Student Affairs Internship Program
The Student Affairs Internship Program, a partnership between the School of Education Department of Leadership Studies and the Division of Student Life at USF, offers opportunities for USF graduate students in the Higher Education and Student Affairs (HESA) MA program to gain invaluable work experience in student affairs and an ability to contribute to the Jesuit mission and goals of the institution.
Internship experiences are 9-10 months in duration and require that students work an average of 18-25 hours/week in an assigned department. Experience can be gained in a variety of settings including student housing, cultural centers, student activities, leadership, orientation, academic support services, student conduct, greek life, and more.
Placement Questions: Contact the program at SAIP@usfca.edu.
Students within the Master of Arts in Higher Education and Student Affairs (HESA) program engage in rigorous academic curriculum with practicum experiences in various areas of student life. Every HESA course is infused with an examination of equity and a passion for social justice. Class conversations and coursework focus on improving access to higher education for first generation and low-income students.
The HESA program prepares students for a professional career in student affairs and leadership in higher education. SAIP is an important component of this preparation for many of our students to further their professional experience and opportunities to network with colleagues at USF and at our partner institutions. The program trains professionals to understand issues of equity and social justice in higher education while thinking critically about how to transform organizations to improve educational outcomes for all students.
The internship program experience is intended to support praxis (the integration of theoretical and research coursework through reflection) within the context of student affairs in higher education.
Through SAIP, graduate interns will
- Practical Experience: Gain practical experience in one, or more, functional area(s) of student affairs.
- Discernment: Develop the skills to engage in professional and personal growth by reflecting on how their identities shape the multiple aspects of their experience in the field of student affairs.
- Critical Student Affairs Knowledge: Become familiar with foundational knowledge, literature and associations within the field of student affairs through an equity and social justice lens.
- Career Preparation: Be provided opportunities to refine skills and develop materials for the job search that help the intern maintain authenticity and integrity.
Internship experiences aim to develop skills guided by ACPA/NASPA Professional Competencies Rubric (2016), a joint publication by two professional associations of the field: ACPA (College Student Educators International) and NASPA (Student Affairs Professionals in Higher Education).
The ten competency categories are:
- Advising and Supporting
- Assessment, Evaluation, and Research
- Law, Policy, and Governance
- Leadership
- Organizational and Human Resources
- Personal and Ethical Foundations
- Social Justice and Inclusion
- Student Learning and Development
- Technology
- Values, Philosophy, and History
The following are examples of the kinds of positions students have occupied:
California College of the Arts
- Access and Case Management
- Coordinator of Student Activities
Dominican University
- Student Organizations and Leadership Coordinator
Holy Names University
- Graduate Assistant Hall Director
San Francisco Art Institute
- Community Development Program Coordinator
- Housing and Residential Life
San Francisco State University
- Residential Coordinator (Head Resident)
Stanford University
- Disability Empowerment Hub Program Coordinator
- Inclusion, Community, and Integrative Learning Program Coordinator
University of California, Berkeley
- Graduate Assistant for Orientation
- Graduate Coordinator for Fraternity & Sorority Life (LEAD Center)
University of San Francisco
- Assistant Residence Director
- Black Achievement Success and Engagement
- Campus Activities, Student Leadership & Engagement
- Diversity Engagement and Community Outreach
- Graduate Coordinator for Operations, Cultural Centers
- McGrath Institute for Jesuit Catholic Education, Department of Leadership Studies
- New Student & Family Programs
- Residential Operations Manager
- Engage USF, McCarthy Center
- Graduate Coordinator for Student Development and Advising, Cultural Centers
- Leadership Programs, Student Leadership & Engagement
- Student Engagement Intern to Student Engagement Unit-Division of Student Life
- Student Government, Student Leadership & Engagement
Internship Placement Timeline for the 2024-2025 Academic Year
January 8: SAIP Application Opens
February 5: SAIP Application Closes
February 12 - 23: Application Review and Interviews
February 26 - March 1: Notification of Internship Offers
March 11 - onward: Round Two Placement Process (Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis.)
Application for the 2024-2025 Academic Year: Currently Closed
Prior to starting the application, you should be prepared to upload one general resume (PDF only), and written responses to the following prompt for each internship you are applying:
PROMPT: The internship experience is ideally an experiential learning opportunity that can provide students with the chance to both explore and deepen a commitment to a career in higher education. In a short written statement, reflect on how this internship placement connects to your potential career pursuits. What do you hope to contribute to this internship placement? What do you hope to get out of an internship in this particular department or office? (300-400 words)
If you have any questions, please email SAIP@usfca.edu. Thank you and good luck!
Available Internships for the 2024-2025 Academic Year
The Assistant Residence Director (ARD) is a ten-month live-in graduate internship position. When classes are not in session, excluding Spring Break, the ARD position is full-time (35 hours per week); when classes are in session, the position is part-time (25 hours per week). The ARD works with the supervising Residence Director (RD) on the planning, implementation, and evaluation of a comprehensive community and student development program and assists in the supervision of between 8 and 16 Resident Advisors (RAs). The ARD may also support student life campus crisis response.
