Internships - Quad Cities Campus - Western Illinois University

Quad Cities Campus

Internship Partnerships in the Quad Cities Area

An internship can be an excellent way for students in the arts and sciences to develop additional skills, gain work experience in new contexts, and apply classroom lessons within a professional environment. For a growing number of students, our internship partnerships with various Quad Cities area organizations are providing fascinating learning opportunities, very attractive résumé material, and windows to careers that might have otherwise remained distant. There are many worthwhile articles about the value of internships, but here is one example from The Chronicle of Higher Education .

The Quad Cities area internships below are open to applicants from both WIU-QC and WIU-Macomb. Please contact your advisor and/or Dr. Everett Hamner (e-hamner@wiu.edu) with additional questions. Please note especially that various academic programs at WIU have their own requirements and application forms for seeking academic credit from internships.

One last thought: it is critical that an internship be a three-way partnership between a student, the host institution, and the university. If a student has any doubt about the fairness or appropriateness of work expectations or conditions in a given internship, it is important that they initiate a discussion with their university mentor as soon as possible. Federal regulations for internships applicable under The Fair Labor Standards Act are available here at the U.S. Department of Labor website.

Organizations with established internship programs ready to take applications for specific positions in Summer and Fall 2015

WQPT: Development and Communications Intern

Application deadline: rolling
Key activities: interviewing, writing, marketing, fundraising, project management
Location: WIU-QC Riverfront campus
Hours: flexible, but minimum 4 hours/week
Required skills/qualifications: knowledge of Microsoft Office software, preference for openness to working with children (background check may be required), preference for video/web capabilities
Please consult additional internship description and application pages
Cover letter, résumé, and application page (Intern Information Sheet) should be addressed to Jaime Lange, Chief Development Officer, WQPT Quad Cities PBS, 3561 60th St., Moline, IL 61265; jl-lange2@wiu.edu

Putnam Museum: Grant-writing Intern

Application deadline: rolling
Key activities: writing, editing, marketing, institutional representation at professional events
Location: Davenport
Hours: flexible, but minimum 4 hours/week
Required skills/qualifications: knowledge of Microsoft Office software, exceptionally strong written communication skills, individual initiative
Applications consist of cover letter and résumé addressed to Betsy Matt Turner, Special Assistant to the President for Mission Advancement, Putnam Museum, 1717 W. 12^th St., Davenport, IA 52804; turner@putnam.org

Putnam Museum: Education Intern

Application deadline: rolling
Key activities: This is a professional position supporting interpretation and presentations for the museum visitor and program support for the education department. The Education Intern will use informal education techniques to assist in delivering interpretations and demonstrations that engage and excite visitors of a variety of ages in multiple settings. Utilizing research capabilities, public speaking and presentation skills as well as knowledge of exhibitions, history and STEM concepts, the Intern will support programming throughout the museum. The Education Intern is flexible, enjoys variety, and will assist with other duties involved in reaching Strategic Goals set for the museum’s Education department.
Location: Davenport
Hours: flexible
Required skills/qualifications: see activities.
Applications consist of a cover letter and résumé addressed to Nichole Myles, Vice President of Education, Putnam Museum, 1717 W. 12^th St., Davenport, IA 52804; myles@putnam.org

Congressional Office of Cheri Bustos (U.S. House of Representatives)

Application deadline: rolling
Key activities: writing letters to constituents; reading local and national newspapers and other media; answering telephone calls; specific project assignments; occasional meetings with Congresswoman Bustos
Location: Rock Island office and QC area
Hours: very flexible, but 10 hours/week minimum
Required skills/qualifications: strong writing skills, customer (constituent) service abilities, professionalism
Resumé, cover letter, and interview required of all applicants: please address these to Lucie VanHecke, Constituent Advocate, Congresswoman Cheri Bustos (IL-17), 100 19^th St., Suite 101, Rock Island, IL 61201; lucie.vanhecke@mail.house.gov . Also, please see NEW internship description.

Child Abuse Council of the Quad Cities: Sexual Abuse Prevention Curriculum Facilitator

- Application deadline: rolling
- Key activities: “Talking about Touching” presentations in elementary school classrooms (about appropriate and inappropriate physical interaction)
- Location: Rock Island mainly, but also other QC areas
- Hours: flexible, but 4-15 hrs/wk most common
- Required skills/qualifications: openness to working with children (federal background check required), mobility (driving between schools)
- Please consult additional internship description page (with application instructions)

Rock Island Argus-Dispatch Internships

Applications will be given consideration as soon as they are received. Application deadline: February 15. Internships will be awarded soon after. Internships run for a period of approximately three months, but we are flexible as to starting and ending dates. If you plan to take a vacation or to travel, we ask that you do it at the beginning or end of the internship.
Positions available:
- Reporter working the Metro Desk
- Copy Editor/Page Designer on the Copy Desk
- Photographer/Multi Media
Interns are expected to function as regular staff members, although they may need more guidance and direction than regular staff. This is not an internship where students should expect to shadow someone else; they are expected to make daily independent contributions.
Location: main office of The Dispatch and the Rock Island Argus in downtown Moline
Hours: generally 9 to 5, but some nights and weekends
The internships pay $336 per week
Required skills/qualifications: excellent writing, editing, and/or graphic design skills; past reporting experience is very helpful (most applicants have at least some)
Résumé, references, work samples and a cover letter explaining what you hope to gain from an internship at our papers. We will attempt to place you in the slot for which we believe you are best qualified based on your experience and work samples.
Send applications to:

Roger Ruthhart, Managing Editor

Moline Dispatch Publishing Co. L.L.C.

1720 Fifth Ave.

Moline, IL 61265

rruthhart@qconline.com;

Illinois Legislative Staff Internship (paid post-bachelor’s degree 1-year position)

Application deadline: March 1
Key activities: provide research support, analyze budgets, write and edit newsletters
Location: Springfield
Hours: full-time between August 16, 2014 and June 30, 2015, but with time for graduate studies (and 9 credits included)
Required skills/qualifications: must graduate with Bachelor’s degree by Aug. 16, 2014; minimum 3.0 gpa
For more info and application materials, see http://ilsip.uis.edu

Organizations interested in discussing future internships with qualified WIU-QC students

Moline Public Library

Application deadline: rolling (will discuss possibilities with individual students)
Key activities: development of public engagement programs; children & youth sections have particular needs
Location: Moline
Hours: flexible
Required skills/qualifications: full internships in adult and young adult services are usually limited to students currently pursuing or soon beginning a Master’s of Library Science program; that degree plan is less important for student interns in children’s section
Students with interests in library internships or related opportunities in librarianship should contact Lisa Powell Williams, Adult Services Coordinator, 3210 41^st St., Moline, IL 61265; lwilliams@molinelibrary.org.

Bethany for Children and Families

Application deadline: rolling (will discuss possibilities with individual students)
Key activities: assistance with grantwriting
Location: Moline, Davenport
Hours: flexible
Required skills/qualifications: professional/technical writing skills, interest in learning about and enabling social services
Interested students should contact Jenny Hager, Vice President of Marketing and Development, 1830 6^th Ave., Moline, IL 61265; jhager@bethany-qc.org