Prerequisites

Everyone who wants to secure an Internship must satisfy these general pre-requisites. You must: be an RTF major, have 75 earned credit hours, and you must have a 2.5 GPA.
Next, you must have taken or be currently enrolled in the following courses

• Production Specialization
• College Comp I
• College Comp II
• Media Aesthetics
• Sound Communication
• TV Production 1
• Film Production 1

• Critical Studies in a non-production setting
• College Comp I
• College Comp II
• Media Aesthetics

**In rare cases you may be approved for an Internship without fulfilling all of these Pre-Reqs. This approval must come from your Faculty Advisor, The RTF Internship Coordinator, and the Internship site.

Forms

1. RTF Department Internship Approval For

• Every intern must fill out the RTF Internship Approval Form and return it to the RTF Internship Coordinator before registering for the internship class and starting the internship.Here is the link to the form.

2. Verification Letter

 

Many internship sites require a verification letter from the Internship Coordinator confirming that the student intern is:

• A full time student
• A RTF major
• Officially Registered in a credit-bearing course

After you have filled out the RTF Internship Approval Form and turned it in to the Internship Coordinator, you can request that the Internship Coordinator send a verification letter to your internship site supervisor or the appropriate person. The letter will be sent on RTF Department letterhead and be signed by the Internship Coordinator.

Required Rowan Work

Fall - Spring Semester Internships First Class: You will meet with the Internship Coordinator as a class the first week of the semester, then we will not meet again. The Internship Coordinator will contact you on the time for the First Class meeting. Summer Internships All interns are required meet with the Internship Coordinator during the spring semester to confirm the internships and review the paperwork. Your grade will consist of 4 elements:

1. A daily log of what you have done for all of the 120 or 240 hours of the internship. This log must be typed and detailed.
2. A 4 - 5 Page Paper that describes in detail your Internship. This should include your thoughts on the value of the experience, and any thoughts you might have on how the experience could be better.
3.  Include a Portfolio of your work. The Portfolio might consist of video, audio, hard copy, web pages, scripts, etc. Examples of these Portfolios are available in the RTF Internship Coordinator's office and the RTF Office.
4. An Official Evaluation by your Internship Supervisor on your performance. I will contact your Supervisor for an evaluation. These evaluations are confidential.

After your Internship has ended, complete the Daily Log, write the 4 - 5 page paper, and assemble the Portfolio. You can put them in the RTF Internship Coordinator's mailbox in Bozorth Hall or drop them off at the RTF Office in Bozorth. All work is due by the end of Finals week of each semester or by August 31 for summer internships.

Finding an Internship

Finding an Internship You are responsible for finding your own internship. That said, there is a lot you and Rowan can do to assist you on your search. Here is a checklist for you. Give it a lot of thought.

1. Self Analysis

Before you begin your search you should take time to think what you want to gain out of an internship. With RTF Department approval, you can take up to 9 credits of internships.

• Where you live determines a lot. Do you have adequate transportation?
• Do you want to do the Philly/South Jersey area or the NYC/North Jersey area.
• Do you want to do a Fall/Spring semester internship or a summer internship? Or both?
• If you love production then begin there. Do you see yourself at a TV station, a Radio station, a production company, a broadcast/web series show, a corporation's media department, a hospital's media services area, an ad agency, or some other place where media is being made and used/distributed.
• Evaluate your skills honestly. Evaluate your personality honestly. A lot of internships unfold in high-pressure environments. Hard deadlines, working with others, punctuality, positive attitude, and a strong work ethic are required.
• If you have questions schedule a meeting with the Internship Coordinator.

2. The Search

• Talk to seniors who have taken successful internships. Pick their brains.
• Talk to your Faculty Advisor and/or the Internship Coordinator about your skills, goals, and passions.
• The WEB. Ultimately the WEB will be the most important tool in your search. Every company you are interested in will have a web site that showcases what they do. On their web site will be a path for applying for an internship. Sometimes it is hard to find that path, so keep trying.
• Radio Stations. If you love radio, then you might search various radio venues, although you need to understand that most radio internships place you in the promotions department and you will be handing out a lot of give-aways at promotional events. Still, there are other opportunities at radio stations if you search hard enough.
• TV stations. TV station interns usually end up working in the news, programming, spots, or creative services departments. TV stations like interns who are web savvy and can work on their ever-changing web pages.
• Production Companies. They do a variety of productions ranging from feature films, episodic TV, reality TV, commercials, music videos, corporate TV, and many others. The companies are large (lots of productions), medium ( a few projects), and small (one style of production).
• New Media/Web companies. These sites are concerned with developing web sites and social media support. They include all forms of New Media. Often they are specialized in something. They are looking for web skills in all their forms.
• Many Others. There is no limit to where you can intern as long as they are a legitimate company involved in creating, managing, distributing media in some way. The Internship Coordinator will approve all companies for an internship.

Good Luck!

Resumes

Resumes and Cover Letters All internship sites will require you to submit a resume and cover letter before you are selected for an interview. That makes it very important for you to understand what resumes and cover letters are.

1. Resumes Because you are RTF majors and will be working in the media world, your resume needs to showcase your skills and accomplishments. There are many resume formats. Here are some links to some examples of successful Rowan RTF student resumes. There are some rules you should follow:

Resumes should only be 1-page long. The people looking at the resumes don't have a lot of time. It's an unwritten rule that 1-page is enough for an intern application. So don't fight the system.\

 

Make sure you include:

 

• Your technical skills. Equipment you can operate. Editing Software skills. Computer programs you can use: Photoshop, web Press, Director, Illustrator, etc. Web site creation and social media understanding are huge plusses in your background.
• Your accomplishments since High School. Internship companies are very interested in what you have done/are doing in college. List the productions, both in and out of the classroom, that you have been involved in, along with what you did in the production.
• Awards and Scholarships you have won or been part of.
• Club Activity. RTN, Cinema Workshop, WGLS-FM, others. Mention any leadership roles you have played.
• Work History. Mention ALL jobs you have worked regularly. Employment proves you have worked in a structured situation.

2. Cover Letters Cover letters are submitted with your resume to the internship site. Sometimes your cover letter is e-mail text with your resume attached. Sometimes a separate letter is required. Either way, in the letter make sure you:

       • Show your passion for media production.
       • Reference what the company does in your letter. That proves you know who they are and what they do.
       • Spell check and grammar check your letter. Poor writing skills will lose you an internship.