Supervisor Internship Guide

Hospitality and Tourism Management

Table of Contents

Updated October 2024

Overview

Internships, defined as robust learning opportunities in which students gain professional experience under the guidance and mentorship of an expert in the field, are a core academic component of the College of Charleston's Hospitality and Tourism program. Majors, Minors and Concentrations in Hospitality and Tourism are all required to complete a 120-hour (3 credit hour) internship as part of their program of study. Students may choose to participate in an internship during the fall, spring, or summer semesters of their senior year. Students may complete more than one internship for credit if so desired.

An important component of the Hospitality and Tourism Management program at the College of Charleston is the work experience students gain while outside the classroom. It is our aim to give our students the tools they need not only academically, but also professionally, to become future leaders in the industry. Credit-based Internships are experiences in which interns learn new technological skills, have access to meetings and other activities to observe the operations and governance of organizations and businesses, that provide learning and skill-based oversight by the internship site supervisor, and where the site supervisor and/or staff work closely with the student to fulfill their learning goals.

WORKING WITH STUDENTS

There are numerous ways, other than for-credit internships, for an organization to work with our students and provide hands-on opportunities for experiential learning, including:

PAID PART-TIME OR CONTRACT WORK

Are you looking for a student to provide a service that is largely autonomous and requires existing skills and expertise? We strongly encourage you to offer this as a paid hourly or contract position as opposed to an internship. We are happy to talk with you about pay rates and structure, and we can share the opportunity directly with students. 

Send an email to Jeremy Clement ClementJ@cofc.edu with the position description, and we will distribute it to our students and on our social media channels. You may also consider sharing the opportunity on Handshake to reach a broader campus audience.

INTERNSHIP

Are you looking to train the next generation of Hospitality and Tourism students and offer significant mentorship and guidance to undergraduate students? Has your organization hosted interns before? We would love to promote your opportunity to our students as a for-credit internship.

Supervisor Tip

Should you pay your intern? We always encourage paid internship positions when feasible to offset the many costs of unpaid work, including systemic injustice and access challenges, but you might actually be legally required to pay, especially if you are a for-profit company. Check out this Fact Sheet from the U.S. Department of Labor to check.

ELIGIBILITY FOR CREDIT

In order for an internship to be approved for course credit for Hospitality and Tourism students, it must meet the following criteria:

  1. Provide a minimum of 120 hours over the course of the internship
  2. Provide a valuable, unique learning opportunity for the intern, may be:
    1. Administration & Management: practical experience employing routine administrative skills, opportunity to learn new techniques and best practices
    2. Organization, Evaluation & Supervision: experience that involve the organization, evaluation and supervision of programs, events and/or personnel
    3. Observation & Participation: observation of the intricacies of the internal and external working relationships of the organization
  3. Provide sufficient supervision (i.e. mentorship/guidance, performance review & evaluation) for the duration of the internship

Students are encouraged to apply for Spring semester internships beginning in October, with the goal of securing a Spring internship prior to the spring semester Drop/Add date in January.  Students are encouraged to apply for Summer AND Fall internships beginning in March of the same year in which the internship will be completed with the goal of securing the internship prior to the Drop/Add deadlines (September in Fall, June in Summer) for each term. Late enrollment may be facilitated but we encourage our Host Supervisor partners to recruit with these deadlines in mind.

Supervisor Tip

If your organization or the internship position you would like to promote to students does not meet all of these criteria, we can still review it and potentially promote it as a non-credit opportunity.

PREPARING FOR AN INTERNSHIP

The most successful internship experiences are those with clearly defined learning objectives, communication plans, structured hourly schedules, and routine feedback. Please follow these steps to prepare to host a Hospitality and Tourism internship:

  1. Define the learning outcomes and create a position description for the internship experience. What will the intern do that will contribute to their learning? Will the internship be paid or offer perks like free tickets or parking? How will the intern’s schedule be structured? How will you communicate with the student? Review these Career Centerresources for additional insight.
  2. Prepare for significant mentorship and training components of the internship. What guidance and professional development opportunities will you offer? Examples include regular check-ins, staff meetings, software training, networking opportunities, career guidance, job shadowing, resume review, etc.
  3. Prepare your application and interview process. What specific qualifications and skills should an individual in this role possess? How should students apply? What materials should they submit? Will you set an application deadline or keep it open until filled? Will you conduct interviews via phone, Zoom, or in person?
  4. Share your internship opportunity with our students. Email your Position Description with all relevant details and application instructions to the department Internship Coordinator Jeremy Clement. Professor Clement will review your submission, and if approved, we will share it on our HTMT Listserv page and via social media to students.

