Do Something Guide Writing Internship
Main guideline: The Do Something! Guide is a truthful, positive account of the Grand Valley State University experience from students’ point of view.
Intended Audience: First-Year and Transfer Students new to Grand Valley.
Other Audiences: Experienced students, Faculty/Staff, Parents, Alumni
Contact:
Michelle Burke, APR
Associate Director of Student Life
Grand Valley State University
E-Mail: burkemi@gvsu.edu
Phone: 616-331-2345
Format: 64-page glossy magazine
Expectations of Interns: Interns will attend regularly scheduled meetings with supervisor (likely will be Tuesday evenings, but subject to change). At initial meetings, article content and writing assignments/deadlines will be established. At subsequent meetings, articles will be critiqued and revisions assigned. Writers will also provide input into graphic design of publication (giving feedback to student designers).
Multiple writers may be assigned to the same topic. Some articles will be selected for publication. Writers will be compensated for published work.
PROPOSED COMPENSATION FOR STUDENT WRITERS
 Final approval of compensable items by Michelle Burke (editor). All paid writing becomes property of the Office of Student Life and may be used in other publications and formats in the future.
 $25 per completed, layout-ready page selected for print (articles, “flash” pages—brief paragraphs with tips, and lists)
 $2 per research factoid selected to appear at the bottom of an article page
 $2 per NEW “50 Things To Do” items selected for print
 $5 per original photo selected to print – all appropriate subject releases must be secured. Digital cameras may be checked out from the Office of Student Life.
 Lump-sum payment to be processed after magazine goes to print in mid-July. (Must complete appropriate contract and required student employment paperwork.)
 Bonus $25 Dining Card if all established deadlines are met.
 Writers should be willing to rewrite and make revisions as many times as necessary before article is considered “complete.”
 All article writing must be original work with quotes and excerpts appropriately credited.
 For lists and flash pages, sources should be referenced in the passage.
 If the writer finds an available existing resource appropriate for the guide and secures permission from the original author/publisher to use the piece, a $5 finders’ fee will be paid per item selected for print, instead of the pay of $25 for an original page of work.
