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Internship management policy

TABLE OF CONTENTS

I. Scope and Purpose

The Internship Management Policy (the Policy) outlines how internships are managed, supported and approved by VinUniversity. This policy applies to all full-time students and faculty and staff who are involved in the internship management process.

II. Policy Principles

  1. Internships should help students achieve their graduate attributes and provide them with an opportunity to gain work experience and develop employability skills.
  2. The University will provide students with the opportunity to participate in internships or internship-like experiences, and students will be responsible for meeting the requirements.
  3. Internships are a collaborative arrangement among VinUniversity, Host Organizations, and students, aligning with VinUniversity’s rules, policies, and values.
  4. Internships must be approved and managed by the Colleges in accordance with this policy to ensure quality and standard needed to provide a relevant and useful experience with a safe environment for students. See Appendix 1 for the Internship Approval process.
  5. Where internships are a mandatory component of a program, this must be clearly stated in the curriculum framework and listed as part of the program’s inherent requirements.

III. Policy Statements

1. Internship operational model

Type Internships may include full-time, part-time, clinical, professional, and industrial placements, both paid and unpaid, onshore or offshore. Experiences like voluntary work, industry-related problem-based learning, simulations, case studies, and field trips are not considered formal internships.
Sources Internships may be sourced by the student (independently), by VinUniversity (from available placements) or sourced directly for the student (structured internship programs).
Format Internships may be done onsite/directly or remotely/virtually as long as the internships provides a relevant experience, the students receive adequate training, and the supervisor provides regular communication/feedback.
Criteria to qualify as a valid internship
  1. Must be an extension of the classroom that provides for applying the knowledge gained in the classroom.
  2. The skills or knowledge learned must be transferable to other employment settings.
  3. Have a defined beginning and end with desired qualities.
  4. Have clearly defined learning objectives/goals related to the professional goals of the student’s academic coursework.
  5. Have supervision from VinUni with expertise and educational and/or professional background in the field of the experience.
  6. Have frequent feedback from the experienced supervisor to students and faculty advisors.
  7. Have resources, equipment, and facilities provided by the host employer/host organization/host startups that support learning objectives/goals.
Pre-requisites Before beginning a formal internship with the Host Organization, students are required to successfully complete the Fundamental Internship Readiness Program or an Internship Orientation Program.
Academic credit for internships An internship may be credit or non-credit bearing. Academic credit for internships can be taken up to twelve (12) credits per regular semester. Baseline requirements for Credit-Bearing Internships:

  1. Internship Request Form (IRF) completion by host site and approval by the College
  2. Must be an on-the-job learning experience.
  3. Registration within the first 3 weeks of the semester (except late adds and summer semester). Retroactive credit is not permitted.
  4. Have completed all required Foundation courses.
  5. For full-time internships: Minimum duration of each 7 weeks for Fall and Spring semesters and 6 weeks for summer semester.
  6. For part-time internships: Minimum duration of 240 hours each semester.
  7. Have 2.0 overall GPA, and all pre-requisites from supervising academic department.
  8. Student and Host Organization evaluations of learning objectives/outcomes plus a student reflection paper.
Grading All internships are graded either on Pass/Fail or Letter Grade, depending on the course syllabus. The grading scheme should be communicated with students prior to the internship.
Faculty mentoring, reporting and supervision Each student will be assigned with a Faculty mentor matching with the faculty expertise areas, to allow interaction between the faculty and the industry for research, executive education, and consultancy projects etc. See Appendix 2 for the Faculty mentor allocation, reporting and supervision.
Withdrawal from an Internship Permission is only granted in cases of serious illness, serious personal affliction or for approved academic issues.

