Co-Ops & Internships

The Cooperative and Internship Programs in the College of Business Administration & Information Sciences are designed to enhance students' professional development through integration of classroom study and planned, supervised experiences in business settings.  Coordinated by the faculty, these programs provide students with networking opportunities and experiences in their area of study and future careers.

Overview

Clarion University's internships and co-ops are handled at the departmental level. Faculty coordinators from academic departments advise and assist students in designing an internship or co-op experience.

Registration in the departmental internship or co-op course is required for the student to receive credits. Each college and department may have specific requirements and criteria for acceptance in the program and for successful completion which go beyond the minimal requirements established by the cooperative education/internship program. Students should check with department chairs for details.

Co-op Program (300 level)Available to all business administration majors with junior or senior standing, the business experiences are generally undertaken concurrently with classroom studies (1-9 credits).*

Internship Program (400 level):  A culminating, substantial experience for senior and graduate students who have completed a significant number of academic courses in their major (6-12 credits).*

*Twelve credits is the maximum awarded to students for undertaking both co-op and internship experiences. The business experience generally requires a minimum of 45 work hours per credit hour, provided the work experience is all academically related.

Opportunities by Academic Major

Below are examples of possible internship opportunities for our students:

  • Accounting majors - auditing, budgeting, costing manufacturing activities, financial data recording, financial statement analysis and preparation, tax preparation
  • Economics majors - banking, policy analysis, statistical analysis for business & government, urban and regional planning
  • Finance majors - banking, financial analysis, insurance, loans and credit
  • Human Resource Management majors - human resource management assistant, labor relations assistant
  • International Business majors - global business analysis, corporate relations, trade & finance
  • Management majors - management trainee, operations management assistant, planner/policy analyst
  • Marketing majors - advertising, general merchandise management, marketing research, sales
  • Real Estate majors - real estate research assistant

Eligibility Requirements

The Co-op program is based upon job assignments that are related to the student's university major or career objectives and provide learning experiences as stated in their respective learning objectives. Faculty coordinators from academic departments advise students, review learning objectives, and evaluate term reports.

Cooperative education procedures are sufficiently flexible to provide for student and employer needs. The program is designed to enhance self-realization and direction by integrating classroom study with planned and supervised experiences in educational, professional, business, and cultural learning situations outside the formal classroom environment. The joint efforts of faculty, participating employers, and students are directed toward the achievement of an educational experience where classroom studies and appropriate work experience combine to reinforce each other.

Students must have junior standing, a minimum 2.5 QPA, or approval of the appropriate college dean. Offered each semester and on demand.

An internship is usually a culminating experience for seniors. Interns should have completed most of the required courses in their major area of study. Internships operate somewhat like student teaching, with the emphasis upon application of knowledge in a realistic setting rather than acquisition of new material. In other words, internships are begun with most entry-level skills at least partially developed, and the intern is expected to render supervised professional services. The length of an internship may be less than a semester or as long as a year. Many internships carry no salary or stipend.

Because internships are tailored to fit the demands of the respective professions as well as the needs of individual students, each college and department is encouraged to establish requirements and criteria for acceptance in the program and for successful completion which go beyond the minimal requirements established by the cooperative education/internship program. Each college is expected to enforce its own requirements through its departments.

Minimally, students must have senior standing and a minimum 2.5 QPA or approval of the department.

Last Updated 3/4/20