Steps in Obtaining an Internship
Assure that you meet the requirements for Criminal Justice Internship enrollment:
- Must have completed CJUS 2100: Crime and Justice in the U.S.
- Received a favorable grade in the introductory Criminal Justice course (CJUS 2100 or equivalent).
- Completion of at least 12 additional hours of Criminal Justice courses.
- Departmental consent to participate.
- Secured internship placement at least one week prior to the semester beginning.
- Completion and submission of enrollment form and Liability Release (download from this website or obtain at the department).
- Completion of personal resume, personal statement, and Internship Completion form prior to beginning internship (ASAP).
Contact Dr. Blackburn to obtain department consent to enroll in the course.
Enroll in CJUS 4850 for either 3 (120 contact hours) or 6 (240 contact hours) credit hours.
- For Fall and Spring semesters, 3 credits equates to 1 eight-hour shift a week, 6 credits to 2 shifts for 15 weeks.
- For summer enrollment, students will generally have 10-11 weeks for contact hour completion which means increased weekly shifts.
- You will have to specify how many credits when you enroll, it defaults to one credit and you must change this when signing up for the course online.
Set up your internship with a criminal justice agency.
- You are free to set up the internship yourself or consult with Dr. Blackburn to obtain a list of agencies and contacts. Even if you set up the internship yourself, you must be approved by Dr. Blackburn to participate in the internship program for course credit. Remember, you will need to secure a placement at least one week prior to the semester beginning.
- If you are interested in a federal internship, you should start this process well in advance as you will have to clear a background check and complete paperwork.
- You can intern with any agency, as long as it is criminal justice-related.
- If you need a letter or other documentation indicating that you have been approved to participate in the internship program, please let Dr. Blackburn know ASAP.
Work your internship while maintaining the course requirements and communicating with Dr. Blackburn.
- Please consult the syllabus for specific requirements.
- This includes time sheets, weekly journals, summary term paper, and other correspondence.
Complete the final requirements for the Internship course and submit final documentation and paperwork to Dr. Blackburn.
- Please consult the syllabus for specific requirements.
- Dr. Blackburn will handle the end-of-internship evaluation with your agency; you will not handle the form.