Before the Internship starts After the Internship starts
– Notify at least 2 weeks prior to the start date so that the University have ample time to notify the Host Organization. – Immediately notify the Office of Career Services or the Faculty Internship Mentor.
– Based on the circumstances and reason for withdrawal, the Program Director and the Faculty Mentor will determine the final outcome of the course.
Students who leave an internship without permission
– be assigned a grade of “F-Fail” on the course
– be dropped from subsequent internship courses.
– be required to withdraw from the internship program and are no longer eligible to receive the Internship designation, regardless of the number of work terms completed.
Dismissal from an Internship Students may be removed from their internships at any time, either at the request of their home College or their Host Organization. In this situation, students are required to meet with the Program Director/Faculty Mentor who will determine the outcome. Circumstances that could lead to dismissal include, but are not limited to:

  1. Pre-requisite courses not successfully completed.
  2. Exceeding the number of permissible unexcused absences
  3. Inappropriate/ Unprofessional behaviours and/or behaviours (absenteeism, leaving the internship prematurely, not submitting reports, or misconduct at the workplace, etc).
Other authority from University and College over Internship Colleges may assess any student’s readiness, fitness, and suitability to begin or to continue or to defer or to withdraw from an approved internship in accordance with the current regulations. Colleges will provide guidance and support for the student include finding an alternative arrangement that will meet the requirements of their course or, where appropriate, transferring to a course without these requirements.

2. Student responsibilities and expectations from University

  • Students are accountable for their actions and interactions with host organizations. They must adhere to VinUniversity’s Student Code of Conduct, as well as follow the rules and procedures of the host organization, in addition to fulfilling any legal obligations.
  • Students participating in VinUni-sponsored or VinUni-facilitated international internships, would be required to sign a Hold Harmless and Code of Conduct agreement before they depart.
  • Students are encouraged to disclose to their College (and/or university placement supervisor as appropriate) any matter that may affect their ability to undertake their internship as soon as it becomes known. Students are responsible for disclosing any known risks to their safety or the safety of others. See appendix 3 for Internship Grievance procedure.
  • Students must be informed/aware of any additional insurance requirements before getting approved internship.
  • Students are expected to uphold standards of intellectual honesty and professional conduct. Actions that could tarnish the University’s reputation should be avoided. Disregard for these norms may lead to disciplinary measures.
  • Students must follow their host organization’s dress code, professional guidelines, and punctuality rules.

IV. Roles and Responsibilities

Internship Host Organization The organization, business, or entity that offers an organized hands-on educational experience for a student intern. The internship host organization is expected to allocate a supervisor to the student intern who will assign tasks to the student intern and have at least 2 feedback meetings at the middle and the end of the internship.
Host Organization Supervisor The practicing professional designated to provide direct, in-person or virtual supervision to the intern while s/he is at the internship host site or interning virtually.
Program Director The faculty in charge of overseeing their student internships to ensure successful and valuable learning experience for the students.
Director of Career Services / Faculty in charge of Internships at VinUniversity Colleges College designee who evaluates and approves internships for academic credit based on departmental criteria. This person often administers the internship class for the department or academic program.
Faculty Mentor Be responsible for evaluating student work and site supervisor feedback to determine a for-credit internship grade. The experience being supervised must be pre-approved for academic credit by the faculty member’s department (typically through the chair).
Office of Career Services A Career Services staff member is dedicated to supporting and implementing the internship program. This person serves as the central point of contact for organizations wishing to post or create an internship opportunity. Additional responsibilities include facilitating Internship Preparation Workshops, meeting with students, and consulting with academic departments regarding internships.

 V. Related Documents and Forms

Appendices:

  • Appendix 1: Internship approval procedure
  • Appendix 2: Faculty mentor allocation, reporting and supervision
  • Appendix 3: Internship Grievance procedure

Forms:

