MSA 690, Internship
All MSA Students are required to take three courses: (1) MSA 600, MSA 634 or MSA 635, and MSA 640. Other core courses must be selected in consultation with the student's academic advisor. A total of 15-21 hours must be taken in the administrative core. All MSA students are also required to take either MSA 685 (3 hours) or MSA 690 (6 hours).
Course Objectives:
After completing this course, the student should:
Observe and study the role, functions, and style of management and administration.
Articulate the goals and planning processes of the organization, how they are determined, know the priorities of the organization, and determine how/why they are selected.
Analyze a decision-making process at different levels of the organization, including the responsibilities, function, and organization of the governing board, the management staff, the administrative staff, as well as other staff units, and other key departments.
Analyze the operational effectiveness of the organization.
Explain the organizational structure, the organization's place within the system, and the organization's relationship with other institutions.
Use the environment to test skills, theories, and concepts presented during the intern's academic preparation.
Strengthen judgment, decisiveness, and related administrative skills in the functional service environment.
Develop an appreciation of the need for a code of ethics, a philosophy, and a dedication to the high ideals and standards of administrative organizations.
Study an organizational problem and develop recommendations to management by means of the capstone research project.
If MSA 690 is taken for 3 credits, the course consists of a 300-hour internship experience. Students submit a log to document the 300 internship hours and any other requirements as outlined by the MSA 690 instructor.
If MSA 690 is taken for 6 credits, the course consists of a 12-hour workshop and a 300-hour internship experience. In the workshop, instruction is provided on research methodology and the Institutional Review Board process. After the workshop, students will continue to work with the MSA 690 instructor/monitor. Students are assisted in developing the research proposal and in writing the Institutional Review Board application. The IRB application is reviewed by the instructor/monitor who will submit the application to the MSA office. The application may be approved as submitted or revisions requested or the application may be forwarded to the IRB committee for review. The instructor will also support the student through the data analysis portion of the research project and writing the final project paper. The student will also work with an institutional supervisor as part of the 300-hour internship experience. Students submit a log to document the 300 internship hours and any other requirements as outlined by the MSA 690 instructor as well as complete a research paper (using the same guidelines as the MSA 685 project) which fulfills the Plan B requirement of the MSA degree.
