Charleston, SC Summer Internships for College Students: A Comprehensive Guide
Internships are a cornerstone of early career development, offering invaluable hands-on experience and the opportunity to explore career paths while building a professional resume. For college students in Charleston, South Carolina, summer internships provide a unique chance to gain practical skills, network with professionals, and contribute to the local community. This guide provides resources and potential internship sites to help students find the perfect summer experience.
The Value of Internships
Internships offer a multitude of benefits for college students:
- Hands-on Experience: Internships allow students to apply classroom knowledge to real-world situations, solidifying their understanding and developing practical skills.
- Career Exploration: Internships provide a chance to test different career paths and industries, helping students discover their passions and interests. They also help students discover what they don't like.
- Resume Enrichment: Internships provide resume-enriching activities, experience and accomplishments that make candidates stand out to future employers.
- Networking Opportunities: Internships provide opportunities to build relationships with professionals in their field, expanding their network and opening doors to future opportunities.
Resources for Finding Internships
The Career Center can help you with resources to find an internship. Whether searching for an internship in Charleston or another city, networking is crucial for success. Utilize the comprehensive resources we provide. Discuss your interests with the Career Center staff, professors, departmental internship coordinators, family and friends. You never know who may have contacts that can help.
Campus Internship Resources
- Handshake: The College of Charleston's online platform for internships, part-time, and full-time jobs.
- Internship and Job Fairs: The Career Center hosts Career Fairs each fall and spring semester. Attend these events and talk directly with potential employers.
- On-Campus Interviews: Check Handshake for a list of companies interviewing on campus.
- Informational Interviews: The purpose of an informational interview is not to ask for an internship or job, but it can be helpful in expanding your industry network and make it more likely to learn of possible opportunities. Schedule an appointment with the Career Center to learn more.
Internship Sites for Crime, Law and Society Minors
As the ending experience in the minor, the required internship challenges students to apply knowledge learned in the classroom to a field experience with an organization that works with the victims and/or perpetrators of crime. Internships should be arranged with the program director the semester before the internship will be completed: Internships planned for the Fall should be arranged the preceding Spring semester and Spring internships should be arranged during the preceding Fall semester. Summer internships may be available.
The following lists potential internship sites for fall and spring semester internships. Interships at other organizations may be arranged.
Read also: Understanding CofC Tuition
Criminal Justice and Legal Internships
- Alston Wilkes Society: This re-entry program offers a halfway house and provides rehabilitative and social services for offenders. The goal is to help residents make a smooth transition back to the community. Many of the programs are in the evenings.
- American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of South Carolina: The ACLU of South Carolina offers students the opportunity to research the impact on civil liberties of specific existing legislation and government practices and to draft reports on issues that affect the civil liberties of South Carolina citizens. The topics will vary according to the organization’s needs. Interns should have strong research skills and the ability to work well independently, strong analytic and writing skills, an interest in civil liberties issues and experience with Microsoft Office (Word, Excel).
- Charleston County Sheriff’s Office: Interns rotate through various sections of the sheriff’s department including patrol, community service, detectives, canine, marine patrol, courts, special training and recertification. Internship can be flexible to your interests and include policing in both urban and rural areas.
- City of Charleston Police Department: Interns rotate through all departments (Booking, 911, traffic detectives, etc.) and do “ride-alongs” with police officers to learn about the different aspects of police work.
- Community Juvenile Arbitration Program, Solicitor's Office: Students assist the director and staff with case management of juveniles involved in the arbitration program. Students receive arbitrator training and may have their own cases. Interns communicate with all parties involved in an offense committed by a juvenile, including the juvenile offender, the offender’s parent(s), the victim of the offense and police officers working on the case. You will also help to monitor juveniles’ cases, ensuring that they meet the terms of their arbitration agreement, tour juvenile and adult correctional facilities, and observe court trials and assist during the trial process.
- Department of Juvenile Justice: Probation and Parole or; Victim Services: Interns provide assistance with both intake and probation for juvenile offenders. Interns also provide direct services to victims of juvenile crime while the offender is in the pre-adjudication, supervision, and/or commitment stage within the juvenile justice system.
- Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services: Interns observe and assist agents with duties necessary to supervise offenders assigned to the Charleston County Office of Probation, Parole and Pardon services. This includes taking progress reports, entering information into the Offenders Information System, observing bond and revocation hearings and riding along on home visits. There is also an office in Moncks Corner.
- Department of Public Safety, College of Charleston: The Department of Public Safety offers opportunities to interns, providing chances to work in areas such as patrol, professional standards, courts, security technology and dispatch. You will rotate through sections of the department. This internship is ideal for students interested learning about the intricacies and challenges of policing in a campus environment.
