All Social Entrepreneurship and Non-profits students are required to participate in at least two Connecting Experiences as part of their BDP work. A minimum of 3 credit hours must involve research with a faculty member. Take a look at what some Social Entrepreneurship and Non-profits students have done recently for their BDP Connecting Experiences, then read on for additional information and resources.
Spotlights
Advising
Resources
Past Connecting Experiences
Major: English
Type of Experience: Internship Abroad
Mentor: Council on International Educational Exchange faculty
Kate is studying abroad with the Council on International Educational Exchange in Dakar, Senegal this semester. As part of a course on community development, Kate will intern with a local non-profit organization, the Fédération d’Associations Fémenines du Sénégal (FAFS). FAFS works to promote the social and economic integration of women into society, and Kate’s internship duties will include research on malaria prevention and microfinance.
Major: Finance
Type of Experience: Research
Mentor: Wendy Hunter, Government
Sarah Trepagnier studied micro-businesses and microcredit, looking specifically at Panama as a case study. Sarah examined how microcredit, or the extension of small loans to non-traditional borrowers in underdeveloped areas, has both positive and negative effects in developing countries. She was also able to travel to Panama with Global Business Brigades to jumpstart a local business and then track its progress.
See also Past Connecting Experiences Spotlights for Social Entrepreneurship & Non-profits.
Katrina Kosted, the Connecting Experiences advisor for Social Entrepreneurship and Non-profits, can help you find research and internship experiences that connect to your major and your career plans. Call 232-7564 to make an appointment with Katrina. Remember to plan ahead—if you want to be in a connecting experience next semester, you should be planning for it now!
All students participating in a Connecting Experience will be required to attend two meetings during the semester, where you will have the opportunity to talk with advisors and other students about how your experience is going, and where you’ll learn about how to talk about and build on your experience in the future. Please see the Connecting Experiences Resources page under Current Students for details.
For Connecting Experiences guidelines, contract forms, scholarship applications, reflection essay guidelines, internship sponsor forms, and important deadlines, please see the Connecting Experiences Resources page under Current Students.
The EUREKA Web site provides a variety of resources, including scholarship information and a database of faculty research interests.
Important: There is no “list” of possible Connecting Experiences to choose from — because Connecting Experiences are designed to fit your own personal interests and goals, the “list” is as long as your imagination and creativity allow. With that in mind, here are some of the internship and research experiences BDP students have had in the past that relate to Social Entrepreneurship and Non-profits. They might help you get started brainstorming what you might want to do for your Connecting Experiences.
“Through the classes I’ve taken for my BDP, I’ve come to understand that sociology and health care intersect on a multitude of levels. My BDP has helped me see the connection, and now I’m pursuing internships and future academic programs in medical sociology.”