Program Description

What is an On-Campus Internship (OCI)?

Ideally, OCIs are student led (company and/or mentor advised) fifteen-week projects sponsored/funded by companies interested in hiring BYU students.
The projects are real world problems faced by the companies today.
The students will use the tools they are learning in their programs to create an insightful problem resolution to the project proposed by the company.
A company sponsor will provide direction to the team and a graduate (e.g. MBA) mentor may, at the option of the company sponsor, be hired as an advisor to the team.

No matter how realistic a case is designed, it is always going to be somewhat contrived and condensed.
OCIs are real problems with all of the realities of the marketplace, companies with their rules and cultures, and team members with their diverse ideas.
This isn't practice anymore, you have to line up a number of tools and have them work together to solve a business problem or do real business work.
Companies want to see energetic and enthusiastic workers with new and innovative insights, not the same rehashed approaches of the past.

The company will receive work output throughout the semester and a final report and recommendation from the student team.
They will receive insight from students which are being trained in the most recent techniques.
They may have the assurance the recommendation has been reviewed by an MBA as a credibility check.
They will have contact, far beyond an interview, with future recruiting candidates that they could hire.
The cost of the study (free or nominal charge for MBA mentor) is an economical option to develop recommendations for the defined problem.

A real world experience in the area of their studies.
A fabulous resume builder and focused on future career.
Interaction on a personal level with company contacts who are experienced in their future career field and that may recommend or hire students.
An opportunity to solve problems with the tools they are learning, where there is no answer already defined.
Developing team work skills in a real world setting.
Gaining real live "Game Experience" instead of one more practice session developing future skills.
Developing attributes that matter most to recruiters.
A three credit hour class held on campus during the fall and winter semesters
Students come from the Marriott School or other colleges as needed for the project description
Students work nine hours per week (three credits times three hours per credit)
Students are assigned work requested by business sponsor
We seek to assign students work related to their major or emphasis of study/future employment

Homogeneous and Heterogeneous (cross functional) teams formed of students to work on projects
Work teams can plan specific hours to work together each week
Sponsors assign work projects with specific deliverables and required time frames for completion
Sponsors and teams use a number of technological tools to communicate and provide deliverables
Team leaders are assigned to dispense the workload to the team (most team leaders are student who have served a previous internship)
Students can take the course a second time as a team leader to develop leadership experience and enhance their resume
Graduate students may serve as mentors to the team and team leaders (at the option of company sponsors)