University of Duhok (UoD)

INTERNSHIP POLICY

University of Duhok

Career Development Center (IRC)

POLICY NAME:
INTERNSHIP POLICY

Policy No.: UOD-POL- CDC-01

ISSUING OFFICE: IRC, UPLO
VERSION NO.: 00

VERSION DATE: MAY 08, 2023

ORIGINAL DATE ISSUED:

policies.uod.ac
Policy.office@uod.ac

Policy Purpose

The Career Development Center (CDC) is dedicated to promoting a beneficial relationship between employers and students. The reputation of UOD is in large part based upon the interactions between our students and professionals in industry. A fundamental element of successful outcomes between UOD and its partners is the determination of our students to improve their collective career opportunities and promote the reputation of UOD by actively pursuing the highest standards of integrity, honesty, and professionalism.

Responsible Office

Career Development Center, University Policy Office, and The Vice President for student affairs.

Responsible Executive

Vice President of University of Duhok for student affairs

Policy History

Date of Permanent Approval: Oct X, 2022
Date of Amendments:

Applicable to

Students, Academic Members, Staff, Third Parties

Policy Statement

Industry Internship is an integral part of the academic curriculum. Its satisfactory completion is a mandatory requirement for the degree to be awarded by the University. Further, depending upon the curriculum structure of various schools within the University, multiple internships may be required in summers and/or winters, and may be assigned academic credits/grades within the curricula. The general structure of the internship(s) requires the students to undertake an immersive assignment within the assigned organisations for a limited period. The internship offers the students an opportunity to gain hands-on industrial or organisational exposure; to integrate the knowledge and skills acquired through the coursework; interact with professionals and other interns; and to improve their presentation, writing, and communication skills. Internship often acts as a gateway for final placement for many students.

Definitions

Student Internship, Professional development and training opportunities for college students and graduates.

Faculty Mentor, A mentor is an experienced professor who guides, advises, and supports an inexperienced student for the purpose of furthering their internship & careers.

University is the University of Duhok (UOD).

POLICY

OBJECTIVES

The Internship aims to achieve the following for the students:

Learnings as students apply their analytical, integrative, team skills in the workplace
Networking opportunities with people from industry/organisations
Calibration of post-degree career plans based on real-life work exposure
Pre-placement offers where feasible/appropriate.

DURATION

Generally, when it is a part of the curriculum, the Internship is mandatory. Students cannot graduate unless they complete the Internship(s) as prescribed. While the actual structure and durations of the Internship(s) will vary from program to program, it is normal for a minimum duration to be at least eight weeks once during the penultimate year of the program. Typically, summer internships start around May every year and the durations range from six to eight weeks. Specific programs may include two or more summer internships as per the requirements of respective regulatory bodies. In case the duration of an internship needs to be extended, it would be necessary for the student to obtain a prior written approval from the University.

ELIGIBILITY

The student applicant must be validly enrolled in a program at the CDC.
The CDC would facilitate internship placement of students provided that the student has successfully completed their previous semester examinations and their conduct at the University has been satisfactory throughout the program.
Students are required to maintain a good record of attendance in their courses, to be able to participate in internship placement (Guest Lectures/ Seminars/ Conferences/ Industry Visits etc). Those having poor attendance records may not be permitted to participate in the internship placement process.
Students are required to have –% attendance in the UOD, Value Added Courses and Placement Related Workshops. Those who fall short of attendance may not be permitted to participate in the campus internship placement process.
Students are required to keep a track of the communications regarding the companies with Internship opportunities. If a student eligible as per the Job Description chooses not to apply for three (3) consecutive eligible internship postings, then it may validly imply that the student is not interested in pursuing the internship assistance process. In such cases, the student will be denied further internship assistance.

GUIDELINES

The Department of Academic Affairs of each college is responsible for assigning the Internship supervision for each student.
The CDC will assist in organising the internship opportunities for the students. The students are also encouraged to search for internships aligned to their specific career interests. Any such internship opportunities directly obtained by the student need to be approved by the CDC in writing before the student embarks upon the internship.
In line with the CDC’s intent to nurture the spirit of entrepreneurship, the CDC will support students working on their own ventures in lieu of industry internships if these are formally approved by the Deans of the respective colleges and are conducted under respective faculty mentors.
Any engagement involving freelancing, work from home etc if not approved by the respective CDC and Dean will not be accepted as valid internships.
All students who are eligible and are required to undergo internships must fill an Internship registration form.
Students must complete the minimum duration of internship as specified in the curriculum.
The students must complete the requisite paperwork, including project reports, presentations in the prescribed formats (if any), and obtain the completion certificates from the sponsoring organisations adhering to minimum specified duration of internship.

