• What is an Internship?

    An internship is a career preparation activity in which students are placed at a worksite for a defined period of time to participate in and observe work firsthand within a given industry. Unlike work experience, internships often allow students to rotate through a number of departments and job functions. Internships provide the student an opportunity to “test-drive” career possibilities, to gain experience in the field they are interested in pursuing, determine if they have an interest in a particular career, create a network of contacts, and gain school credit. An internship is an excellent way to determine if the industry and the profession is the best career option to follow before investing a lot of time and money in training and education. How Do I Sign Up?
    This program is designed for students in the 11th and 12th grade
    The internship must directly relate to the industry or major the student plans on pursuing after high school.
    Students applying for an internship should have a minimum GPA of 2.0 and should not have more than 5 absences.
    See Mrs. Joyner in Student Services to pick up an application.


    How do I find a company to intern with?

    Internship Sources:
    Your family's contacts and family friend's contacts are usually the best sources for providing information on potential internship sites. Having family members reach out to their contacts is a great way to use networking to find an internship site. This source is often the easiest way to secure an internship because in most cases, family friends already know you and what kind of student you are.
    Another way to find internship site is to complete an Internet search using Google to find local companies of the type you would like to intern with. Once you find companies or organizations that you are interested in, you will need to contact a decision maker at that company/organization to see if they will host you as an intern.
    You can also use one of the following sites to find companies/organizations:
    www.bbb.org (search for companies in the Raleigh-Durham area)
    www.raleighchamber.org (look at the business directory)
    www.wakeforestchamber.org. (look at the business directory)

    Once you find a potential company…
    Option I: Dress up like you are going in for an interview and visit the business. You can explain who you are and that you are interested in completing an internship. Use the email script below to help prepare for what you will say.
    Option II: You can send an email to a specific person at that company/ organization, requesting an internship.
    Note: Although Option I may sound more difficult, it is often more successful. It is much easier to say “No” to an email then it is to someone’s face. It also shows that you are taking the initiative to get yourself out there.

    Sample Email to Request an Internship:
    Below is a rough draft of an email you could send to an organization or company who may be a potential internship site (you are welcome to alter the email to suit your needs). Make sure you fill in the company name in the spots that I underlined, and customize the greeting with the name of the person you are sending it to (i.e. Mr. Smith:)

    You should try to send your email to a specific person, not a general company email address. To determine who to send it to, look up the company or organization on the Internet, go to their website and try to find an email address for one of the decision makers, such as the owner, manager, office manager, or partner. If you cannot find a specific person on their Internet site, call the company and explain to the person who answers the phone that you are inquiring about an internship and would like to know who to send your request to. Try to get the person's name, email address and phone number. Once you have a name and an email address, send an email like the one below to that person and be prepared to follow-up by phone. Make sure you write down who you sent it to, so that you know who to follow up with.

    When you send the email, send a copy to Mrs. Joyner at sjoyner@wcpss.net so that if the company decides to contact Mrs. Joyner, she will know who they are calling about. If you have any questions, please see Mrs. Joyner in student services, before school, during lunch, or after school.

    Mr./Ms. _______________ (send it to someone specific so you know who to follow-up with)

    I am a student at Wakefield High School. Our school offers students the opportunity to participate in an unpaid internship with a business or organization for a high school class credit. Wake County Public Schools and the state of North Carolina encourage students to participate in work based learning experiences while we are still in high school because they believe that students will be better able to choose a future career, and will likely have a more rewarding post-secondary education experience if students are better prepared in high school through participating in real world experiences such as internships and job-shadowing.

    I am very much interested in completing an internship at _name of the company because (list your reasons).

    I am writing to determine if your company can accommodate me by hosting me as an intern for one school semester? I would be happy to provide a resume and would be willing to interview with you. During the internship I will need to complete 135 hours of on the job experience, under the direction of a mentor from your organization. In addition, Wake County Public Schools maintains liability insurance for all interns. I will be happy to provide a copy of the insurance policy.

    During the internship, as a student intern I would be expected to:
    Develop and complete learning objectives (with my mentor).
    Track and complete of a minimum of 135 contact hours. Hours are maintained on a timesheet.
    Complete at least 10 written journal entries - reflective of the learning experience.
    Maintain regular communication with the Internship Coordinator at Wakefield High School, Mrs. Joyner (sjoyner@wcpss.net)
    Mrs. Joyner will complete one site visit during the internship.
    After the internship I will:
    Develop a summary of the internship experience in PowerPoint, Prezi or through a video.
    Present the electronic summary to a group in the Wakefield Community.
    Complete an evaluation about the internship experience.
    Ask my mentor to complete an evaluation, rating my performance during the internship.
    Based on completion, the Internship Coordinator, Mrs. Joyner, will award a grade and class credit to my high school transcript.
    Do you think this might be something you would consider at name of the company? As a next step, I would be happy to meet with you, or your designee. Thank you so much for considering this opportunity. Should you wish to speak with the Wakefield High School Internship Coordinator, Mrs. Joyner, her telephone number is 919-562-3657.

    Thank you so much,

    Sign the email with your first and last name.
    On the line below your name type out your email address
    Below that line type out a phone number where you can be reached


    For Current Interns....

    Ms. Joyner's Edmodo Site

    F4K Portfolios