Public Relations master's student Carli Marsh completed a PR internship for the Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority.
What Is an Internship?
An internship is a formal educational project in which students complete entry-level professional work closely related to their major. Together, the student, department, and a professional organization create a learning experience consistent with the student's major.
Opportunities
Opportunities are provided by the Career and Professional Education Center (CAPE) through BengalLink. For technical support, contact the CAPE.
For Students
Undergraduate Students
Internships are not required for graduation for our undergraduate students. However, internships are strongly recommended.
Graduate Students
Internships are required for graduate students enrolled in our Public Relations M.S. program; those students should sign up for COM 635 Internship in Public Relations.
Internship Placement
Students conduct internships closely related to their major.
- Public Relations and Advertising students generally intern in public relations departments of corporations, not-for-profit organizations, or governmental agencies.
- Media Production majors intern in radio and television stations, with audio or visual production companies, or at nonprofit organizations.
- Journalism majors intern in the editorial departments of area newspapers or magazines, or in radio or television newsrooms.
- Communication Studies majors intern in educational institutions, local businesses, the sports and recreation industry, not-for-profit organizations, or governmental agencies.
The department’s internship coordinator, Gabe DiMaio, advises students on internship availability and best practices for scheduling interviews. The department does not place interns.
Prerequisites
To qualify for an internship, students should be in good academic standing and have completed all academic major prerequisites the semester prior to their internship placement.
Major Prerequisites
Journalism, B.A.
- COM 303 Writing for Print and Online Journalism
- COM 338 Electronic News Reporting or COM 347 Electronic News Producing
Media Production, B.A.
- COM 304 Writing for Broadcast
- COM 312 Basic Media Production
Public Relations and Advertising, B.A.
- COM 301 Principles of Public Relations & Advertising
- COM 308 Public Relations Writing
Communication Studies, B.A.
Completion of two of the following categories that are related to the internship:
- Upper-Level Oral Communication - SPC 306 or SPC 307 or SPC 315
- Upper-Level Written Communication - COM 303 or COM 304 or COM 308 or COM 325 or COM 347 or COM 390
- Upper-Level Visual Communication - COM 312 or COM 322 or COM 336
Public Relations, M.S.
- COM 610 Public Relations Principles and Practice
- COM 621 Theories of Public Relations
- COM 631 Advanced Public Relations Writing
Requirements
Interns are expected to do entry-level professional work, monitored by the department and their internship supervisor.
Students must complete their internship requirements like any other academic course. In the case of internships, however, those requirements follow two tracks—the work completed for the internship and the work completed for the college.
- Complete 135 hours of professional site work
- Complete and submit a Weekly Progress Report to the academic site each week
- Obtain a mid-term evaluation and final evaluation from the professional site and submitting it to the academic site
- Write and submit a final report
- Attend Career and Professional Education Center workshops on interviewing skills, resume and cover letter development
- Submit Career and Professional Education Center workshop proof of attendance
To Apply
- Complete Internship Agreement
- Have your professional internship supervisor at the intern site sign off on the Internship Agreement
- Submit Internship Agreement to Gabe DiMaio, internship academic supervisor, at comminternships
@buffalostate.edu.
Internship Sequence
Weekly
- Keep track of your hours on the Weekly Progress Reports
- Email them to the internship coordinator.
- Include your professional site supervisor in the email in lieu of a signature.
- Keep a copy for yourself–for when it’s time to write your final report.
Mid-Term
About midway through your internship (about 65 hours in), please make a copy of the Mid-Term Evaluation for your academic supervisor to complete and share with you before you submit it to the internship coordinator via email.
End of Semester
- Make a copy of the Final Evaluation for your academic supervisor to complete
- Submit it to the internship coordinator via email.
- Please make sure your site supervisor gives you a recommended grade, which is needed to compute your final grade.
- Your Final Report is due at the end of the semester.
Final Report
At the end of the semester or term, student interns must turn in the following as a final report.
Along with all weekly reports and the midterm and final evaluations, this must be submitted before the department will award credit and a grade to the internship.
Part A
- Organization chart (top management down to hourly employees; short history of organization and ownership)
- Employee and management hiring practices
- Policy and practice (training, promotions, raises, reassignment, etc.)
- Employee professional benefits
Part B
- Resume (one page)
Part C
- Your analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of the internship
- Your discussion of the strengths and weaknesses of your academic preparation for the internship
- Your principal learning experiences in this internship
- Your thoughts on what you would do differently if you had an opportunity to do it over again.
Public Relations master's student William Reuter completed at his 2021 summer internship at Kaleida Health.