EXPECTATIONS FROM STUDENT INTERNS

The students act as unofficial spokespersons and help in building the image of the UOD. The internships are unique opportunities for the students to receive pre-placement offers from reputed organisations of their chosen fields. They also represent occasions for the students to showcase the quality and the calibre of the University. Therefore, the students must take their internships with due seriousness and execute them diligently and demonstrate maturity and responsibility.

Students should aim at working with such organisations, institutions or start-ups who provide challenging learning opportunities, and avoid choosing the organisations solely based on hometown convenience or stipend.
The University expects that all students will adhere to the proper standards of intellectual honesty and professional propriety in their conduct.
Students are advised not to do anything directly or indirectly which may create a poor impression about the University.
Any student found disregarding any of the norms would be liable for disciplinary action.
The students should abide by the dress code and other professional norms of their Internship organisation.
Punctuality is a quality that is appreciated by professionals across all organisations.
Any act of non-cooperation or manipulation with the sponsoring organisation’s selection process; and/or misconduct or acts of dishonesty are liable to withdrawal of Internship at the University’s sole and absolute discretion.
Refusal to attend selection process, refusal to join the selected organisation, demanding special privileges or negotiating with the sponsoring organisations for locations, job profiles or stipend, and any such behaviour that can be considered as unprofessional would invite disciplinary action besides withdrawal from internship placement process.
Students must abide by the applicable policies and norms of the sponsoring organisation during the period of internship.
The sponsoring organisation has the right to terminate students from the internship at any time due to inappropriate behaviour and/or non-cooperation with the internship process and/or continued non-performance in assignment.
The University cannot be held responsible for any delay in commencement of internship, as these are left to the internal regulations and guidelines of the sponsoring organisation.
Students who do not accept an offer or fail to join the assigned organisation will not be eligible for placement assistance from the CDC.
If a student gets a pre-placement offer (PPO) from an Organisation, he/she will be considered as campus placed and will not be eligible for further placement assistance from the University.

FACULTY MENTOR ALLOCATION, REPORTING & SUPERVISION

During the internship, the reporting officers within the industry organisations assign specific projects to the student interns. Each student will be assigned a faculty mentor from the respective college, depending on the project domain and the type of organisation. The projects will be performed under the direct supervision of the reporting manager and will receive guidance from the faculty mentor.

The following process is envisaged:

Faculty mentors will be assigned for each student by the Dean of the respective college.
The allocation of faculty mentors shall seek to obtain a match with the faculty expertise areas, to allow interaction between the faculty and the industry. Such interactions are expected to lead to collaborations for research, executive education, and consultancy projects etc. and are viewed as beneficial to the faculty members of the University.
Upon the allocation, the Department of Academic Affairs will communicate with the organisation and introduce the assigned faculty to the organisation as well as to the student interns.
During this course, several interactions between the Faculty and the organisation are expected. These can be conducted through multiple modes such as email, phone, video, or in-person as may be expedient/appropriate.
While there is no explicit guideline about the number of interactions, the following interactions are envisaged:

(a) Initiation stage: Placement Office will introduce the reporting manager of the sponsoring organisation to the college’s faculty mentor. The faculty mentor will interact with the reporting manager and set expectations about the Objectives, Scope, Methodologies to be followed, and Deliverables from the internship. The student intern will prepare a short write-up documenting these elements and get it signed by both the reporting manager of the sponsoring organisation & the Faculty mentor. (report format).

(b) Mid-term checkpoint: Faculty Mentor will conduct a mid-term review of the progress of the internships – typically around 4-5 weeks after commencement. After the review, the Faculty Mentor shall prepare a mid-term progress report in the format.

(c) Closure: At the end of the internship, the student intern shall prepare a report (final report) and may be optionally required to make a presentation to the organisation. As a proof of completion of internship, the student intern will obtain a letter of completion from the organisation showing the performance evaluation in terms of OS (Outstanding), EE (Exceeds expectations), ME (Met expectations), and BE (Below expectations). The student intern shall submit the letter and the report to the Faculty and CDC upon arrival at the campus. The CDC shall engage the organisation to receive the feedback and record the same. Based on the data as described herein, the Faculty mentor shall assign an appropriate rating/grade as per the grading norms of the college.

Where possible, the Faculty mentor should make at least one visit to the workplace of the student for a meeting with the organisation to review the progress made by the student and to build up a long term relationship between the University and the organisation.
Absenteeism, premature abandonment, nonsubmission of reports, misconduct at the workplace are some examples of serious misconduct during the internship. In case the student intern is found to have indulged in such misconduct, then he/she is liable for actions which may also include: disciplinary Cancellation of internship, withdrawal of final placement assistance etc .