Internships

professor giving a lecture

Internships provide the opportunity for a transformational experiential learning process that allows students to apply classroom learning to real-world settings. During the internship process, many students solidify their post-graduation plans and make important professional connections that lead to full-time employment.

There are several options for students to gain internship experience while at Stetson. Internships can be participated in during the fall, spring and summer semesters. It can be paid or unpaid, and it can also be completed either for academic credit or a no-credit experience. For academic internships, students can earn credit in their major or minor with the approval of their academic department. If you would like to meet with a Career Advisor to discuss internship choices, please contact Career Success at [email protected] or 386-822-7315.

Internships typically follow similar start/end dates as the academic calendar. For local/regional internships, it is recommended that students apply about two to three months before the start of the internships. For example, if a student is planning on participating in a summer internship, a good goal would be to complete internship applications by mid-March.

For national internships in large metro locations such as New York City or Washington D.C., application deadlines begin three to six months before the internship begins. If you would like to intern in Washington D.C., application deadlines may be at the end of the fall semester.

For internships with Federal agencies such as the U.S. Department of State, the Federal Bureau of Investigation or the Central Intelligence Agency, students should plan on completing internship applications nine months in advance. For example, for students interested in interning during the summer, applications should be completed and submitted by October.

There are a number of ways students find internships. There are many local, regional and national opportunities. Here are a few resources to get you started.

Academic Internship Course Registration

To receive academic credit for an internship, students must complete the Academic Internship Course Registration. This comes in two phases: (1) Initiate Academic Internship Course Registration and (2) Finalize Academic Internship Course Registration.

All these requirements must be completed by the Internship Course Registration Deadline for each semester as noted on the Academic Calendar (DeLand Campus). Students who miss this deadline risk being administratively dropped from their internship course.

For general questions, please contact Career Success at 386-822-7315 or email [email protected].  

Once you have secured an internship, please follow the steps below to enroll in an Academic Internship Course. This Academic Internship Course is offered by your academic major/Department, for example, MKTG 397 for marketing and PSYC 297V for psychology.

  1. Identify the faculty member teaching the internship course related to your studies by conducting a Class Search for the desired semester. (We will refer to this faculty member as the Faculty Internship Course Instructor.) Select “Internship” from the Interdisciplinary Programs drop-down list. If you do not see a particular course listed, contact Career Success at [email protected].
  2. Meet with your Faculty Internship Course Instructor to request academic credit for your internship and learn about course requirements. It is important to prepare for this meeting using the Academic Internship Guide. Your Faculty Internship Course Instructor will want to know about the details of your experience and your learning objectives. 
  3. If your Faculty Internship Course Instructor approves your internship for academic credit, ask them for a Permission of Instructor override, which will allow you to register for the appropriate internship course.
  4. Register for the course through MyStetson, as you do for all other academic courses.
  5. International Students, please contact WORLD regarding approval for Curricular Practical Training (CPT). 

After you have enrolled in your Academic Internship Course, you will receive an email with the following instructions below.

  1. Fill out and submit an Academic Internship Application Form: once you have enrolled in your Internship course, you can fill out the Application Form. You can also view video instructions on how to fill out the form.
  2. Track the progress of your Academic internship Registration Form: your application will need to be approved by your Faculty Internship Course Instructor, Department Chair and Internship Site Supervisor. Once you submit your form, you can track the form's progress through emails from [email protected]. If you are not receiving emails, please go back to your form and ensure you have clicked "Submit" at the bottom of the waiver.
  3. Internship Orientation: some majors/internship courses may require this orientation to be completed before the beginning of the internship and course, while others may suggest it as optional. Please contact your Faculty Internship Course Instructor to see if this is required for your academic internship. Note: Internship orientation is offered asynchronously via Canvas.