Early Intervention Program

Internship opportunities

STUDENTS: In order to participate in an internship, please contact our office one semester prior to your desired placement.

Early Intervention Internship opportunities are available for both graduate and undergraduate students. For assurance in setting up your internship, please contact the Early Intervention Recruitment and Retention Office(EIRRO) at 401.874.4036. We will be able to assist you in arranging an internship with a certified EI site. Internship opportunities are available for varying numbers of hours and credits. Hours are determined by the student’s program of study as defined in his/her course requirements.

Sites

Please see our Site Descriptions  page for information about the individual site placements.

How to Apply

If you are interested in applying for an internship opportunity, please complete the Intern Contact Form Update and email it to grant.earlyintervention@gmail.com, along with your resume. If you are looking for an internship for the Spring semester please apply by the end of October, and if you are looking for an internship for the Summer or Fall semester apply by April. URI Career Services offers a Resume Writing Handout for help with resume preparation. The Early Intervention Recruitment and Retention Office will gladly accept applications and make every effort to place students at an internship site, however internship placement is not guaranteed. 

What Will You Do?

Depending on your discipline and experience, an internship in EI can offer the following experiences:

  • Attending agency orientations as well as staff trainings and meetings.
  • Gaining skills in the areas of professional conduct, work etiquette, and co-worker relations.
  • Learning EI eligibility criteria.
  • Understanding the role that a service coordinator serves within EI.
  • Shadowing EI staff on home visits to ensure that services are being provided appropriately and are still necessary. Students are encouraged to attend home visits with practitioners outside of the student’s field of study.
  • Providing appropriate play activities for children while meetings are held with parents during home visits.
  • Visiting families in their home to provide counseling and training.
  • Offering casework, psychological, and supportive services.
  • Assisting with evaluations, under the supervision of an EI practitioner.
  • Providing health services such as nursing, occupational therapy, or physical therapy.
  • Assisting with nutrition and medical services.
  • Delivering speech, language, and hearing services.
  • Helping with office work, including processing intake phone calls, clerical work, and preparation of materials to use with families during home visits.

What Will You Learn

Early Intervention provides many opportunities for interns to learn and enhance real world, marketable skills. During an EI internship, you will acquire:

  • Skills in developing and maintaining a collaborative team approach
  • Knowledge of Early Intervention disciplines
  • Successful strategies to work one-on-one with children and their families
  • Methods to deliver services in a variety of home-based and community environments

Quotes from Some of Our Interns

“I felt the whole experience was so wonderful. The site was amazing, so was the URI staff.”
“The favorite moment of my internship has been meeting so many people. It has been interesting to see how professionals work together to coordinate their services. In addition, it has been very rewarding to have an opportunity to work in a natural setting. Most of all, this experience has assured me I want my career to be in Early Intervention.”
“My internship in Early Intervention is complex, challenging, and rewarding. In many ways, each day is different from the next.”
“Overall, my internship continues to be such a great learning experience. I love how each day I learn something new and how I am having the chance to participate in more ‘hands on’ activities as well as being given more responsibilities. I feel like I am actually making a difference in Early Intervention and that feeling is incredibly rewarding.”

Earning Credit for Your Internship

Students can choose from several options to earn credit with an EI internship:

  1. HDF undergraduate students can enroll in HDF 480/481
  2. Students who are interested in pursuing an internship for credit through URI’s Center for Career and Experiential Experience should visit the CCEE website for more information.
  3. Graduate students can register for internship credits through their home department
  4. Students from other colleges/universities are also eligible to participate. For more details, please email our office.

For more information about the URI EI Internship program, please contact us.