Introduction to the Corporate Scholars Program Video
Windows Media video (48 Mb)

Mission

The College of Computer, Mathematical and Physical Sciences’ (CMPS) Corporate Scholars Program (CSP) is intended to provide a combination of scholarships with internship opportunities to meritorious undergraduate students within CMPS. The program will offer employers access to a pool of talented pre-screened students to fill internship opportunities, which serves as a cost-effective means for recruiting future highly qualified employees while providing merit-based scholarships to students. This program is open to CMPS undergraduate students only.

Overview

CSP is designed to assist employers in conducting targeted, efficient recruitment for summer internship opportunities while supporting the student intern through a merit-based scholarship. CSP will consist of the following components:

• A pre-screening process based on applications to the program.
• The awarding of $2,000 merit-based scholarship with internship opportunities.
• A private Dean’s Reception for students, employersand invited CMPS faculty and staff.
• An assigned mentor for each intern provided by the employer.
• A series of site visits by Program Director during the summer internships.
• A structure in which the internships will initially be completed during the summer semester, traditionally 12 weeks between June-August (40 hour weeks).

Benefits to Companies

• Direct access to an applicant pool of pre-screened students with appropriate background and skills.
  
• Participate in a cost-effective way of identifying highly qualified potential employees.
  
• Opportunities to hold specialized info sessions for students covering internships and career-related topics.
• Attendance at the Dean’s reception for employers, CSP participants, and the College’s academic leadership with the opportunity to network with other employers.
  
• Gain College, University and public exposure by providing scholarship(s) in the company’s name.
  
• Receive increased visibility with a link to the company’s website on the CSP webpage and participation in a logo sharing program when that is established.
  
• Gain exposure through recognition by the University and the College, in particular through Newton Society membership.

Benefits to Students

• An opportunity to receive a $2,000 merit-based scholarship along with a paid summer internship experience related to their field of study.
  
• An opportunity to cultivate a professional relationship with an assigned mentor at the internship site, which could potentially result in a full-time employment opportunity upon graduation.
  
• An opportunity to network with other students and employers at the Dean’s reception for employers, CSP participants, and the College’s academic leadership.
  
• An opportunity to add the scholarship and internship experience to professional portfolio and resume. Note: Students may only participate in CSP one time during their academic career in CMPS.
  
• An opportunity to earn 3 general elective pass/fail credits in the internship seminar, CMPS 497, the following semester.

Student Eligibility for Participation

• Must be enrolled as a full-time student in a CMPS major.
  
• Must, at the time of application, have a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher and 30 credits OR ELSE a cumulative GPA of 3.0 in the required courses in their major, an overall cumulative GPA of at least 2.7, and at least 60 credits; at least 28 credits must have been completed on campus.
  
• Must display academic achievement in fields relevant to the internship and/or other previous relevant experience.

Application and Selection Process

• Employers will have the opportunity to sign-up for the CSP beginning in September 2004 by submitting internship descriptions for listing on the CSP webpage which will be screened by departmental academic advisors for content.
  
• Students may apply for participation in the CSP from December through March.
  
• Students will submit a web-based application, indicating an ordered list of which internships they wish to be considered for; all applicants meeting the eligibility requirements will be considered.
  
• Students may submit updated applications indicating their wish to apply for positions posted after the submission of their original application; the website will indicate which internships have been filled, as well as new openings as they arise.
  
• The Dean’s office (Associate Deans of Undergraduate Education) will use the applications to identify students for admission to the program on the basis of merit, judged in terms both of academic and relevant professional accomplishments.
  
• Employers will have made individual arrangements with the CSP as to the qualifications they seek and the size of the pool of students to be submitted to them for interviews.
  
• For each internship position the Dean’s Office (Associate Deans of Undergraduate Education) will rank all students admitted to the program who meet the qualifications requested by the employer; the top members will form the pool submitted to the employer; employers will begin receiving applications by March 10, 2005.
  
• Students will be informed if their names have been submitted to employers (and to which), but will also be made aware that the submission of their applications to the employers does not guarantee an internship for the student.
  
• Each participating employer will be supplied with a pool of accepted students and will consider the applicants in that pool using their own processes and adhering to all EEO guidelines in accordance with all applicable state and federal laws. Detailed arrangements with the student for the internship are the responsibility of the employer.
  
• Employers will inform the Program Director in the Dean’s Office in a timely way as to whom they have extended an interview, an offer and finally who has accepted the position.
  
• Employers may request additional names, for example, if students in the initial pool have accepted other internships. The next group of admitted student applicants for that employer will then be added to that pool.

CMPS and Student Responsibilities

• The Program Director will make one onsite visit during the summer experience to each participating employer to verify how the interns are progressing.
  
• The Program Director will serve as the point of contact for employers and students participating in CSP.
  
• The Program Director will provide applicant pools to employers in a timely manner.
  
• The intern will construct a learning contract and outline learning objectives that must be signed by the academic advisor, site supervisor and Associate Dean for Undergraduate Education.
  
• The intern will enroll in CMPS 497 the Fall semester following the summer experience and complete all course requirements including a final report evaluating the internship experience.

Direct Expenses and Other Employer Responsibilities

• Employer will provide a paid internship(s) to CMPS students.
  
• Employer will provide a job description for proposed internships for approval by the relevant academic department.
  
• Employer and the College will sign a standard MOA.
  
• Employer will provide a supervisor/mentor for each intern (and inform the College), before the start date of the internship experience.
  
• Employer will provide an irrevocable contribution to CMPS that will cover one $2,000 scholarship for each internship position it offers to students in the program; where possible these scholarships will be awarded to the student interns hired by the employer. An initial $2,000 scholarship contribution is due upon the agreement to participate in CSP, and the remainder as offers are extended.
  
• Employer will provide an overhead fee of $2,000 for the first student, $1,000 for the second, and $500 for each additional student; these charges are due upon the successful recruitment of the interns.

Program Planning, Marketing and Implementation

• CSP was announced by the Dean in December 2004.
  
• CSP is advertised to students via email, advising appointments in the Dean’s Office and the departments, and postings on bulletin boards and plasma screens and by the directors and leader of the College Park Scholars, Gemstone, and Honors programs.
  
• CSP is promoted to corporations through site visits, mailings, and word of mouth by our current members.
  
• CSP has an announcement on the CMPS Career Services Website.
  
• CSP is advertised using Internet Marketing.
  
• CSP pilot year was the 2004-2005 academic year
  
• CSP webpage is located at http://www.cmps.umd.edu/csp/index.htm

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