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Bypass Reality TV for Reality Learning

Internships, Co-op Education and Other Experiential Learning Programs

By Linda Bates Parker, THE BLACK COLLEGIAN Magazine

Employers recruiting today’s college graduates have high expectations that they will interview graduating students who have gained “real-world” experiences and stellar academic credentials while in college. Unfortunately, far too many students are either focused exclusively on their academics or are too distracted by things like reality TV to invest time in “reality learning” while in college.

Colleges and universities in the United States and abroad now offer a variety of alternative learning experiences through which students can enhance their academic coursework. By working, traveling or volunteering in organizations with the goals of observing and learning from their experiences, students are discovering real-world challenges and figuring out how they might make a contribution. At my university, these experiences are termed “Reality Learning” and include numerous on- and off-campus opportunities such as:

Cooperative Education (Co-op) – an educational program in which students work, usually in full-time paid positions, in their majors. They rotate between college classes and jobs over several cycles during their college careers. Co-op gives students excellent and continual professional experience while they earn academic credit. Relatively new international-al co-op programs provide exciting opportunities for students to learn a second language and gain international experience through an overseas co-op assignment. The University of Cincinnati is one of the few universities in the United States offering such a program. Internships – similar to co-op, these work experiences also let students gain professional experiences related to their majors or career interests while in college. These off-campus assignments are determined by employers, and help students to apply theories learned in the classroom to the workplace while acquiring better understanding of the professional requirements of particular career fields. Many internships are created by businesses or organizations to improve their recruiting pipeline by preparing college students for full-time employment within their organizations upon graduation.

Service Learning – reflective educational experiences in which students earn academic credit by participating in meaningful service activities, on- or off-campus. Service-learning experiences are designed to foster deeper under-standing of course content and an enhanced sense of civic responsibility, while doing important work on pressing community needs. National organizations such as “Campus Compact,” rep-resenting a coalition of more than 950 colleges and universities and some 5 million students, are dedicated to promoting community service, civic engagement, and service-learning in higher education.

Community Service – opportunities for students to “give back” to their communities by committing time, energy and resources to a civic cause or non-profit organization for the sole purpose of improving the quality of life for others. Through community service, students may get involved in important civic work and tough social issues in churches or organizations that may have no direct link to their colleges but offer life-broadening experiences.

 Global Studies – academic pro-grams that help college students live, study and travel abroad, often immersing themselves in another culture and a second language. These students gain extraordinary international and cross-cultural experience, as well as academic credit. With overseas study as part of their curriculum, students understand their responsibilities as American and world citizens while making life-long connections with people around the world.

Practicum – a college course, especially one in a specialized field of study, that is designed to give students supervised, practical application of previously studied theory to prepare them for professional work in areas that frequently require an advanced degree.

All of the above opportunities allow students to learn more about the world and the workplace, and how they can contribute in today’s work environments. Students who participate in these “reality learning” experiences are able to apply academic concepts to real-life situations. Most students who have had these experiences are more mature and focused as a result. They also are either more enthusiastic about their choice of a major or more deter-mined to change it. And once students are able to explain during job inter-views the relevance of their alternative learning experiences, they become highly attractive to employers.

Unfortunately, “reality/experiential learning” is a term more familiar inside rather than outside the academic community. Far too few college-bound students of color or their parents understand the importance of these experiences to career success in today’s highly competitive job market. Many employers who recruit at the University of Cincinnati have restricted their hiring to students who have had co-ops or internships with them. They also look for students who have had diverse leadership experiences and/or have worked or studied abroad.

Far too many African-American students and their parents consider these experiences optional, if they consider them at all. Certainly, financial concerns pose limitations for some students. Co-op programs generally require an additional year of college as the students’ curriculum consists of alternating quarters/semesters of study and work. Often our students have to work part-time or full-time jobs or get hopelessly in debt to stay in college, and are reluctant to leave these some-what secure jobs for a short-term summer internship or study-abroad pro-gram. Internship opportunities can be either paid or unpaid. Clearly, unpaid internships require other financial resources to stay in college. Even paid internships for exciting opportunities in entertainment or government require temporary housing in major urban cities and may not include funds for travel and housing. Some college students and their parents feel that the student should simply focus on college academics and get a job after graduation, without understanding that they will be much less competitive without these experiences.

So what should African-American college students and college-bound students do?

• Learn about all of the experiential /reality learning experiences before going to college or as early as possible in your freshman year.
• Make appointments with your academic advisors, career and co-op advisors to learn about eligibility for these programs early in your college career.
• Inform your parents of these career-enhancing opportunities and seek their support for your participation.
• Explore corporate and community scholarships for experiential/reality learning.
• Attend career fairs in your freshman and sophomore year to learn more about such opportunities from visiting employers.
• Talk to students who have interned, studied abroad or participated in community service projects and gain their perspective on these experiences (see sidebar).
• Talk to faculty about academic benefits of some of these programs.
• Target a specific experience and search on-line for additional information and sources of funding.
• Ask your current employer about your interest in pursuing such opportunities while retaining your job.
• Save all extra money (like birthday and other cash gifts) for these experiences.

This article originally appeared in the 2005-2006 Second Semester Edition of THE BLACK COLLEGIAN Magazine, celebrating its 35th anniversary of publishing.