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Internships

English undergraduate intern Marianna Willoughby completing a read-aloud with Kindergarten students for Tuscaloosa Reads Bookworm initiative: “Interning with Tuscaloosa Reads has had an incredibly positive impact on me individually and as a student studying Secondary English Language Arts.  On my first day, I was able to assist with editing a video taken after a book reading we had completed.  This video was put on the organization’s social media platforms.  So much of this field of study is being able to convey meaning or a particular idea to others.  It is a simple video of the children being read to and then doing an activity.  Their smiles are so big.  I felt this task allowed me to perform on the intent of the organization that kids flourish when they can interact with reading in any capacity.  I am currently designated to put together literacy kits and create activities that correspond with the children’s books.  A week ago, I was assembling these kits for a Spanish book.  I was looking over the other materials and resources we provide in these baggies and realized that though I could not understand the language, I was so grateful that this organization truly does strive to create literacy equity for every community.  As an English major and future teacher, I know how valuable it is for every hand to be able to reach for a book that they can understand and have some sort of response evoked in them.  I am expected to begin a girl’s book club in the month of March for three different schools.  I am so eager to facilitate discussions and encourage the girls to engage with the text in meaningful ways that they can relate to.”

The Department of English offers a robust undergraduate internship program. Our internships include on- and off-campus training positions through which students apply their college-level English classroom skills to practical work environments.  These positions enhance student employment opportunities after graduation and expose our students to a wide variety of careers for which an English degree prepares them. English internships fall into three broad categories: publishing, legal, and non-profit. Examples of organizations with which we are partnered include Alabama Heritage, the University of Alabama Press, Black Warrior Review, Historic Tuscaloosa, New Heights Community Resource Center, Tuscaloosa Reads, Rosen Harwood Attorneys, Jefferson County Public Defender’s Office, Tuscaloosa County Public Defender’s Office, Almond Attorneys, LLC, and many more.

Requirements

During the semester in which the internship will be held, students should be second-semester junior or senior English majors with a 3.00 grade point average. Interns should work approximately 10 hours a week and must submit both a midterm and an end-of term critical reflection assignment.

Application Process

All students wishing to seek an internship position with one of the departments partners must schedule a brief preliminary interview with the Associate Director of Undergraduate Studies before receiving any referrals. Students who successfully secure an internship must complete the department’s internship proposal form and submit it for approval, in order to enroll in EN 430: English Internship. EN 430 may count as a 400-level English elective for 3 credit hours toward the major, or it may count as 3 credit hours toward the Digital, Public, and Professional Writing English minor.

News

The Department of English Internship program is now an award-winning program! Associate Director of Undergraduate Studies, Dr. Serena Blount, was awarded in April 2024 an Excellence in Community-Engaged Scholarship award in the category of Engaged Teaching and Learning, for her work in expanding, developing, and systematizing the English Internship Program. But wait–there’s more! English Intern Emily Adcock was awarded an Excellence in Community-Engaged Scholarship award in the category of Civic Engagement for her work on with the Community Crossroads Civic Learning Lab. And finally, one our program’s marvelous community partners, New Heights Community Resource Center was also awarded in the category of Civic Engagement! A great day for the Department of English internship program! Read, Write, and Roll Tide!

English Intern Emily Adcock at the Crossroads Civic Learning Lab Opening.

Below, pictures capture the work of English major Drew Aultman’s internship at Arts ‘n’ Autism. Drew leads a creative writing class is leading this semester (Spring, 2024). The class is made up of a group of middle schoolers called the “Bigs”; they are 12- and 13-year-olds. Class activities range from creating character profiles, to sketching art, taking field trips downtown, and presenting their stories to fellow students. Included the group photo is another English intern, Morgan Holder. Morgan’s duties at ArtsnAutism have included grant research and writing, producing a new brochure, and other writing work associated with administrative, fundraising, and public outreach activities. Our interns find a wealth of experiences through our community partners!

Below, English undergraduate intern Rainey Hill, with her director Tami Speth of KinderVision/TeenPSA heading in to Tuscaloosa County High School to meet with students.

Below, New College student Karim Panjawani who is earning credit for an English internship. He says, “My experience connecting with Judge Coogler’s chambers through the English Department has been incredibly smooth, and actually working within Judge Coogler’s chambers has been awesome! Given that most interns with judges are students currently in law school, I’m grateful that I’ve been able to get on board as an undergraduate student through the English internship program. As an intern, I’ve been able to work on a variety of cases, participate in discovery conferences, and observe actual courtroom procedures. I would highly recommend this internship to anyone who thinks they want to go to law school or do anything law adjacent!”

The Crossroads Civic Learning Lab has provided important experiential learning opportunities for our English undergraduate Students. Intern Lauren Herba reflects: “Dr. Harris asked me to create a presentation evaluating the growth opportunities for Crossroads on LinkedIn and YouTube. While this was originally intimidating, I have relied on my digital, public, and professional writing coursework to guide me in these tasks, and I have now excelled in them. So far, I have had opportunities to work on social media, be involved in dialogue groups, attend conferences, strategize for the future of Crossroads, and more. The value of concise writing, first introduced in my Technical Writing coursework, has become more apparent during this internship, and I have realized that writing needs to be quick and punchy to stand out on social media. Additionally, I have utilized the video editing skills that I learned during my Writing Across Media class.”

Pre-Law English major Ashley Nelson interned with Rosen Harwood attorneys in Spring of 2024. Her internship included overlooking wills and trusts, sitting in on phone calls with clients, and doing projects involving research:
“My skills in English have absolutely been helpful. For example, when I do a project that involves research, most of the time what I have gathered is eventually turned into a summary and it’s as though it’s a short essay. I think my writing skills have definitely helped me, but so have my reading comprehension skills. For the same example of the research projects, I typically have looked at 15-20 different sources before I have officially summarized all of what I have read.”