1. Internships & Opportunities

Internships

An internship can help you explore your career interests, gain the skills you'll need for future jobs, and build your professional network. You can also usually earn academic credit for your major at the same time!

Finding an Internship

Finding an internship is similar to the process of securing employment. You need to contact organizations of interest and apply for an internship in the same way that they would a job.

  • Plan ahead! Depending on location, apply 2-12 months before your start date.
  • Prepare a resume, cover letter, and online presence (LinkedIn, Handshake (UA Career Development office can help).
  • Work your network – talk to friends, professors, and acquaintances. Consider talking to UA Alumni through the Bear Down Network. Set up informational interviews with alumni or contacts in industries and attend career fairs, mixers, and hackathons.
  • An ongoing job may not be used for internship credit unless distinct work and supervision are present. An internship typically may not be undertaken in the same department or unit of an organization in which a student is regularly employed.

Experiencing an Internship

  • An internship is typically 3 credits, representing  a minimum of 135 hours of work which is typically 8 to 10 hours per week in Fall semester or Spring semester. Summer session hours may be worked between the Summer Pre-Session (mid-May) through Summer Session II (early August), even though you will be registered in Summer Session I or II. Hours must be worked within the semester for which the student is receiving credit.
  • Once you are enrolled in an internship, you will have access to a D2L course page so that you can communicate regularly with your site supervisor and faculty, and so that you can turn in your final evaluation at the end of the term. 
  • For graduate students, there are a few important things to remember. For example, the required Digital Information capstone course (IRLS 676) is actually a practicum (administered separately from the internship or independent study courses for the Masters program). All graduate internships must be approved by the School of Information Individual Studies Director and the graduate faculty advisor. Also, M.A. Library and Information Science students working in libraries may complete either their capstone 698 internship or 693 internship in a different department under a different supervisor doing work that is clearly differentiated from their regular duties.
  • For graduate students, the capstone internship (698) goes beyond a regular internship through explicit linking of student learning objectives and program outcomes with workplace experience in the information professions. Students must have completed 18 units including all core courses and their mid-program reflection and Plan of Study in order to be enrolled in the 698 Capstone Internship. The capstone internship 698 is required for M.A. Library and Information Science students, though they may choose to take a second 693 internship as a free elective in their program. Except under exceptional circumstances, students working in libraries are not exempt from the capstone 698 requirement. 

Where to find internships:

 

Internship Opportunities     Apply for Internship Credit