College of Business Internship Policy

Adopted: Fall 2024

Accounting and Business Information Systems Department
Business Administration Department
Economics and Finance Department

This policy applies to all current and future undergraduate degree programs in the College of Business.

The internship policy and guidelines are implemented and monitored by the faculty internship coordinator and/or chair in each department.

The internship programs are managed by the College of Business and major-specific Internship Contacts.

Internship Structure

A 3-credit internship is a program requirement for all students in all the undergraduate programs in the College of Business.
Each department/program may offer a required 3-credit internship course as part of the curriculum. In departments with more than one degree program, this course may be cross-listed.
Programs may also choose to require the internship course of another program rather than develop/offer their own.
The internship course (xxx 490) of any program in the College of Business will count for fulfilling the course requirement for all programs. In the event that the course is not being offered by a department/program in a given semester, students must enroll in the internship course of another department/program in the College and that course will substitute for the one within their program.
Students must enroll in the approved internship course concurrently with their internship experience to receive the 3 credits required for their degree. Internship hours cannot be started until course enrollment is complete. Students may not defer internship hours and request an Incomplete grade.
The internship requirements can be met in any semester excluding the Wintersession.
During the Fall and Spring semesters, all internship course meetings with the professor will be on-ground and in-person. During the Summer session, all internship courses will be online and virtual.

Internship Policy

Internships may be paid or unpaid. Students will receive 3 credits associated with the required concurrent internship course, irrespective of whether their internship is paid or unpaid.
Students are expected to spend at least 120 hours at their internship, be registered for the internship course, and attend the weekly course meetings with their professor.
Students may not use their current employment to count as an internship.
Independent Studies are not allowed as a replacement to the internship course requirement. The internship must be approved by the program internship coordinator (a designated program faculty or department chair) PRIOR to enrollment in the internship course. This is irrespective of whether the internship is paid or unpaid. Paid internships MUST be first approved by the program coordinator and then by the Office of Career Success as needed.
Students cannot request a retroactive acceptance of hours already worked at a job to count as an internship. Internship requirements can only be considered met after following the approval process and completing the concurrent internship course.
The program internship coordinator will review the description of the proposed internship, including tasks, responsibilities, supervisor information, and intended learning outcomes to ensure that the internship meets the educational requirements and rigor of the program. This description MUST be provided by the internship employer/potential site supervisor. Students cannot submit this description.
The internship site supervisor/mentor may not have a personal relationship with the student.
Students whose proposed internship is denied must work with the program internship coordinator, the major-specific Internship Contact and the Office of Career Success to find a suitable alternative internship.
Once approved, the major-specific Internship Contact will enroll the student in the appropriate internship course. Students cannot enroll themselves in an internship course. Students who are double majors within the College of Business need only fulfil any one major’s internship requirement. The second major’s internship course requirement, including course credits, will be waived upon completion of one internship and course.
International internships where it is not possible to document the internship properly, demonstrate educational rigor and outcomes, or communicate with the employer/site supervisor, will not be approved.
Departmental Internships will not count toward fulfilling the internship requirement.
Departmental Internships are designed for helping students develop teaching and research skills for graduate school.
A student dismissed for cause from an internship or failing to meet internship requirements must work with the faculty internship coordinator on a remedial plan to meet the internship requirements in a timely manner.
Policy Exception: The department chair may grant individual exceptions to these policies for very limited extenuating circumstances after thorough discussion with the program internship coordinator and the major-specific Internship Contact, and after gathering all the relevant supporting documentation.

Internship Process

Student identifies an internship opportunity. This can happen in several ways – through the student’s own search or connections, through the Office of Career Success, through faculty connections, or by working with the major-specific Internship Contact.
Student submits the details of the internship, including employer/supervisor information, through an Adobe Sign document to be approved by the supervising faculty member, internship supervisor, department head, the academic dean, and the registrar.
The major-specific Internship Contact gets internship description and details from the web form and completes the paperwork to document the approved internship and enrolls the student in the internship course.

Guidelines for Departments

Each department in the College of Business will designate a faculty internship coordinator who will be responsible for approving internships to ensure they are appropriate in terms of tasks, learning outcomes, educational goals, and rigor appropriate to the relevant program.
The faculty coordinator will collaborate with the major-specific Internship Contact.
The internship course will be used to collect data for program assessment.
The major-specific Internship Contact will be responsible for collecting survey data from employers prior to the completion of the internship and distribution of grades.
Each internship instructor will use the common prompts adopted by the departments to collect any direct and indirect assessment data from students enrolled in the internship course.

Guidelines for Employers

Private-sector employers in the United States must generally pay at least minimum wage and overtime to interns, except for narrow exceptions.
Public-sector and nonprofit organizations have greater latitude about whether or not to pay interns.
Under the Department of Labor guidelines, the following seven criteria help distinguish between an employee and an intern:
- Both parties understand that the intern is not entitled to compensation.
- The internship provides training that would be given in an educational environment.
- The intern’s completion of the program entitles him or her to academic credit.
- The internship corresponds with the academic calendar.
- The internship’s duration is limited to the period when the internship educates the intern.
- The intern’s work complements rather than displaces the work of paid employees while providing significant educational benefits.
- The intern and employer understand that the internship is conducted without entitlement to a paid job at the internship’s end.

Guidelines for Employers Establishing New Internships

If an organization has no internship program, or no established internship with the College of Business or Eastern, then they must follow specific steps to establish one.
They must clearly identify organizational needs, wages, hours, policies, legal issues, and performance metrics.
They must establish an appropriate intern mentoring process, ensuring hands-on training, establishing internship goals, engaging in periodic meetings, providing performance and professional feedback, and assigning appropriate tasks that meet the educational requirements of the internship.
They must designate a site supervisor who is responsible for the intern(s) and who will be responsive in communicating with the College Internship Officer.
They must follow the Department of Labor and FLSA guidelines to ensure that interns are not misclassified as trainees or employees.