Appendix 1: Internship approval procedure

# Step Description Timeline PIC Note
1 Validate potential Internship Host Organization for internship Send Internship Request Form (IRF) to potential Internship Host Organization via email or from CSM system After receiving request from students/ collaborators Career Services staff
2 Submit for academic credit Potential host organization submits the Internship Request Form (IRF) to the Career Services designated contact via CSM system or email depending on which format the academic department is using Depend on agreed time line Potential host organization’s contact person Approval must be obtained from VinUniversity before the internship begins. Timings and expectations for sourcing internships should be clearly outlined to students to allow sufficient time for these approvals to take place.
Verifies that the IRF is complete in its entirety then sends the IRF to the appropriate person in charge according to the DOA for academic credit approval 1 week after receiving IRF from host organization Career Services designated contact
3 Approve for academic credit Approve internship for academic credit 1 week after receiving submission Designated approver by DOA
4 Notify students, companies and achieve documents Notify student about the decision and achieve documents on CSM. The CSM system database will serve as the centralized management system of internship opportunities and contacts for VinUniversity. 1 week after receiving approval Career Services designated contact Not all internships posted on the CSM database will be for academic credit. Students must follow-up with their College’s Director of Students Success or Career Services to determine eligibility for academic credit on a case-by-case basis

Appendix 2: Faculty mentor allocation, reporting and supervision

# Step Description Timeline PIC Note
1 Assign faculty mentor Each student will be assigned with a Faculty mentor to allow interaction After internship approved Director of Career Services at each Colleges
2.1 Communicate between host company and faculty mentor –Initiation stage Introduce the assigned faculty to the organization as well as to the student interns After assigned faculty to students Director of Career Services at each Colleges
2.2 Set expectations about the Objectives, Scope, Methodologies to be followed, and Deliverables from the internship with the reporting manager of the host organization College’s faculty mentor The faculty mentor should be required the host organization to provide copies of the company’s code of conduct, confidentiality, and sexual harassment policies.
2.3 Prepare a short write-up documenting these elements and get it signed by both the reporting manager of the host organization & the faculty mentor Students
3 Mid-term Checkpoint Conduct a mid-term review of the progress of the internships: Faculty mentor make at least one visit to the workplace of the student for a meeting with the organization to review the progress made by the student and to build up long term relationship between VinUniversity and the organization typically around 4-5 weeks after commencement. Faculty Mentor Mid-term progress report template: Form 1.
4 Closure
  • Report/Presentation of internship completion
  • Obtain a letter of completion from the host organization.
  • Submit the letter and the report to the College and Career Service Office
 After 2 weeks of internship completion Students Form 2
  • Engage the organization to receive the feedback and record
  • Assign an appropriate rating/grade as per the grading norms of VinUniversity
 2 weeks after students submit report Faculty Mentor

Appendix 3: Internship Grievance policy and procedures

Students are urged to report any misconduct or sexual harassment incident against them (including physical, safety, and personnel) as soon as possible to their Faculty Mentor to permit both the University and the Host Organization the opportunity to promptly intervene. The following steps should be taken by each functions:

1. Students
  • Fill out a Statement of Internship Grievance form (Form 3)
  • File the form (either in person, or online as an email attachment) with Career Services office
  • Follow through on all suggested interventions
2. Career Services Office
  • Temporarily deactivate the employer/student account in CSM system
  • Sent email to the complainant explaining the Internship Grievance Policy and requesting completion of the Statement of Internship Grievance
  • Notify College’s Director of Career Services and faculty mentor if the internship is credit-bearing
  • Contact VinUniversity’s Legal and Compliance Department for assistance in facilitating the intervention(s)
  • Refer to VinUniversity’s Discipline Committee if it is deemed that the student may have violated any Code of Conduct policies.
  • Document and keep all interactions during the intervention in the Office of Career Services and proceed according to VinUniversity policy
3. Faculty mentor
  • Providing guidance to the student on how to address the Host Organization
  • Contacting the student and Site Supervisor to establish a formal meeting to present the allegations.
  • Removing the intern from his/her internship site if necessary. The Faculty Mentor will determine the most effective resolution regarding any academic credit impact on student

 

Status and Details

The Internship Management Policy (the Policy) outlines how internships are managed, supported and approved by VinUniversity. This policy applies to all full-time students and faculty and staff who are involved in the internship management process.

Reference Number:

VUNI.55

Document Type:

Policy

Issuing By:

Taskforce, Planning and Academic Administration, Alumni, Industry & Development Department

Issuing Date:

Dec 26, 2023

Applying for:

All VinUniversity

Security Classification:

Public