Internships

Information about UC Davis Cognitive Science Undergraduate Internships and Lab Research

Catalog description: CGS 192 and 199 allow students to receive unit credit for a supervised internship or research experience on campus, or off campus in community or institutional settings. A Cognitive Science instructor must be willing to support the intended internship or research. For CGS 192, a proposal must be approved by the instructor before the quarter of the internship or research begins. The proposal must include the requested units, units justification, objective and plan for work.  For CGS 192 only, a final report must be submitted of the work completed at the end of each quarter, during the final week of instruction. The final report must include description of the work completed, skills or knowledge gained, and details about the work environment. If requirements are met by the end of the quarter, the agreed upon units may be used towards satisfaction of upper division major requirement.

CGS 192

Beginning of the quarter/before quarter begins:
  1. Identify a Cognitive Science faculty member to serve as the instructor for your internship or research.
  2. Provide verification of the internship or research employment.
  3. Create a proposal that includes the following sections:
    1. Title
    2. Name of company or research group.
    3. Requested Units - This should be at most one unit for each 3hr/wk you are working during quarter (5hr/wk for summer session)
    4. Units Justification - This should specify how many hours per week you are planning/scheduled to work.
    5. Background and Objectives - Provide description of work to be completed and how work will contribute to your learning objectives.
    6. Plan - What is your plan so that you can be successful?
  4. Once submitted and accepted by your instructor, you will be given a CRN.
End of quarter:
  1. At the beginning of the final week of instruction, you will need to submit a final report of what you've completed.
  2. The final report should include the following sections:
    1. Title
    2. Accomplishments - Give an overall brief of what you did. You should give some background for those that haven't read your proposal.
    3. Skills or Knowledge Acquired - What new skills or new knowledge have you acquired, or what have you learned?
    4. Objectives Completed - What objectives did you complete while there and how has it contributed to your learning goals?
    5. Work Environment – What was the work environment like? This section must be sufficiently detailed to provide future students with realistic expectations of what your internship involved.
  3. Once submitted, the instructor will review the final report, and possibly request changes.
  4. Once the proposal is accepted, you will be all done.

CGS 199

Beginning of the quarter/before quarter begins:
  1. Identify a Cognitive Science lab to conduct research in. For a non-exhaustive list of appropriate labs, check the labs of the faculty members. Email the program director for questions regarding suitable sponsors.
  2. Request Units and CRN from the instructor  - This should be at most one unit for each 3hr/wk you are working during quarter (5hr/wk for summer session)
    1. Units Justification - This should specify how many hours per week you are scheduled to work.
    2. Background and Objective - Provide some background and describe goals of current research.
    3. Plan - What is the plan of work to be undertaken in order to receive a satisfactory grade?
  3. Once your faculty sponsor approves your proposal, you will be given a CRN.
End of the quarter:
  1. Your faculty sponsor will give you a grade based on mutually agreed upon criteria.