There are three main pieces of the Connecting Experience process
- Completing the contract
- Mentoring during the semester of the experience
- Reporting the grade
Completing the Contract
Before the student can be registered for a Connecting Experience, they must complete an online contract that must be approved by the faculty mentor who will be overseeing and assigning a grade for the experience.
The deadline for the student to complete the Connecting Experience contract is the second class day of the semester, although these deadlines are earlier for Connecting Experiences outside the US and for summer experiences. The student is responsible for meeting these deadlines.
The contract includes the following components:
- One-page statement: This describes the student’s proposed Connecting Experience, how the experience connects with their BDP topic and strand, and why they chose their faculty mentor. Your student should share their one-page statement with you, and you may need to help them refine the statement. For example, many undergraduates need help with narrowing the scope of a research project to make it achievable in one semester.
- Grading requirements and faculty/student communication plan: Students must consult with you to complete this information, which outlines the student requirements/basis for grading and the meeting/contact schedule. You will be notified by email when this information is ready for your review, and the contract will not be considered complete until you have approved. See Grading Connecting Experiences and Suggestions for Assignments for more information.
- Internship information: For internship experiences, students must also coordinate with their Internship Supervisor to complete information related to the internship. You may ask to see this part of the contract if you choose, but students are responsible for filling it out with the Internship Supervisor and returning it to the BDP office.
Once submitted, the BDP office will review the contract, and the student’s BDP advisor will contact the student with any questions or revisions required. During this review and approval process, students may contact you with questions about the requirements/basis for grading. In some cases, we may ask the student to revise the one-page statement, typically either because the connection with the BDP topic is not clear or because there is not enough information about the experience itself. Also during this review process, we check with students who are planning human subjects research to ensure that they have IRB approval to proceed with this work. Students may be in contact with you if they have not already obtained IRB approval.
The review and approval is typically concluded before the twelfth class day of the semester during which the Connecting Experience is occurring. Once the twelfth class day has passed, you will receive an email from the BDP office with confirmation that the contract has been approved.
Mentoring During the Semester
Meet regularly (we recommend biweekly) with your student to check in on progress and provide guidance for the project or internship. You may also maintain contact via email, either in addition to in-person or Zoom meetings or in place of them.
The student will also be required to check in electronically with the BDP office early in the semester and at mid-semester, and attend a meeting focused on the required reflection essay late in the semester. The two check-ins are designed to ensure that students are getting off to a good start, including maintaining good contact with you and with their internship supervisor, if applicable. The meeting is designed to prepare students to write their reflection essay, which they turn in to the BDP office and to you on the last class day of the semester.
Reporting the Grade
If the student is registered to receive credit for the Connecting Experience through a BDP course number (e.g. BDP 320K, 320L, or 325K), you will receive an email from the BDP office with information about grade reporting deadlines and a link to the reporting system close to the end of the semester. In this email, we will remind you of the link to the online contract you approved. For internship experiences, we will also provide feedback from the internship supervisor as available.
Questions
For questions about any part of the Connecting Experience process, please contact Larissa Noake or call 512-232-7564.