Portland Community College | Portland, Oregon

Program overview

1. To provide talented, leadership-oriented students a learning opportunity within District Administration of the College through direct professional experience and close contact with the President, Executive Vice President and other Cabinet members.
2. To create opportunities of mentor-ship and guidance with senior administrators, program directors, faculty, and staff by getting to know interns both personally and professionally, heightening leadership potential, communication, and administrative understanding.
3. To create a form of personalized experiential learning that integrates knowledge and theory learned in the classroom with practical application and skills in a professional setting. Throughout the year interns will be given opportunities to work with different components of the college that will give them first hand experiences to help build their skill sets and leadership understanding.
4. To give students the opportunity to gain valuable applied experience and make connections in professional fields they are considering for career paths. Additionally, interns will have opportunities to share their student perspectives with college leadership and district-wide.

Internship opportunities

1. Regular interaction with district President, Vice Presidents and other executives.
2. Customized individual work plans will be designed for each intern after internship begins.
3. Shadowing of important leaders of the college will be integrated into customized work plans. Interns will be coached on seeking a personal mentor to work with through the internship program.
4. Training and educational opportunities.
5. Serve as liaison between students and administration, share student perspectives.
6. Community outreach with groups and individuals, such as the PCC Foundation, PCC Board of Directors, businesses, government, and other community members.
7. Possible project research and development.
8. Other.

What is the time commitment?

The minimum 10 hours per week are your hours to attribute to this experience. You can schedule them as yo’d prefer (with guidance from us). Most are hours that you will log as you participate in various meetings, informational interviews, and projects with your mentors as your schedule allows – it’s very flexible.

You will have a regular weekly 1-2 hour meeting with the other interns and coordinator to get you oriented to the internship, obtain direction for your internship, and receive applicable training. This meeting is TBD and set by all of the interns’ class schedules to make sure that all can attend. Because you will also be required to meet regularly with President Mitsui and Executive Vice President Kelley at the Sylvania Campus, the weekly meeting is usually at Sylvania. You can efficiently schedule the executive meetings around this, on the same day and at the same location.

Other internship activities can be located across the district or even off campus as applicable.

When is the typical in-office time throughout the week?

There is no set schedule that you have to report in and out of, we will build your schedule together.

What would one hope to garner from this internship?

This internship has been created as a leadership internship, specifically geared at giving students an understanding of the inner workings of a large institution like PCC and how to navigate such an institution through the lens of leadership. The experience has been crafted to give firsthand experience to the interns, delve into the how of a large institution, and provide role models/mentors to learn from, by their example and own experience.

What is the internship’s focus – on the college administration or on being a student leader?

Is it more focused on learning more of the inner workings of a college office and roles of administration? Or do you learn more about how to be a student leader?

It can be both. You are not in a “student leadership” role as compared to those in elected positions with ASPCC, but you are a student liaison to the District President of PCC. You will be a student representative for other students like yourself to the president. Sharing (yours and theirs) experiences about being a student, being a student at PCC, and your experiences.

You will be involved in matters that have an effect on the college, the college community, and its students. Through this program current PCC students will be exposed to the inner workings of an executive office in a major educational institution and gain insight into the management of the entire college. Interns will work closely with PCC Executive leadership, staff, and community members to: sharpen their professional and interpersonal skills; build relationships between administration and students, while supporting PCC’s mission of equitable student success.

How could this best benefit me as I continue on throughout my college experience?

The goal of this internship is to develop leadership tools/skills for the interns, provide an experience that can be translated/applied into their future goals and aspirations, and make connections for the interns to other leaders/mentors within their personal fields of interest. Previous interns have made connections with faculty and staff, as well as with leaders in the community, as part of their intern experience. These connections can be invaluable resources to a student as they are completing their education, and considering their future goals and aspirations.”

Is there required travel?

As you can see from the past interns’ experiences, they have had the opportunity to travel both locally and nationally.  The opportunities vary from year to year, and may come up with short notice. You will be notified when these opportunities arise. If you choose to participate, it will usually be optional. It will be your responsibility as a student to work with your instructor ahead of time regarding missed class time, etc. Any expenses related to travel will be the responsibility of the college – interns will not incur out-of-pocket travel expenses.