These changes include asserting control over what is called an internship, requirements for academic components in internships, and requirements for evaluation of the experience. The rest of the discussion concerned possibilities for some sort of academic credit for internships. If suitably supervised, internships have strong academic components and so merit credit in the same way as other academic experiences. Local internships that take place during the academic semester are difficult to fit into an already full schedule as add-ons. If they are considered as part of the academic schedule students are more likely to have time for them, and to take them more seriously.
Some employers require students to receive credit for the internship.
A general discussion of this idea followed. The Committee was in general receptive to the idea, but expressed some concerns. Several members of the committee worried about diluting the academic program with experiential elements like internships. Another suggested including internships within the cap of 5 ExCo credits. Some worried about the possibility of students being paid for interships and pointed to the current policy of not allowing students to receive money and credit for the same activity.