Welcome to Office of Academic Internships, Cooperative Education and Service Learning (OACS). We are located in Neff Hall, room 337.
Programs and services offered
- Cooperative Education
- Service Learning
- Academic Internships
Check out the programs and services we provide by clicking on the links at the left of the page.
For more information, click the link on the left of the screen.
Why consider an internship?
- Gain valuable work experience
- Explore possible career path.
- Apply classroom learning to the real world
- Gain contacts and network with people and organizations who may help you in the job market
- Enhance your resume
- Earn academic credit
Who is eligible to do an internship?
- You must be a student in good standing and meet your department requirements.
What qualifies as an internship?
- Any work experience that is related to your educational and career goals.
- The key requirement is that the internship involve a new experience. Students can earn credit for their current jobs if they are beginning a new project or activity.
- Internships may be part-time or full-time, paid or volunteer.
- Students may enroll in 1 (minimum) to 6 (maximum) credit hours per semester per department policies.
Where are internship opportunities available?
- Internship opportunities are available in the Northeast Indiana area and nationwide.
- Internship opportunities are available in many professional areas including: law, corrections, probation, education, health, community services, government, private business, and many more.
How can I obtain an academic internship?
- Students have primary responsibility for obtaining a position. However, OACS may have requests from non-profit agencies. Some positions may also be posted in JobZone.
When are internships completed?
- Because work experiences do not always fit in the typical academic calendar, students may begin an internship any time during the calendar year.
How do I earn internship credit?
- Check with your department.
- Internships are graded Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory. These credit hours do not impact your GPA.
Academic Internships allow students to combine a credit-bearing independent study with outside, non-paid work experience.
A strong, rigorous academic component must complement the work experience. A faculty member advises the project and evaluates the student’s work. Students must meet the requirements established by their department. Some departments may not have a course established to accommodate academic internships. For-profit employers must meet the standards established by the U.S. Department of Labor. (Listed below)
In 2010, the Department of Labor (DOL) announced a crackdown on unpaid internships.....This article prompted a lot of focus on unpaid internships. http://www.inc.com/news/articles/2010/04/what-unpaid-interns-could-cost-you.html
Employers need to be aware of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) that the US Department of Labor (DOL) amended. The DOL essentially states that for-profit employers must compensate interns in some fashion or adhere to the six criteria to develop a formal training program for the intern.
The U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD) has developed the six factors below to evaluate whether a worker is a trainee or an employee for purposes of the FLSA:
- The training, even though it includes actual operation of the facilities of the employer, is similar to what would be given in a vocational school or academic educational instruction;
- The training is for the benefit of the trainees;
- The trainees do not displace regular employees, but work under their close observation;
- The employer that provides the training derives no immediate advantage from the activities of the trainees, and on occasion the employer’s operations may actually be impeded;
- The trainees are not necessarily entitled to a job at the conclusion of the training period; and
- The employer and the trainees understand that the trainees are not entitled to wages for the time spent in training.
For more information, click the link on the left of the screen.
Co-op is short for cooperative education, a nationally recognized academic training program that involves partnerships between students, employers, and IPFW. This academic enhancement program gives you the opportunity to explore how classroom theory relates to actual employment opportunities, while you remain an IPFW student. The Program is highly successful and has a proven history of benefits to students, employers, and IPFW.
- 2,231 co-ops worked with 242 employers in northeast Indiana, Alabama, Ohio, Illinois, Kentucky, Massachusetts, North Carolina, and Tennessee in the past 20 years of the Program
- 94% of IPFW Co-op students persist to graduation
- 91% of IPFW Co-op graduates land career–related jobs within 1-2 months of graduation
- 75% of IPFW Co-ops accept full-time career-related jobs with Co-op employers
- 5-25% above entry level salary is what IPFW Co-op graduates can expect when they enter the workforce
You receive a competitive wage and earn academic credit while working two or more semesters with an employer from the Greater Fort Wayne area or you can go to another state. The choice is yours.
Local employers provide outstanding co-op opportunities in the Schools of Arts and Sciences; Engineering, Technology, and Computer Science; Richard T. Doermer Business and Management Sciences; and the Division of Organizational Leadership and Supervision.
Faculty co-op coordinators approve all employers who request students. Also they approve your application based on departmental criteria. Upon approval, you are ready to begin the interview process.
For more information, click the link on the left of the screen.
Service learning is a credit-bearing, educational experience in which students participate in an organized service activity that meets identified community needs and reflect on the service activity in such a way as to gain further understanding of course content, a broader appreciation of the discipline, and an enhanced sense of civic responsibility.
Robert Bringle and Julie Hatcher
Fall 1995
Connect with IPFW:
2101 E. Coliseum Blvd.
