Internship / Practicum Application

Internships and Practicum Experiences 

Students at Cleveland State in the Department of Health Sciences & Human Performance may have opportunities for experiential learning. These are program specific and are indicated below. 

Health

Undergraduate students may complete an internship as part of their major program. Specific tracks have this as a capstone option or as an elective option. This is taken near the end of the student’s time at CSU and usually the semester before they graduate for 3 credit hours. Students must complete their HSC major core prior to enrolling in their internship. Students interested in this experience should contact Dr. DeMarco. 

Exercise Science

Undergraduate students are required to complete an internship prior to graduating as part of their program requirements. This is taken near the end of the student’s time at CSU (75% of program completed) and is usually the semester before they graduate.  Students must have a 2.75 GPA in their professional core courses prior to enrolling. Professional core classes include EXS 322, 324, 325/326, 328, 450, 439 and 475. Students should meet with their faculty advisor (Dr. Kullman or Sos) to discuss eligibility for the internship and the process for scheduling. 

Exercise Science Graduate

Students are required to complete a practicum experience as part of their major program. Students must have 22 credits completed including EXS 675, 676 and 677. Students should meet with their advisor, Dr. Wajda, to discuss eligibility for the internship and the process for scheduling. 

Internship/Practicum Process and Timeframe: 

Step 1 - Intent: Schedule an appointment with your advisor to declare your intention to complete your internship/practicum. Please be prepared to bring a resume and the names of several places you may be interested in completing this experience with. Students will work with their advisor to identify and confirm their site and be enrolled in Exxat Approve software for compliance. Students will receive an email for this software that will allow them to see and upload evidence of the required documents for their site. There is a $36 fee that will be prompted upon the first sign-in to Exxat that students will need to pay. Students planning to complete their internship or practicum must complete all requirements by the time outlined in the table below. 

The following items need to be submitted to Exxat prior to the Step 1 deadline:

• Goals and Objectives
  • This should be an ~1 page document addressing the following:
    • What are your short- and long-term career goals once you graduate with your degree?
    • Why did you choose this internship site, and how does it fit in with your career goals?
    • Describe specific skills you would like to obtain and/or improve during your internship (at least three).
    • Describe any specific experiences you would like to obtain during your internship.
• Current Resume
• College of Health Professionalism Policy Acknowledgement Form
• Background Check Acknowledgement Form
• Immunization Acknowledgement Form
• Drug Screen Acknowledgement Form
• BCI/FBI Background Check/Fingerprinting
• CPR/AED/First Aid (exercise science only) - American Heart Association (AHA) is recommended but Red Cross is also accepted at most sites. Clinical sites, including the Cleveland Clinic ONLY accept AHA. All CPR/AED classes must have in-person testing for full certification.

Step 2 - Submission of Standards and any other additional requirements: Depending on your site, there may be additional requirements such as immunizations or a drug test that will also be due by the Step 2 deadline. If immunizations or other health metrics are required by the internship site, students may wish to check with the CSU Health & Wellness Services, since many medical services and immunizations can be obtained inexpensively at the campus clinic. Health & Wellness Services is located in the College of Health (CH) Building, 2112 Euclid Ave, Room 205, (216) 687-3649.

Exercise Science students will need to complete the EXS Standards Form. This form indicates that you've met with your site supervisor and have a plan to address all required standards. All standards will need to be rated (with 1 indicating little experience and 4 indicating a lot of experience), and brief summaries will need to be given of how each standard will be met during your internship/practicum experience. Additionally, you will need to provide your tentative schedule to ensure that you will meet the number of hours required. This form will need to be signed by you, your site supervisor, and your academic advisor prior to submission to Exxat. 

Students will not be able to progress to the internship/practicum without the identification of a site and completion of all requirements. These will be loaded into Exxat Approve and then shared with the site for verification/approval.  

FAILURE TO COMPLETE ANY OF THESE STEPS WILL RESULT IN REMOVAL FROM THE CLASS.  

If you have any questions regarding the application process, please contact us at
Health Sciences and Human Performance (HSHP)
Julka Hall 164
216-687-4870
healthsci@csuohio.edu