Participate in Ingenuity in Action

• Consult with your academic advisor early and often to make sure you are meeting the requirements for Ingenuity and will be able to graduate on time. If you have not met graduation requirements, the Registrar may refuse your application to graduate.

• Talk to your advisor about what kind of experiential opportunities work best for your educational plan.
• Take a look through all of the pre-approved activities to see if you will be participating in any classes or activities that are already pre-approved.
• Different activities will require different application processes. For example, a student who wants to participate in the LEADS program needs to apply to LEADS in the spring in order to be accepted for the following year. Alternatively, a student does not have to apply to take a class, they only have to register. It is important that you, as the student, know what steps you need to take to be able to secure an experiential learning opportunity. Make sure you start this process well in advance of the start date of this activity. If you are not sure what steps you need to take to apply for the activity, you should talk to the Ingenuity in Action program coordinator.
• You will work to find a faculty or staff sponsor using the following rules:
  • Identify a faculty or staff member who is aware of your academic and/or professional goals, and is involved in this experience and how your participation will further those goals (e.g. a faculty member who teaches in the Kinesiology department may be the best option for a physical therapy internship). 
  • Determine who you will have the most interaction with as part of this experience (e.g. the staff member in charge of the LEADS program would be a likely sponsor for your participation in LEADS).
• From the time you submit the application/proposal to when the Ingenuity in Action committee provides a decision on your request can take a week to a month or more to decide depending on whether the information submitted is complete. In order for this process to go smoothly, make sure you apply as soon as possible, you follow the directions in the application, and you provide all requested information. Check your email often for correspondence from the Ingenuity in Action Committee in case more information is requested.
• Meet with the Berry Career Institute to help you with your resume prior to submitting your application.
• Check out the tips below to help you with your writing, and don’t forget to meet with the Writing Studio to help you with your personal statement prior to submitting your application. Strong writing skills will strengthen your application.

Please note that your activity will not count if you fail to complete the proposal and don't receive sponsor approval prior to the start of the experience. If you are concerned about the timing of your experience, please contact the Ingenuity in Action program coordinator. 

Your faculty or staff sponsor is responsible for approving your proposal and reflection. 

All experiential learning experiences go through the same application process whether you request academic credit, funding, and/or Ingenuity in Action transcription. The InAct portal is your one-stop-shop and offers a dynamic application depending on your specific needs. 

Complete the Proposal in the InAct Portal.

• Pre-approved experiences that do not require funding: This type of proposal will require your name, ID, and sponsor information. It should only take you a minute or two to submit the proposal for this type of experience.
• Proposing an activity that is not pre-approved and does not require funding: In this case you will be asked to answer two questions about what you plan to do and how the experience fits into your personal, academic, and career goals. Preparing responses to these questions ahead of time will allow you to complete the proposal more quickly and should only take about five to ten minutes. 

• Pre-approved or proposed experience that requires funding and/or academic credit: The application/proposal for these types of experiences may take longer to complete as additional materials such as personal statements, recommendations and/or a budget will be required depending on the experience. The primary activities that generally require additional materials include internships, off campus study, and Cornell Summer Research Institute (CSRI) experiences. For questions surrounding specific requirements for these activities and to best prepare materials for proposal submission, visit the appropriate website or office. 

  • Internships (Berry Career Institute)

  • Off-Campus Study

  • CSRI

Before you start your experience

Depending on the activity you choose, you may have agreements you have to sign or other steps that must be completed in order to begin the experience. You can find the checklists for different activities on their websites (Fellows, Berry Career Institute, Off-campus Studies). The checklists include links to where you can find each of the documents that are referenced.

Regardless of the application or registration process for your experiential learning activity, the final step in the application process is to apply for transcript notation by registering for the appropriate Ingenuity in Action course in self-service at any time, ideally prior to the start of your activity.

• Check out the PDF instructions for registering for courses in self-service

• To register in self-service keep in mind that there are six Ingenuity in Action EXP courses to choose from depending on the category you will complete:
  • EXP 101 - Academic Research
  • EXP 102 - Civic Engagement
  • EXP 103 - Creative Expression
  • EXP 104 - Global Connections
  • EXP 105 - Leadership
  • EXP 106 - Professional Exploration

• After you register, you will receive an email from the Ingenuity in Action program coordinator acknowledging registration and providing helpful tips on completing your activity and reflection.

If you have been approved for Ingenuity in Action and/or funding, you must consult your sponsor and the Ingenuity in Action program coordinator before changing any part of your application. If changes are made after approval, your credit and/or funding may be withdrawn or you may need to pay back what you have been given. 

If you have any questions about preparing for your activity, contact the Ingenuity in Action program coordinator at ingenuity_in_action@cornellcollege.edu.

