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Indiana University

Undergraduate Internships

Intern in business suitUndergraduate students at SPEA are required to complete an internship as a part of their degree program. Why? Internships are carefully monitored work or service experiences in which students pursue clearly identified educational goals and reflect actively on what they are learning. The purpose, then, is to promote critical thinking, skill development, and personal and professional growth. By requiring an internship, SPEA is providing its students with not only a great skill set, but professional work experience as well.

Please see below for information on:

Take me straight to the paperwork!

I’m a supervisor. Take me to the evaluation!

**Note that if you are a supervisor and have any issues either logging into the online evaluation or getting it to work properly, please call (812)855-9639 or email us at speacare@indiana.edu** 

Internship Eligibility:

Students seeking credit approval for their internship must meet the following pre-requisites.

  • Successfully completed V252/H267: Career Development and Planning or other approved career course (any exemptions are noted in the student’s SPEA acceptance letter)
  • At least a sophomore standing (at the time of the internship)
  • Must be in good academic standing

**SPECIAL NOTE: All internships must be APPROVED prior to the start of the internship. Any hours worked before the internship has been approved will not count towards your total of 200 hours!**

Have an internship? Follow these steps to get it approved: 

  1. Go to the “Internship Paperwork” section of this website and click “Internship Approval Form”
  2. Log in using your IU CAS login information
  3. Complete the form -- **Note: It is recommended that the questions be answered in a word processing document, save it, and copy and paste the answers into the online form. If the form does not go through, you will then be forced to re-type all your answers for resubmission if you did not save them.**
  4. Hit the submit button
  5. Receive an automatic email confirming the receipt of your approval form. If you do not immediately receive an email from our office, please call (812)855-9639 to confirm the receipt of your form. If your approval form did not submit properly, you will be asked to resubmit.
  6. Your internship approval form is reviewed by the OCS Internship Coordinator. If there are any issues or questions, the coordinator will email you at your IU email address. If you do not answer any questions or address any issues in the timeframe specified, your internship will automatically be declined. Review time varies from 3-5 business days. Please plan accordingly.
  7. Receive a second email from SPEA OCS outlining the status of your internship (Approved, Conditionally Approved, or Declined). This email goes to your IU email address.
  • Approved – Your internship will count towards your internship requirement. Your supervisor will receive an automatic email as well that outlines the steps they need to take to complete an online evaluation of your work.
  • Conditionally Approved – Your internship will count towards your degree requirement as long as you follow the conditions laid out by the OCS Internship Coordinator – the coordinator will email you. Your supervisor will receive an automatic email as well that outlines the steps they need to take to complete an online evaluation of your work.
  • Declined – Your internship will not count towards your degree requirement. You will be emailed by the OCS Internship Coordinator outlining the reasons your internship was declined.

SPECIAL NOTE on Internship Registration:

Students accepted into SPEA previous to Spring 2011 – You may already be enrolled in V381/H466 for 1 credit. If you are not enrolled, you will be notified by the OCS Internship Coordinator with authorization and instructions on how to enroll. You will be required to enroll during the semester (or one of the semesters) in which you are interning. Your internship will be conditionally approved until a specified date. Failure to enroll by the date specified by the Internship Coordinator will result in your internship being declined.

Students accepted into SPEA as of Spring 2011 and later – You are not enrolled in V381/H466. Upon submitting your internship approval form, you will be notified that you are not enrolled and given authorization to enroll during the semester (or one of the semesters) in which you are interning. Your internship will be conditionally approved until a specified date. Failure to enroll by the date specified by the Internship Coordinator will result in your internship being declined.

Once the internship is approved, follow these steps to complete your internship:  

  1. Intern at least 200 hours – All 200 hours must be completed at ONE internship site. You are not allowed to intern at two different places for a total of 200 hours.
  2. Complete an Internship Summary Report. This can be completed during the last week of your internship.
  3. Go to the paperwork section of this page and click on “Internship Summary Report”  
  • Log in using your IU CAS login – A page will come up where you see your approved internship. To the right of the internship is a “Submit Summary” link
  • Complete the form --**Note: It is recommended that you answer the questions in a word processing document, save it, and copy and paste your answers into the online form. If the form does not go through, you will then not be forced to re-type all your answers for resubmission.**
  • Hit the submit button

The last step is to have your supervisor complete the Supervisor Evaluation Form online. Your supervisor was emailed at the start of your internship with information about how to log in to the online evaluation form. It is recommended that your supervisor complete the evaluation with you.

When the Office of Career Services has all three pieces of paperwork (approval request, summary, and evaluation), the summary and evaluation will be reviewed by the Internship Coordinator. If all pieces are found satisfactory, your grade for your internship credit (V381/H466) will be changed to an “S.” The grade has no impact on your GPA. Please allow 3-5 business days to review your internship documentation before your grade changes.

If issues are found in either the summary or the evaluation, you will be contacted by the OCS Internship Coordinator via email and the appropriate steps will be taken. Infractions of the SPEA Internship Code of Conduct (contract and e-signature are located in the approval request) will result in a failing grade for the internship.

Want to earn elective credits for your internship?

If your initial internship experience (i.e. the internship are you using to fulfill your internship requirement) will be more than 200 hours, you can earn elective credit in the form of V380. Please note the following:

  • The maximum number of credits that you are allowed to sign up for in one semester is six (6).
  • The maximum number of credits you are allowed to earn in your program of study is nine (9). One (1) credit of V381 or H466 (required) and eight (8) credits of V380 (elective).
  • You will earn 1 credit of V381 for the FIRST 200 hours that you intern. You can then earn 1 credit for every 80 hours interned past 200.

If your internship requirement has been fulfilled and you would like to earn elective credits for a second internship, you must intern 120 hours for the first credit and 80 hours for each additional credit.

If you would like to earn elective credit, the internship process is exactly the same, except you will need to complete BOTH the Internship Approval Form (Career Services website – see instructions above) and the elective credit request form on the Undergraduate Programs Office website. An academic advisor will review your AAR and determine whether or not elective internship credit fits into your academic plan.

SPEA Undergraduate Internship Paperwork:

  **The Office of Career Services reserves the right to contact your internship supervisor at any time to audit the number of hours you have been interning and/or to verify the legitimacy