Some Insights on Meaningful Internships in Sport Management: A Cooperative Education Approach

Abstract

Sport management programs at the undergraduate and graduate levels have proliferated over the past 2 decades. In most if not all of these programs, the internship course component has been identified as a vital element in professional preparation programs. Teacher/coordinators of sport management programs that include an internship component must be highly skilled to meet student needs. Equally important in the effective delivery of these programs is the need for the university to fully endorse the value of student internships through proper financial, technical, and human resources. The purpose of this paper is to examine, through a review of the literature, the goals and objectives of student internships, program characteristics of meaningful internships, and future implications for teacher/coordinators of sport management programs. Professors of sport management must act as change agents to further enhance the quality of student internships in professional preparation programs.