Introduction
Since 2002, a student in the HEC Montréal Bachelor in Business Administration Program (BBA) will have the opportunity to do two business internships enabling him to gain relevant professional experience in management and to obtain up to a maximum of six university credits.
A student can serve two types of internships, one called the Multidisciplinary Internship and the second one is the Specialized Internship in one of the fields of management. A business internship is the equivalent of a three-credit course where grades are given to the student by an HEC Montréal professor taking into account the evaluation made by the employer where the internship took place. A business internship can be done at any time during the year but cannot extend over a period of four months.
For a company, hiring a student intern is a way to get to know a potential candidate for a future permanent position or to have access to quality and energetic manpower on a temporary basis at any time during the year. When statutory laws allow it, a company may even benefit from financial assistance from the government for hiring an intern.
Two types of Internships and their Respective Goals
First type : The MULTIDISCIPLINARY INTERNSHIP has the following
goals:
- to enable a student to familiarize himself with the external factors of a company, namely its business sector, its competition and its market trends;
- to enable a student to put into practice the various management subjects in an actual work environment; and
- to provide the student with a tangible opportunity to gain related experience in management.
To meet these objectives, the Multidisciplinary Internship may be offered in two forms. The first one is an internship where the employer uses the intern's services for a number of tasks representing a wide range of management areas. For this type of internship, the student will alternate sometimes in accounting, finances, marketing, human resources management, etc.
The second form of Multidisciplinary Internship is where the student intern will occupy a single position in one of the management areas throughout the duration of his internship, but will have access to other management personnel in the company to allow him to put into practice all fields of management (marketing, finances, accounting, etc.) in the company's activities.
Second type : The SPECIALIZED INTERNSHIP has the following goals:
- to enable a student to gain extensive experience in one of the specializations offered in the BBA program;
- to get a student to establish links between his work experience and the knowledge gained in the specialization courses;
- to enable a student to confirm his choice of specialization and enhance his interest in his specialization courses.
To meet these objectives, there is only one type of internship possible. The type of internship where all of the intern's work hours are focused on specific duties related to one of the specializations included in the BBA program. These specializations are the following:
- Finance
- Marketing
- Operations and Production Management
- Management
- Quantitative Methods
- Economy
- Human Resources Management
- International Management
- Information Technologies
In this type of internship, the student is exposed to one or more facets of the related specialization. The intern's job content must also enable him to visualize the daily duties of specialists in the field.
Ground Rules for Business Internships
Eligibility Requirements
1. FOR COMPANIES
Any Canadian or foreign company may employ a student as an intern if it complies with the following requirements:
- the company is large enough (usually 10 employees or more) to provide adequate supervision to the student intern;
- the company shall identify one of its employees who will supervise the student adequately. This employee, called a mentor, shall not be related to the student. He must have the management knowledge and experience related to the type of internship done by the student intern. The company shall also make sure that the mentor is available to answer questions the student may have;
- The company requires the student to begin his internship only after prior final approval by the designated professor and by the BBA program administration;
- the company agrees to inform the student and the designated professor immediately upon changing the nature of the internship which was initially approved;
- the company agrees to complete the form for the evaluation of the work of the student at the end of his internship and to transmit said form directly to the BBA program administration.
2. FOR STUDENTS
To be eligible for an internship, a student must meet the two following requirements at the time of the approval of his internship :
- Hold a grade point average equal to or higher than 2.3 out of 4.3 in his BBA program;
- Have applied for 30 credits in the BBA program and a maximum of 87 credits.
Internship Evaluation
An internship is the equivalent of one course within the BBA program. It is therefore graded by the designated professor having approved the internship. Grades attributed to an internship is based on the production of a detailed written report and a verbal presentation by the student at the end of his internship as well as work quality evaluation by the mentor. The weighting of these three elements is as follows:
- Oral presentation: 30%
- Internship report: 50%
- Employer evaluation: 20%
Should he wish to do so, the mentor can be present for the verbal presentation by making appropriate arrangements with the designated professor.
How to recruit an intern
Companies wishing to hire an intern may post an internship offer on the Career Management Services Web Site or offer an internship directly to a student.
1. POSTING AN INTERNSHIP OFFER ON THE CAREER MANAGEMENT SERVICES WEB SITE
- Make sure your company meets all the eligibility requirements listed under the Eligibility Requirements heading;
- Make sure that the proposed internship meets the ground rules of a business internship listed under the Ground Rules for a Business Internship heading;
- Post your internship offer directly on the Career Management Services web site by selecting the job type Course-credit Internship under the Job Offer Posting heading. The Internship offer must include the following information: duration of internships, number of hours anticipated, description of main responsibilities, wages, the name and telephone number of the mentor as well as the deadline to apply.
- The internship offer will then be sent by the Career Management Services to the BBA administration for approval. The internship offer is normally approved within a two-week delay.
- After receiving approval for the internship, the Career Management Services will proceed with publishing of the internship offer to students and shall send a confirmation of said posting to the company.
- The company shall then receive the applications and proceed with the selection of an intern. The student is responsible for making sure that he meets the internship eligibility requirements. However, it is prudent for a company to verify the eligibility of a student with him.
- The intern selected by the company shall complete the Credited Internship Approval form provided by the Career Management Services, have the type of internship approved by the designated professor and transmit the form properly completed to the Registrar's Office for registration of his internship.
- The Registrar's Office shall send confirmation by e-mail of the credited internship registration to the student and a copy of the approval form to the designated professor and the Career Management Services. At that time, the internship can start.
- At the company's request, the Career Management Services will send, upon completion of the internship, a Quebec government form called Attestation of participation in a Qualified Training Period required for any tax credit claim.
2. OFFERING AN INTERNSHIP DIRECTLY TO A STUDENT
- Make sure that your company meets all eligibility requirements listed under the Eligibility Requirements heading;
- Make sure that the proposed internship meets all the Ground Rules for Business Internships;
- The student is responsible for making sure that he meets the internship eligibility requirements. However, it is prudent for a company to verify the student's eligibility.
- The student chosen by the company shall then get the Credited Internship Approval Form available on the Career Management Services web site and fill it out with the company representative.
- The student shall transmit the properly completed form to the designated professor who will then validate the internship and the type of business internship by signing the form.
- The student shall give the form duly approved by the designated professor to the Registrar's Office to obtain approval from the BBA program administration and to register his internship.
- The Registrar's Office will send confirmation by e-mail of the credited Internship registration to the student and a copy of the approval form to the designated professor and the Career Management Services. At that time, the internship can start.
- At the company's request, the Career Management Services will send, upon completion of the internship, a Quebec government form called Attestation of participation in a Qualified Training Period required for any tax credit claim.
