What is an internship?

An internship is a work experience that is relevant to a student’s chosen major.
An experience that should enhance a student’s academic, career, and personal development
Supervised by a professional in the field
An experience that can be one academic term (summer, spring, fall) or multiple academic terms in length
Paid or unpaid, part-time or full-time
An experience that is mutually agreed upon by the student, supervisor and/or faculty member
Internships might also be called a practicum or co-op.

Why should my business participate in the internship program?

Internships give students the opportunity to explore careers in their chosen major, network with potential employers, and learn about jobs that are available.
The employer also benefits from the internship by:
- Building your potential employee pool
- Receiving additional staff assistance during peak times/special projects
- Providing supervision experience for future managers in your company
- Mentoring a student
See “Benefits of Hiring Our Students” for more information.

Internships can begin at any time but usually correspond to the fall, spring, and summer semesters.
If a student is pursuing class credit, they must spend a minimum amount hours on the job-site (see specific program requirements) to obtain academic credit for the internship together with meeting all the other course requirements.
However, if the student’s schedule permits and the business agrees, the student may put in additional hours beyond the minimum requirement.

Although the primary purpose of the internship program is to give a student relevant business experience in his or her chosen field, compensation during the internship experience is certainly an incentive.
Monetary compensation also helps to create the atmosphere of employment.
To date, most of the internship opportunities partnered with the internship program have provided compensation ranging from a stipend to help pay for the tuition cost of the internship to $9.00 per hour or more, depending on qualifications and class level.
See “Compensation” for more information.

Our LCOB students come prepared with an array of skills and are eager to learn. A few examples of internship tasks are:

Accounting/Finance
- Handle accounts payable or accounts receivable, Analyze stock market trends, Assist accountants during tax season.
Human Resources
- Develop handbooks or employee manuals, Pre-screening of applicants, Monthly newsletters, Payroll assistance, Research on regulations and compliance issues.
Marketing
- Create a new marketing campaign, Create mailing lists, Design brochures or distribution materials, Conduct marketing research, Design charts and graphics to be used at a meeting or conference, Analyze sales data.

The internship program expects each employer to provide meaningful duties for the student to perform that would enhance the student’s understanding of his or her career area.
See “Employer Expectations” for more information.