Yes! All students in the School of Communications must do an internship as part of their degree requirements.

We recommend waiting until your Junior or Senior year.

Check Handshake, Career Fairs, periodic Blackboard announcements from your major, and this internship feed, or look for one on your own.

At least 1 credit is required, but you may do an internship for up to 6 credits at an organization or business. A maximum of 15 internship credits is allowed (but not all at the same organization or business) for some majors - check with your internship coordinator.

1 credit = 50 hrs. per semester. (Summer, 12 weeks, 1 credit = 50 hrs.)

About 3.5 hours per week per credit (during fall and winter, for summer see below).

1 credit = about 3.5 hours per week.

2 credits = about 7 hours per week.

3 credits = about 10.5 hours per week.

4 credits = about 14 hours per week.

5 credits = about 17.5 hours per week.

6 credits = about 21 hours per week.

About 4 hours per week per credit (during the 12-week summer semester).

1 credit = about 4 hours per week.

2 credits = about 8 hours per week.

3 credits = about 12 hours per week.

4 credits = about 16 hours per week.

5 credits = about 20 hours per week.

6 credits = about 24 hours per week.

1.) Read these internship policies, 2.) search Handshake, this internship feed, or find an internship on your own, 3.) fill out an internship agreement form, 4.) wait for initial approval, 5.) wait for internship supervisor (employer) approval, 6.) in Banner request a permit (override) for the section you need in COM 490, CAP 490, or CMJ 490 (For example, in the Multimedia Journalism major, 1 credit is CMJ 490-01, 2 credits CMJ-02 and so on - Summer interns (12 weeks): 1 credit CMJ 490-13, 2 credits CMJ 490-14, etc.), 7.) wait to receive your permit approval, 8.) go to Banner and register for the right section.

[NOTE: See also "How do I find the right section for registration?": ]

When you go to Banner to apply for a permit (override) to register, you will need to know the section number. The section number is based on 2 things: 1.) the semester you want to register for, 2.) the number of internship credits you want. See below for an example taken from the Multimedia Journalism program .

***IMPORTANT*** Remember, you MUST apply for and be granted a permit (override) BEFORE trying to register for one of the sections below.

FALL and WINTER 15-Week semesters

CMJ 490-01 - if you want 1 credit.

CMJ 490-02 - if you want 2 credits.

CMJ 490-03 - if you want 3 credits.

CMJ 490-04 - if you want 4 credits.

CMJ 490-05 - if you want 5 credits.

CMJ 490-06 - if you want 6 credits.

SPRING/SUMMER 12-Week Semesters [See also - "Special Sections for Short Summer Sessions"]

CMJ 490-13 - if you want 1 credit.

CMJ 490-14 - if you want 2 credits.

CMJ 490-15 - if you want 3 credits.

CMJ 490-16 - if you want 4 credits.

CMJ 490-17 - if you want 5 credits.

CMJ 490-18 - if you want 6 credits.

Before you can register for an internship, you must first complete an internship application and wait for approval from the internship coordinator and from your internship supervisor. After your internship application has been approved, you must go to Banner and REQUEST A PERMIT (OVERRIDE) for the appropriate section of CMJ 490 that corresponds to the semester you are taking the course and the number of credits you want to take. You will be notified by email when (if) your permit has been approved.

***IMPORTANT*** After your permit is approved you MUST REGISTER FOR THE COURSE IN BANNER.

Your internship coordinator. Every major has one. But, BEFORE you contact your internship coordinator, read the internship policies for students AND ALL of the FAQs first!

Internship Coordinators for specific majors:

• Advertising & Public Relations Adrienne Wallace

• Communication Studies Lin Tian

• Health Communication Lin Tian

• Multimedia Journalism Len O'Kelly

Internships are credit/no credit, so there is no letter grade. However, in order to receive credit, YOU NEED TO DO THE FOLLOWING during the last few weeks of the internship:

• Complete the online evaluation (link) that will be sent to you a few weeks before your internship is over.

• Encourage your supervisor to do the evaluation (link) that will be emailed to them a few weeks before your internship is over.

• Write a 1,000-word essay detailing your internship experience [see "What should my essay include?"]. Email the essay to your internship coordinator for your major before the last day of the semester [see the FAQ, "If I have questions about my internship, who do I talk to?]

You must write a 1,000-word report about your internship experience--discuss your overall impression of the experience and location, what you did, what you learned, and how the internship experience related to your classes. (Your internship coordinator may have additional specific requirements for this essay which should be included.) This should be emailed to the internship coordinator FOR YOUR MAJOR prior to exam week in the semester in which you are registered for the internship. Communicate with your internship coordinator well in advance about expectations, requirements, and due dates. Please be sure to include a cover sheet with your name, the course (COM, CAP 490, etc), section number, internship coordinator, and the semester (e.g., Winter 2022).

Your internship must generally end within the semester you are registered for 490. In other words, if your internship ends within the fall semester, you will take COM 490, CAP 490 or CMJ 490 within Fall semester. However, if your internship starts in Fall semester but ends in Winter semester, you would request a permit for 490 in Winter semester.

Under certain circumstances, you may complete an internship during one semester (summer for instance) but earn the credit in the following semester (Fall). Make sure this has been approved by your internship coordinator.