During your experience, it is important to remember that this is a learning process. While you work on your Ingenuity in Action activities, think about the learning outcomes and the reflection questions listed in the Ingenuity in Action category you are completing. It is a good habit to start a daily journal where you can log the activities you work on each day, but also reflect on the work you did. Here are some tips for daily journals:

• Be consistent in your journaling - don’t skip days or weeks at a time
• This is not merely a description of what you did each day - this is an opportunity for you to critically assess and analyze the decisions you made and the work you performed, your professionalism, and the environment around you
• Challenge yourself to find ways you can improve - think about specific goals or strategies for learning and growing

Though a daily reflection journal is recommended, you should work with your Sponsor to make sure you are completing the work the two of you agreed upon. There are many ways to keep a growth mindset during an experiential learning activity. Maintain contact with your sponsor and keep track of the hours devoted to your experience with an Hours Log.

Congratulations on completing another important experiential learning opportunity! Now that the experience is complete, you should complete any assignments that are required by your sponsor.

Reflection

The final step in receiving transcript notation is the most important - completing and submitting your reflection. Your responses to the reflection questions should be well organized and thought out. Your sponsor will approve or deny your final reflection, so you should consult with your sponsor before submitting to ensure you are meeting their expectations and the requirements of each category. Once your sponsor approves your reflection, the Ingenuity in Action program coordinator will submit a final grade of “pass” and your experience will be added to your transcript.

Complete your reflection through the InAct Portal in a thoughtful manner and articulate how your experience will enhance your future plans. Your sponsor will use a rubric for your specific category to approve or require changes to your final reflection.

• You must register through self service in order to receive transcript notation. Ifyou have not completed this step, you will need to do so immediately. Depending on the category of Ingenuity in Action, you will register for one of the following:
  • EXP 101 - Academic Research
  • EXP 102 - Civic Engagement
  • EXP 103 - Creative Expression
  • EXP 104 - Global Connections
  • EXP 105 - Leadership
  • EXP 106 - Professional Exploration

Sharing your experience

An important component of the learning process that takes place through participation in Ingenuity in Action is to share your experience. You may do so in a variety of ways.

• Student Symposium: Each year in the spring semester students share their work through oral and poster presentations during a day-long event attended by the Cornell community and the general public. To participate, submit your proposal or speak to your faculty or staff sponsor to become involved. The Student Symposium is sponsored by the Center for Teaching and Learning. 

• Fellows Showcase: During the fall and spring semesters, Cornell Fellows from the most recent Fellows cohort will share their experiences through presentations with faculty and site sponsors, donors, and friends of the program. A networking reception precedes the presentations. Preparation and notification of the timing of the showcases will be shared by the Berry Career Institute with current Fellows.  

• Cornell Summer Research Institute (CSRI) Student Symposium: At the end of the CSRI experience, student researchers share their research with the Cornell community through poster presentations. CSRI faculty sponsors and the CSRI Director will provide preparation instructions and details surrounding the event.  

• Published Research: Students are encouraged to share their research through journal publications. If you worked with a Cornell faculty member or researcher at another institution that is publishing their research, you could be listed as a co-publisher. For more information about the process, consult with your faculty sponsor. 

• Social Media: Today’s social media platforms offer a variety of ways to share your experiences.  Whether adding your projects to a Youtube channel, posting an article, using the projects function on LinkedIn, or showcasing your technical projects on GitHub, these are all great ways to show the world what you’ve learned and your level of expertise on particular topics. 

• Websites: Not only are personal websites great for sharing your projects, they can provide deeper insights than a resume when you’re trying to get noticed by an employer.

Mastering the art of writing, and reflective writing in particular, is an important skill while you are at Cornell College and beyond. At Cornell we believe that learning does not take place simply by doing; it happens from thinking about those new experiences and internalizing them through reflection.

When you start your final reflection for Ingenuity in Action, you can use the following information to become a better reflective writer.

• Review and consider the reflection question prompts: Before getting started, carefully review the reflection question prompts and make notes. Your notes may provide a brief outline for how you might begin to answer each question. These questions are the guide for your reflection, so you’ll want to make sure you’ve taken adequate time to get your thoughts in order so that you can thoroughly answer each question. 
• Consider what went well, what didn’t, and what you would do differently: A reflection is more than a summary of the experience. It requires that you think deeply about how things went throughout the experience. Understanding what went well, what didn’t go how you had hoped, and how you might do things differently will allow you to come back to those lessons learned and apply them as you embark on your next experience. 
• Be honest with yourself: It can be difficult to admit that an action you took or didn’t take may have caused unforeseen or even negative consequences. On the other hand, it’s also important to realize your contribution to a project. Being honest about how your involvement in a project or experience positively or negatively affected the outcome will help you conceptualize how you might apply things that worked or encourage you to try a different approach with your next project or endeavor. 
• Keep an ongoing record of your experience while it’s happening: Keeping a summary of what you did each day along with any achievements or lessons learned will serve as a welcome reminder when you begin to write your final reflection. Memories fade as time passes, so this will provide a more comprehensive account of your experience and allow you to see patterns in how you approached different situations. Looking back on your experiences you will begin to recognize areas where your natural talents shine and areas that may consistently be a struggle. We all have strengths and weaknesses, but knowing what those are and actively working to manage them is sure to make you more effective.

Finally, keep in mind that whether the experience went well or not, the goal is to learn more about yourself and apply those lessons in the future.