Accept applications, conduct interviews, and select an intern. You may select more than one intern as long as you are able to guarantee 120 hours of work for each student.

Supervisor Tip

In order to qualify for credit, an intern must be enrolled in the beginning of the semester in which they complete the internship. Keep this in mind when setting application deadlines and selecting interns; we recommend listing the deadline as “open until filled” to allow for the most flexibility. Aim to have your intern selected by early August for the Fall, December for the Spring, and early May for the Summer.

ACADEMIC COURSE INFORMATION

Deadlines

Spring & Fall semesters: Students will need to have their internships secured prior to the drop/add date of each semester to afford time to apply and be accepted into the academic credit internship program.
DEADLINE:  All Application Packages for Spring & Fall Semesters must be submitted on the Drop/Add Deadline for that semester. If submitting after the Drop/Add, students must contact Professor Clement in advance.

Summer semesters: Students are encouraged to have their internships secured by early May at the latest to afford time to apply and be accepted into the academic credit internship program.
DEADLINE:  All Learning Contracts for ANY Summer Semester must be submitted by the first week of June at the latest.  Exceptions must be approved by Professor Clement, in advance.

INTERNSHIP REQUIREMENTS

All students must work a total of 120 hours during the academic semester in order to receive course credit. The students will submit final assignments related to the internship on or after Reading Day, which is the day between the last day of classes and the first day of final exams (Fall: early December; Spring: late April; Summer: varies by term). Your intern’s hours should either be complete or close to complete by that date.

In addition to fulfilling their responsibilities virtually or onsite, these hours may be earned through professional development opportunities, training, networking with your professional contacts, attending meetings, and other learning activities. We encourage you to incorporate your intern(s) into as many aspects of your organization's daily life as possible. As we often say, internships are a learning experience for students and a teaching opportunity for supervisors. Thank you for your effort!

ACADEMIC COURSE

Though the vast majority of the work for the internship course occurs onsite and/or remotely with your guidance and instruction for a minimum of 120 hours, the students also take an independent study course concurrently with the internship experience. This course is administered through our Apply system online. In addition to journals and professional development resources, some assignments include "activity prompts" for students to complete and write about. Some of these that you might want to be aware of include:

  • An initial Learning Contract Approval meeting with you to provide feedback on goals that they set at the beginning of the internship and to review their schedule for the semester. Must take place prior to enrollment.
  • A Midpoint Discussion/Meeting that they will schedule with you halfway through the semester.
    • Note: we will also send you a midpoint evaluation form halfway through the internship. This is an informal check-up and will not be calculated into the intern's final grade.
  • A Final Evaluation that will be available to you via the Apply portal at the end of the internship term; a final evaluation form will be made available to you a few weeks before the end of the semester, which will constitute a significant portion (15%) of the intern's grade.

CONTINUED FEEDBACK + REPORTING CONCERNS

As part of the mentorship component of internships, we hope that you will establish a culture of frequent and regular communication and feedback with your intern, including clear discussion of your expectations related to communication. As you know, an internship is intended to be an engaging learning experience for the student and an opportunity to learn about professionalism and the working world in a safe environment. In some cases, this internship is the first professional experience that a student has in their field of study.

Employers may post internship opportunities at any time by e-mailing the internship coordinator with an information about the potential internship opportunity at clementj@cofc.edu.

VIRTUAL INTERNSHIP RESOURCES

If you are planning to incorporate remote work into the semester, please review the following virtual/semi-virtual internship resources, including an abbreviated version of a presentation given by Kristin Wichmann of the CofC Career Center. Even if your internship is mostly in-person, the material is helpful for planning for inevitable disruptions.

Thank you so much for all that you do and for playing such a vital role in the professional lives of our students! We know that hosting an intern is quite an undertaking, and we are so grateful for your efforts and willingness to guide our students.

Contact Information:

Jeremy C. Clement, MBA, PMP
Senior Instructor | Internship Coordinator
Department of Hospitality and Tourism Management
School of Business
College of Charleston
332 Beatty Building
Charleston, SC 29424
p: 843.953.5455
f: 843.953.5697
Email: clementj@cofc.edu