will be approved.
  • STEP 1: Secure an internship offer from an employer

    Secure an internship offer from an employer. Your employment role must clearly utilize and build upon the coursework for your major. You will be required to articulate connections between your major coursework and the internship experience to earn academic credit (see Standard Learning Objectives below).

    • If you are an F-1 student requiring CPT authorization for your internship, please visit this link and review the CPT Guide posted on the webpage for important guidelines and requirements. After reviewing the guide, please complete the Employment Statement, Student Statement, and the top portion of the Departmental Recommendation Form from the same webpage. Send these completed forms, along with a copy of your job offer, to the math department chair and Kathy Rothert before you proceed to Step 2 below.
  • STEP 2: Work in consultation with your faculty supervisor to set up expectations for your MATH/MTEC 388 course

    Work in consultation with your faculty supervisor to set up expectations for your MATH/MTEC 388 course. There are a few options that need to be decided in this process, regarding credits and required hours of academic component, learning outcomes, and procedures for assigning a grade. (See MATH / MTEC 388 Guidelines below).

    • If you do not require CPT authorization for your internship, you and your faculty supervisor should prepare an Internship Request Form and submit it to the math department for approval.
    • If you do require CPT authorization for your internship, your faculty supervisor will fill out the bottom portion of the Departmental Recommendation Form. The completed form will not be returned to you yet, rather your supervisor will submit it to the department chair and Kathy Rothert for review. You will get a copy of the Departmental Recommendation Form at the very end of the process, to ensure all requirements are met.
  • STEP 3: Await approval from the department and further instructions for enrolling in MATH/MTEC 388 courses on Bannerweb

    Once you have submitted the necessary form in Step 2, await approval from the department and further instructions for enrolling in MATH/MTEC 388 courses on Bannerweb. Note that if you opt for a 0-unit 388 course in the summer, you must register for a non-zero-unit MATH/MTEC 388 in the fall semester. If you are unable to enroll in the non-zero-unit 388 course at UR in the fall semester, you will not be eligible for the 0-unit option in the summer.

    • If you require CPT authorization for your internship, then after receiving your approved Departmental Recommendation Form, you must submit it, along with the Employment Statement and Student Statement to Krittika Onsanit in International Education. You will not be permitted to work until you are authorized to do so by International Education.

MATH / MTEC 388 Guidelines

The department has established the following expectations for a standard 0.25 unit MATH / MTEC 388 course. At the discretion of the supervising faculty member and approval of the department chair, these may be modified to fit a specific situation.

Standard Learning Objectives:

  • Students will be able to apply knowledge from major coursework to engage with knowledge / skills needed for their internship experience, integrating theory and practice.
  • Students will reflect on the impact their internship experience had on their interests, abilities, and goals for the remainder of their major coursework.
  • Students will demonstrate clear communication skills in articulating connections between major coursework and internship experience.

Standard Deliverables:

  • During the time of the internship, the student will keep a weekly journal of what they are learning on the job and they will meet with the faculty supervisor 2 or 3 times for a check-in. They will live-share the weekly journal using Box or Google Docs. If this is a summer internship, completion of this step earns grade of “S” for 0-unit MATH/MTEC 388 course.
  • After completion of the internship, the student will write a 2-3 page paper outlining what they learned, including reflections, addressing the first two learning objectives. They should use their weekly journal as a guide. After submission, the student and faculty supervisor will talk through the paper. For summer internships, this part of the academic component will be completed in the fall.
  • Completion of both weekly journal and written reflection results in a grade of P.

In reviewing the report, supervisors should also confirm that at least 37.5 hours (for 0.25 units) during the internship experience were related to the work featured in the report. For MATH / MTEC 388 courses with 0.5 units or more, additions to the deliverables are required (including appropriate increases in the hours spent on the academic component). The student and faculty supervisor will design these additions and gain approval by a departmental committee (generally consisting of the department chair and at least one other department faculty member).

 

Mathematics Internship Policies

  1. The internship can be paid or unpaid. For paid internships, credit is limited to 0.5 units or less.
  2. Time required: For one unit of credit, students are required to complete a minimum of 150 hours of work related to the academic component of the internship (during a 15-week semester, this is the equivalent of 10 hours/week), consisting of a combination of structured work experience, class time (if applicable) and independent work. For 0.25-unit credit, this translates to 37.5 hours of work.
  3. Grading: The course will typically be graded P/F. A 0.25-unit internship must be graded P/F. The supervising faculty member will evaluate the student’s work, including the deliverables, and submit a grade by the end of the semester. If needed, the faculty member may consult with the student’s work supervisor.
  4. University rules state that each student can obtain no more than 1.5 units of internship credit from any one department. Additionally, no more than 3.5 units of internship credit can be used toward graduation requirements.
Internship units will not count towards the mathematics major or minor or the mathematical economics major.