Internship Process
Preparation
- Reflect on your goals for an internship. How will this experience contribute toward your personal, educational and professional goals?
- Meet with a Career Development staff member if you are unsure about a career direction. Take advantage of career assessment and individual counseling to help you make better decisions about potential career paths.
- Meet with your faculty advisor or an Academic Resource Center staff member about potential majors, minors and curricular requirements.
- Review internships posted on CollegeCentral, NACElink and other online resources.
- Research potential internship employers through company, government and organization websites, as well as academic department web pages to review specialized opportunities.
- Prepare your resume using a variety of resources available on our website.
Selection
- Review website and relevant literature of potential placement sites.
- Conduct information interviews as needed.
- Talk to other students who have done internships at those sites.
- Rank preferences.
- Contact companies or agencies of interest to determine current openings.
- Interview for the position as required.
- Notify Career Development about all offers and acceptances.
For Academic Credit
Choose a faculty member to review and approve potential internships for credit.
- Typically, at least 90 hours of work experience over the course of a semester is required to earn three hours of academic credit. Some majors, like Exercise Science, may require more.
- Determine specific academic requirements of the faculty sponsor and/or academic department (e.g., mandatory meetings, papers, etc.)
- Students will receive a pass/fail grade after completion. No letter grades are awarded.
- The faculty in each academic department make all decisions regarding internships for credit.
Complete the Internship Application and Registration Form. Printed forms and other instructions for various academic departments should be obtained from Blackboard, the department office and/or Career Development (225 Campus Center).
- Students have through the end of the third week of classes each semester to register for credit in that semester.
- This form must be signed by the faculty sponsor of the internship, the student's faculty advisor, the chair of the department awarding credit, and that department's academic dean.
- Students pursuing a summer internship for academic credit are charged appropriate tuition and fees for the summer term. Students are not permitted to complete a summer internship for academic credit and pay for such credit in the fall or spring semester.
Students may receive up to six hours of internship credit within a particular major and up to an additional six hours in other areas.
Full-time students taking 12-16 hours can add up to three hours of internship credit without an additional tuition charge.
Follow-Up
- Print the Intern Evaluation Form and give it to your direct supervisor during the internship. This person will complete an evaluation of your performance and learning and return the form directly to the faculty sponsor of the internship.
- Print the Internship Site Evaluation Form and complete your assessment of the overall experience at the conclusion of your internship. This form should also be returned to your faculty sponsor.