There are opportunities to become involved in Departmental, Divisional and University levels. Such involvement may include serving on committees, working on special projects, and undertaking special assignments. Possible areas of involvement include but are not limited to staff training; student leadership development; off campus-living student support; basic needs initiatives; academic initiatives; alcohol and other drug (AOD) education; multicultural and social justice education; orientation; and health and wellness.
The Graduate Assistant for Leadership and Engagement (GALE) is a ten-month live-in graduate internship position. When classes are not in session, excluding Spring Break, the GALE position is full-time (35 hours per week); when classes are in session, the position is part-time (25 hours per week). The GALE works with the Associate Director for Residential Life to foster leadership opportunities in the residence halls and apartments through co-advising the Residence Hall Association (RHA) and providing guidance to Residence Hall Council advisors. The GALE may also support student life campus crisis response.
There are opportunities to become involved in Departmental, Divisional and University levels. Such involvement may include serving on committees, working on special projects, and undertaking special assignments. Possible areas of involvement include but are not limited to staff training; student leadership development; off campus-living student support; basic needs initiatives; academic initiatives; alcohol and other drug (AOD) education; multicultural and social justice education; orientation; and health and wellness.
Located in the Leo T. McCarthy Center for Public Service and the Common Good, Engage San Francisco (ESF) Literacy is a tutoring program that is a part of ESF’s community engaged place-based initiative working to promote educational equity, antiracism, and cultural humility within the Western Addition, a historically Black neighborhood in San Francisco.
The ESF Literacy Program Graduate Assistants work closely with the Program Manager, other Graduate Assistants, and the undergraduate Student Leadership team to support undergraduate tutors in navigating their roles. Within ESF Literacy it is our priority to ensure that each of our tutors enter the Western Addition community with an understanding of the systemic oppression faced by the community, the community’s resilience and expertise in resisting oppression, and the tutor’s role as a capacity builder and partner rather than a savior.
The Graduate Assistant is responsible for assisting the Literacy Program Manager with oversight and coordination for the Engage San Francisco Literacy Program. This includes: assisting in managing an extensive database of tutor information; hiring, training, and supervising ESF Literacy tutors; keeping in regular contact with sites and the Literacy course instructor(s); observing and coaching tutors; and communicating as needed with participating site leaders and tutors. This position offers opportunities for curriculum and workshop development as well as an opportunity to gain management experience with a large team of undergraduate students. In this role, graduate students will learn how to create a humane work place for student employees, engage in critical dialogue with students, offer supportive critique to undergraduates, and inspire undergraduates to be justice oriented leaders.
Reporting to the Assistant Dean of Initial Year & Family Engagement, the Graduate Intern will contribute to the short and long-term goals of the department and its programs. Working in a variety of areas, the Intern will use their experience to help shape the delivery of new student & family programs and services in an effort to reach the departmental outcomes supporting students' leadership development and promoting student engagement in co-curricular activities. Specifically, the intern will assist with the coordination and implementation of Special Orientation programming, New Student and Family Orientation, Weeks of Welcome, and First-Year Programming, the advising of the Get Oriented (GO) Team, and the implementation of USF101 and its Peer Mentor Program.
Two positions are available:
New Student Services empowers over 9,000 undergraduate students to succeed annually and facilitates their transition to UC Berkeley. This process is known as the Golden Bear Experience, which consists of two parts: Before Students Arrive (advising and prep, online) and After Students Arrive (Move-in, Golden Bear Orientation, and Getting your Bearings, on campus). To accomplish these goals, New Student Services utilizes multiple levels of student staffing and involvement. This includes, but is not limited to, Student Coordinators, Orientation Mentors (OM), Orientation Leaders (OL, and Office Representatives. As a team of committed student affairs professionals, New Student Services practices a student-centered learning approach in all programming for new students and training(s) for our student leaders.
Two positions are available:
Reporting to the Assistant Director for Campus Activities, the Graduate Intern will contribute to the short and long term goals of Student Leadership and Engagement (SLE) and its programs. Working in a variety of areas, the Intern will use their experience to help SLE reach the departmental outcomes of providing programs and services that support students' leadership development and promote student engagement in co-curricular activities open to all USF students. Specifically, the Intern will assist with advising the Campus Activities Board, supporting the development of the executive board and implementation of campus-wide events, and will assist with the development and coordination of marketing initiatives, providing support for the marketing and photography assistants.
Reporting to the Associate Director, the Graduate Intern will contribute to the short and long
term goals of Student Leadership and Engagement (SLE) and its programs. Working in a variety
of areas, the Intern will use their experience to assist in efforts to reach the departmental outcomes supporting students' leadership development and promoting student engagement in co-curricular activities. Specifically, the Intern will assist with the development and coordination of student organization services offered by SLE in conjunction with the Associated Students of the University of San Francisco (ASUSF) and the Associated Graduate Students of the University of San Francisco (AGSUSF).