DOMESTIC ACADEMIC INTERNSHIPS
Academic Internships are structured educational work experiences designed to complement your academic program.
Benefits
Requirements & Deadlines
Summer Domestic Academic Internships
Registration Process
Additional Resources:
- Apply your academic coursework to a real-world work situation.
- Work with both a faculty and site supervisor to maximize learning.
- Explore career options.
- Obtain practical and professional experience in a field of interest.
- Receive a P/N grade and notation as academic internship on your official transcript.
- Network with professionals.
- Deadline to register a domestic academic internship during the regular academic year is set in accordance with the Registrar's last day to add a semester-length course. The deadline to register a summer domestic academic internship is June 1st.
- Institutional Review Board: If your academic internship will involve research activities with human subjects, be sure to see the Institutional Review Board’s website for steps to have your research project reviewed well in advance of the start date of your internship.
- Complete the Academic Internship Learning Agreement & Plan.
- For 1.0 credit, on-site experience plus academic work must total a minimum of 160 hours (120 on-site).
- For 0.5 credit, on-site experience plus academic work must total a minimum of 100 hours (80 on-site). NOTE: 0.5-credit internships cannot be completed during Interim.
- For 0.25 credit, on-site experience plus academic work must total a minimum of 65 hours (55 on-site). NOTE: 0.25-credit internships cannot be completed during Interim.
- The academic internship counts as an elective credit and does not fulfill GE requirements. It can sometimes be counted toward the major or concentration. Signature from the department chair/program director is required if counting the academic internship toward a major or concentration.
Summer Domestic Academic Internships - Deadline June 1st
Summer Academic Internships require completion of the Registration for St. Olaf Summer School Term II Form available at the Registrar's Office. This form, accompanied by a $50.00 non-refundable fee payable to the Registrar's Office, must be turned in along with a copy of the Academic Internship Learning Agreement & Plan in order for students to be officially registered! The deadline to register for Summer Academic Internships is June 1st . Students will be billed summer tuition rates for 0.25, 0.5 or 1.0 credit-bearing internship — the $50.00 non-refundable fee will be applied to the student's summer tuition bill.
- Come to the Piper Center (Tomson Hall 270) to learn about internship opportunities and for assistance preparing a
resume, cover letter, and interviewing skills. - Secure an internship.
- Designate a faculty supervisor. NOTE: supervisors of internships must have faculty status. It is preferred that you identify a faculty member from an academic department, but based on the internship, you may identify a head coach who has a faculty appointment (can assign grades, etc.). St. Olaf staff members, including assistant coaches, do not have faculty status.
- Access the Academic Internship Learning Agreement & Plan - the document will open and you will be able to electronically complete most sections. You can save the file to a common space to complete at a later date if needed. Upon completion, print the document & obtain the appropriate signatures.
If you are completing the internship during the summer, make note of the additional requirements listed above. - Begin filling out the learning plan. Finish the form with your faculty supervisor and your site supervisor. Sample Learning Goals & Strategies
- You, your faculty supervisor, and your site supervisor need to complete applicable sections and then sign on the required signatures section. The department chair's signature is required only if you want the internship to count toward your major or concentration.
- Carefully read and sign the student release form.
- The International and Off-Campus Studies Office needs to sign your form only if you are doing an internship outside of the United States.
- After you have completed the paperwork and obtained all the required signatures, call x3268 to make an appointment with the Internships Program Director in the Piper Center to finalize the application. The Piper Center is the last to sign the form before it is taken to the Registrar's Office. You must have an appointment, and you should schedule early! It can be difficult to obtain an appointment on the day of the registration deadline, so plan ahead.
- INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS: You will need to have your completed, signed form reviewed and approved by the International Student Advisor. Please access and print this Cover Sheet to include with your Academic Internship Learning Agreement and Plan paperwork.
- Consent to Release of General Information: Once you have obtained the signature of the Internship Program Director in the Piper Center, your name will be sent to the Dean of Students Office who will share pertinent information regarding any academic, emotional, medical, or behavioral issues with the Registrar's Office and your faculty supervisor. Should an issue be identified, the Registrar's Office will determine, through conversation with the appropriate Dean, whether to approve academic credit for the internship experience. See page 7 of the Academic Internship Learning Agreement & Plan for details.
- Copies of your Academic Internship Learning Agreement & Plan will be made available for the student, faculty supervisor, site supervisor, and Registrar's Office. Deadline to register an internship during the regular academic year is set in accordance with the Registrar's last day to add a semester-length course.
- If applicable, obtain an Interim Board Reimbursement Form from the Business Office window.
- If you are completing the internship during the summer, make note of the additional requirements listed above. The deadline to register a summer domestic academic internship is June 1st.
Questions? Stop by the Piper Center and talk with a Peer Advisor or staff member.