- Family Violence Unit, City of Charleston Police Department: This is a victim advocate internship serving families in crisis. The unit provides case management and includes a child advocate, an elder advocate, a Spanish language advocate and a mental health clinician.
- Fresh Start Visions: Fresh Start Visions provides re-entry services and housing to men released from incarceration as well as character development classes inside several correctional institutions. Interns could attend and assist with classes in McDougall Correctional Institute upon approval of a SCDC application and/or be involved with the re-entry housing programs. They can assist with tracking data and group classes for those finishing their sentences and those who are in the re-entry program.
- Guardian ad Litem: Internships may be available. Guardians represent the best interests of children in Family Court. Training to become a guardian must be completed before the students begins the internship.
- Homeless Justice Project: The Homeless Justice Project is located at Crisis Ministries, the shelter for the homeless, and provides legal services for homeless persons. Students assist the attorney and meet with clients.
- North Charleston Police Department: Interns rotate through all departments and do “ride-alongs” with police officers to learn about all aspects of police work.
- Pro-Bono Legal Services: This is a program of the Charleston County Bar Association in which students will learn to assist in providing legal services for civil cases. Responsibilities in this office include screening clients, performing legal research, answering client calls and assisting clients in filling out legal forms.
- Public Defender: This internship provides students with a background of both the criminal justice and judicial systems in Charleston County. Interns attend trials, preliminary hearings, guilty pleas and roll calls in order to get a feel for various court procedures. In addition, students tour the Charleston County Detention Center and participate in office and jail screenings of indigent clients. They will have the opportunity to meet judges, prosecutors, attorneys and many others in the legal field. It also may be possible to work with those involved with juveniles.
- Solicitor's Office: Interns will be responsible for assisting all office departments in carrying out the day to day affairs of the Solicitor's Office. This will include working with individual attorneys on the preparation of cases for trial and plea, working with the Victims' Rights department, working with Pre-Trial Intervention, working with Investigators, and working with Pending cases.
- South Carolina Legal Services: South Carolina Legal Services (SCLS) provides free legal services in a wide variety of civil (non-criminal) legal matters to eligible low income residents of South Carolina.
Social Services and Advocacy Internships
- Alternatives Life Improvement Center: Alternatives offers a variety of groups with trained facilitators for those involved with the court system such as through PTI or alcohol and drug violations. Interns must be a senior, psychology or sociology major, and have not gone through PTI or ADP.
- Charleston Center: Charleston Center provides a variety of outpatient and residential treatment programs for chemically dependent adults and adolescents. Several of their programs are relevant to crime, law and society.
- Dee Norton Child Advocacy Center: The mission of the Dee Norton Child Advocacy Center is to keep children safe from abuse, and when abuse occurs, to work with the community to bring healing to these children and their families. Interns may assist the Multi-Disciplinary Team (MDT) Facilitator with duties involving collaborations of community partners including weekly community staffing meetings or assist and observe in the Clinical Services division.
- Department of Social Services: There may be internships available to assist social workers in Child Protective Services.
- National Crime Victims Research and Treatment Center (at the Medical University of South Carolina): NCVC is an outpatient mental health clinic for children and adults who experienced a traumatic event such as sexual assault, domestic violence, or physical assault. Interns assist with working with victims of crime. Responsibilities may include transporting families for victim-related appointments, data entry in SPSS, and observing support groups for family members of homicide victims and local child abuse community staffing. There is also the possibility of becoming involved with research projects. This internship requires a 3.0 GPA and a psychology major.
- People Against Rape: Intern will be responsible for assisting PAR staff in providing supportive services to survivors of sexual assault. This may include assisting Volunteer Coordinator, Education Coordinator, and Outreach Coordinator with their duties.
Medical and Forensic Internships
- Community & Public Safety Psychiatry Division (CPSPD), MUSC: This is a research assistant internship in forensic psychology. There are several ongoing studies, primarily, but not exclusively, studying sex offenders.
- Medical University of South Carolina Forensic Pathology Office: Interns assist with autopsies and assist staff in various activities. In most cases, interns can get as much hands on experience as they desire. Courses in biology are very helpful here.
Preparing for Your Internship Search
- Resume and Cover Letter: A well-crafted resume and cover letter are essential for making a strong first impression. The Career Center can help you prepare your resume and cover letter.
- Networking: Networking is crucial for success in any job search. Talk to Career Center staff, professors, departmental internship coordinators, family, and friends to expand your network and learn about potential opportunities.
- Informational Interviews: Conduct informational interviews with professionals in your field of interest to learn more about their experiences and gain insights into the industry.
Read also: Learn about the Charleston Scholarship
Read also: Notable Figures from the College of Charleston
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