Student Internships

Take charge of your career with a student internship. Don’t wait until graduation to begin building your career; gain valuable experience working in your field while earning course credit.

Academic internships through the Eberly College are not your usual intern experience. Supervised professional work experiences ensure that you’re being challenged and are contributing skills you’ve acquired rather than making coffee and filing paperwork. Internships provide the opportunity to grow and produce professional journals, research papers, case studies and more, while maintaining the structure of academic work.

Eberly Internship Courses

These courses allow you the freedom to choose your internship while providing an academic supervisor that can guide you through your experience, and help you keep your academic commitments on track.

• ARSC 491
  
• Focus on pushing the boundaries of learning by exploring areas outside the scope of your academic major to brid ge cross-disciplinary fields
• Department/Program 491
  
• Focus on the learning outcomes relevant to your specific discipline and the curriculum you’re pursuing through your major

Forms

• Internship evaluation/verification form
• Internship student survey 
• Student/supervisor internship form

Meet with an advisor

The Eberly College Office of Academic Affairs has advisors who are able to help you make decisions about the kinds of internship would best benefit you and can help you find internship sites. Contact the Undergraduate Studies Office at 304-293-7476 or visit us in 217 Hodges Hall.

Tips for Planning Your Internship

Start planning early

Explore your options, and do it well in advance. The earlier you can secure an academic supervisor and a couple internship opportunities the better your overall experience will be. Preparation provides the competitive edge you need to succeed so consider the following questions to narrow what kind of experience you want.

• Do you have time to invest in an internship right now? 
• Do you want your internship to relate to your major? 
• Would you like a personal local experience, or something more prominent? 
• What types of work setting are you looking for; slow-paced, outdoors, big corporate offices, start-up businesses? 
• Do your opportunities accommodate for earning academic credit? 
• What kind of culture do you expect from your internship environment? 
• Do you require a paid internship or are you willing to accept an unpaid position? Be prepared 
• Build professional relationships with faculty who will happily write letters of recommendation 
• Dust of your resume and have it critiqued by experts. Don’t forget about essay writing and cover letters, it’s time to bust out those writing skills too. 
• Know yourself, in the professional sense. If you have an idea of your career objectives, strengths, weaknesses and skills you’ll be able to discuss them in interviews like a pro. 
• Attend career fairs 
• Register with Handshake
• Establish a complete LinkedIn account 
• Maintain a positive social media image