Maryville College...
Enables students to study everything, so that they are prepared for anything —
To address any problem
Connect with people all over the globe
Launch successful careers right away.
Throughout your degree you should be exploring what interests you, finding what drives you, and discovering what your greater purpose is.
We don't imagine that you will do all of this sitting in a classroom. We expect that you will adventure beyond the classroom walls.
- Joining clubs and organizations
- Taking on leadership positions
- Volunteering in the community
- Studying Abroad
- Reflecting on the Knowledge -
Skills - Attitudes that your future careers will require and finding ways
to build them
- Completing Internships
- Doing your Senior Study
I want to talk for a
minute about ONE of these - Internships.
International students
have the ability at Maryville College to do internships just like US
students. But there is a process that needs to be followed first, and
some additional rules. While you are a student, after you have completed
1 academic year of study, you are eligiible for CPT. Curricular Practical
Training (CPT) is academic training (practicum or internship) related
to your major field of study at Maryville College. You must
enroll in a credit-bearing internship or practicum or have the internship
approved as your Significant Practical Experience (SPE).
The
training may be:
- Paid or unpaid
- Part-time (under 20 hours/week)
or full-time (over 20 hours/week) [*note: full-time CPT for 12 months or
more will cause student to lose opportunity for OPT]
- Must be an integral part of an
established curriculum, a requirement of the program and receive course
credit
- Directly related to your field of
study
ELIGIBILITY:
- You must be an F-l student who is
seeking a degree at Maryville College
- You must have been enrolled full
time in the US for at least one year and be in good academic standing
- You must have approval of your
major advisor to complete a credit-bearing internship. The
internship may or may not be approved to be your Significant
Practical Experience (SPE).
- Position must be commensurate
with your education level.
- You will continue to be enrolled
for a full course of study during the CPT
But what I really want to talk about is one specific part of these regulations. Any internship you do must be Major-Related. What does this mean? It means that your responsibilities of your internship have be be able to be tied directly to your major field of study. It means that if you have a minor - you are not eligible to complete an internship in your minor. It means that if you are studying computer science, but during the course of your studies, you find that you are passionate about Politics and get offered a position working on a political campaign - the only way you could do that position was if it was directly related to computer science.
All of that might sound
negative, but I would encourage you to think outside the box. If you are
a child development major and a business minor, and want experience in
business, look at non-profit organizations that support children and families.
Small organizations often give you a breadth of experience beyond exactly what
your job duties are. If you are a computer science major and an
international studies minor, do computer-science related work for an international
organization. There are many ways to blend your interests and passions.
Going home for the
summer? Take THAT opportunity not just to see your family, but get
experience outside of what immigration rules in the US allow you to do!