An Iowa College in the Liberal Arts Tradition
Communication Studies
Internships
Luther’s academic program stresses education beyond the classroom walls and encourages students to engage in real-world learning in order to test their career goals and gain valuable professional experience. Internships are a crucial component of this experiential learning, and Luther helps match communication majors with choice internships at businesses, newspapers, magazines, radio stations, educational organizations, and various nonprofit organizations.
According to the Career Center, the benefits of the internship experience are: 1) to confirm and clarify your career goals, 2) to gain practical work experience, and 3) to develop industry contacts with whom you can keep in touch in the future. An internship experience can give you "an edge" as you plan for life after Luther!
A student with at least 12 hours of COMS course credit can earn one credit hour for every 36 hours of work at an internship site.
All internships in the Communication Studies Department are credit/no credit. The course is COMS 380 and it can apply towards the COMS major or minor as an elective. Only one, 4-hour internship credit may apply towards the COMS major or minor, but several internships may be combined up the 4 credit hour limit. A minimum of 36 hours of actual supervised work on site is necessary for each credit hour.
Submission
At the conclusion of your internship (within one week of the last day of the internship), you will submit your final information to your faculty supervisor electronically. Include your name, year in school, major and minor, city/state location, and site/organization of your internship. Because the primary purpose of an internship is to connect classroom concepts to real-world situations, a journal must be kept during the internship experience. The journal should have substantial entries (one entry for every five hours worked) in which you, as an intern, describe the tasks you have been doing on the job and identify theories, methods, or other concepts from classes that directly relate to the internship experience and duties.Additionally, you should include a photo to share on social media (could be a headshot, you on the job, something you created on the job, etc.) and a brief description of what you did and/or what stood out to you. We want to share the great things our COMS students do in their internships! For more information about internship opportunities at Luther, visit Luther College Career Center’s internship program webpage.
Below are some recent internship highlights:
- 1517 Media, Minneapolis, MN
- aboutboulder.com, Boulder, CO
- Amundson's Clothing, Decorah, IA
- Chicago Children's Theater, Chicago, IL
- Connection Events, Montreal, Quebec
- Earl Public Transit, Decorah, IA
- Escape Folsom, Folsom, CA
- ESPN Nashville 102.5 The Game, Nashville, TN
- Exponent Public Relations, Minneapolis, MN
- Find Your Power, Minneapolis, MN
- Five Guys, Lorton, VA
- Golf USA, Coralville, IA
- Green Thumb Industries, Chicago, IL
- Gundersen Health System, La Crosse, WI
- Humane Society of Northeast Iowa, Decorah, IA
- Iowa Games, Ames, IA
- Jay Franco and Sons, Minneapolis, MN
- Kansas City Chiefs, Kansas City, MO
- KDWA 1460 AM, Hastings, MN
- KFAN Radio, Minneapolis, MN
- KPVL Radio, Decorah, IA
- KSDK News Channel 5, St. Louis, MO
- KTTC Television, Rochester, MN
- KWWL News Channel 7, Waterloo, IA
- Luther College Admissions, Decorah, IA
- Martin-Williams Advertising, Minneapolis, MN
- Minnesota Twins, Minneapolis, MN
- Monroe Clinic, Monroe, WI
- National Endowment for the Arts, Washington D.C.
- National Sports Center, Blaine, MN
- Northeast Iowa Community Action, Decorah, IA
- Pashionistas, Atlanta, GA
- Silver Tree Communications, Kenosha, WI
- Vesterheim Museum, Decorah, IA
- Vilas County News Review, Eagle River, WI