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Internships

Internships are a great way for students to get professional experience outside of the classroom. They provide an opportunity for students to accomplish the following:

Apply learned communication theories in a wide range of professional settings.
Build a portfolio of experiences and work products to share with potential employers after graduation.
Expand your resume with relevant communication work experience, and therefore make yourself more marketable post-college.
With each internship, you can “try out” an area of interest before committing to a full time job.

The Department of Communication encourages all majors and minors to complete at least one (preferably more) internship before graduation.

Internship Spotlights

Click to learn more about recent communication internship experiences.

Completing an Internship for Course Credit

Students interested in receiving academic course credit for their internships should apply for COMM 495: Field Internship. The deadline to apply to receive COMM academic credit for a Summer 2023 internship is May 10, 2023.

Because it is important that students have a strong foundation in the discipline before completing an internship for credit, the following criteria must be met before taking the course:

At least 60 cumulative hours earned. Students with less than 60 hours are encouraged to complete non-credit bearing internships and to consider the Career Center’s Certificate Internship Program when academic credit is required by the internship site.
At least 12 credit hours in Communication (majors) or 8 credit hours in Communication (minors).
Minimum 2.5 GPA in Communication, minimum 2.0 overall GPA.

The course can be taken for 1-3 hours and can be repeated for up to 6 hours. Students must complete the application process prior to beginning the internship and before the application deadline each term. To begin the application process, complete this form. Your application will be reviewed within 3 business days and you will receive a status update via CofC email. Once approved, students will complete an online learning contract signed by their internship supervisor outlining their goals and learning outcomes and the ways the duties and responsibilities of the internship will help them to meet these goals. These contracts are individual to each student, but are grounded in the mission and vision of the Department of Communication.

The deadline for completing the entire application process corresponds with the drop/add deadlines each semester. Students are strongly encouraged to plan ahead and secure the internship at least one month prior to the beginning of the term in which they would like to receive credit and complete the initial application at least two weeks prior to the start of the semester.