Internships & Co-ops for Credit

This program is for undergraduate students in the College of Engineering and Applied Science only. Please see details below on how to register for an internship or co-op experience to receive academic credit. 

If you are a graduate student looking to receive academic credit for an internship, please fill out the Universal Graduate Student Professional Internship Form.  

Available credits

You may register for 1- 3 credits of free elective. The departments listed below will allow for more than 3 credits of free elective. Please check with your home department for more details.

  • Biomedical Engineering - Allows for up to 6 credits of Technical Elective Credit to be applied to the degree for two separate internship experiences. (Only 3 credits allowed per experience)
  • Chemical and Biological Engineering - Allows for up to 6 credits of Free Elective Credit to be applied to the degree for two separate internship experiences. (Only 3 credits allowed per experience).
  • Electrical Engineering - Allows for up to 6 credits of Technical Elective Credit to be applied to the degree for two separate internship experiences. (Only 3 credits allowed per experience)
  • Environmental Engineering - Allows for up to 3 credits of Technical Elective Credit to be applied to the degree for an internship for credit experience.

Eligibility requirements

  • You must have a 2.00 GPA after sophomore year to apply. Continued performance at this level and completion of all first-year engineering requirements are prerequisites for beginning an internship/co-op experience.
  • Students participating in the internship/co-op program are expected to maintain a minimum GPA of 2.00, be in good academic standing, and maintain satisfactory progress toward degree requirements.
  • 鈥婼tudents may register for variable credit. A full-time (40 hour per week) internship is not required. However, a minimum of 100 contact hours is required to receive the 1 credit of free elective, and no credit will be issued for internships that are less than 100 hours.

International student eligibility requirements

International students have additional guidelines for internships/co-ops from the Office of International and Student Scholar Services (ISSS)

  • International students require minimum GPA of 2.00 (per CEAS internship for credit rule)
  • Must be a degree-seeking student in valid F-1 status
  • Must have their internship/co-op approved by an international student advisor before the first day of work.
  • International Students please check the International Student and Scholar Services page for requirements.
  • International students can receive CPT for a part time (20 hour per week) internship, it must reach the 100 hour minimum to receive 1 credit.

Steps for registering your internship / co-op experience for credit

Have you completed your internship or co-op for credit?

At the conclusion of your internship/co-op experience for credit, you are required to submit a report that answers some key questions about your experience.

Submit your internship/co-op final report

  • Start by securing an internship or co-op.
  • Submit the Application for Internship/Co-Op for Credit form. This must be completed and approved prior to the start of the internship or co-op experience! Retroactive internship for credit applications will not be accepted. You must have internship approved and be registered prior to the start of the internship.
  • The application will be routed to your internship supervisor, the department and Sharon Anderson via DocuSign. The internship is not approved until all parties have signed.
    • The application must be signed by the supervisor that you will be working under. It cannot be signed by a HR person or a third-party hiring company. If this is not possible, then you will not be eligible to participate in the Internship for Credit Program.
  • Once the internship for credit is approved, you will receive an email from Sharon Anderson with a permission number to register. You are not enrolled in the program unless you register for the COEN 3930 Internship for Credit for the semester of your internship.
  • If completing an internship/co-op during an academic term (fall or spring), you must also submit the Impact of an Internship/Co-op on Financial Aid and/or Scholarships Form before beginning an internship/co-op assignment. 
    • This form is not necessary if your internship takes place during summer. Please do not submit for a summer internship or co-op experience. This is to make sure that any scholarships or financial aid will not be affected by your internship or co-op experience. 
  • Attend a mandatory "Professionalism in the Workplace" seminar with your departmental coordinator prior to departing on the internship/co-op experience.
  • The final report and survey surrounding the experience are due the first day of classes following the work session unless otherwise specified by the Coordinator. The experience is graded as either satisfactory (S) or unsatisfactory (U). Students not submitting these materials will receive a grade of 鈥淚ncomplete.鈥 If the materials are not completed within one year, the grade will convert to unsatisfactory.
  • The registration fees are due in the Bursar鈥檚 Office by the deadline specified by the university. If not received by this deadline, a late fee will be assessed.
  • Failure to register and pay the required fee means that the internship/co-op experience cannot be used for credit.
  • If internship credit is desired and for all co-op experiences, report the intent to register for credit by filling out the webform below.

What you'll need for your application

Be sure to have all this information on hand before starting the application process.

Submitting this application does not guarantee eligibility for credit for an internship or co-op experience. The academic plan must be approved prior to the student being registered for the experience. Make sure you check with your internship employer before submitting. Some employers will not be willing to participate in this program. Check before you start the process!

Student Information

  • Student Name
  • Department/Program
  • Expected Date of Graduation
  • Class Standing
  • Student ID
  • Campus E-Mail
  • Phone
  • Cumulative GPA
  • Registering for an Internship or Co-Op Experience
  • How many credits (1-3 or 6) (1 credit = min of 100 hours work, 6 credits = min of 600 hours work). Generally speaking you can register for 1-3 credits based on the number of contact hours you will have over the course of your experience. Students who need to remain at half-time status during an academic term would register for 6 credits. This is usually for an intern or co-op experience during a fall or spring semester. Even if you are an Electrical or Biomedical student, you will not be able to receive 6 credits for one internship experience that would count towards your degree, it would need to be two separate internship experiences.

Employer Information

  • Company name
  • Supervisor name
  • Supervisor e-mail
  • Supervisor will provide information on these questions
    • Explain how the intern will be oriented to the workplace and be able to understand duties as they relate to the overall organization strategies and goals.
    • How and on what duties will the intern be trained?
    • What will supervision look like? Are there multiple supervisors or wil the student primarily report to you?
    • How often will you be evaluating the student employee?
    • What method will be used for evaluations?

Information about the Internship/Co-Op

  • Position title
  • Start date
  • End date
  • Planned hours work/week
  • Salary (per hour/per week/per month)
  • Describe the nature of your position and/or your duties. These answers should be well thought out. Not just a sentence or two, but complete paragraphs.
    • Write 1 鈥 2 paragraphs
    • If you are in a department or program that allows technical elective credit, provide information about the engineering/technical nature of your position/duties.
  • What do you hope to learn from this experience?
    • Write 1 鈥 2 paragraphs.
  • How are you going to accomplish your educational objectives?
    • In 1 鈥 2 paragraphs, discuss projects, readings, writings, etc.; if you are in a department or program that allows technical elective credit, provide information about the engineering/technical nature of your position/duties.

Please do not click on the button below to apply for an internship or co-op until you are ready to submit your application. When you click on the link, it will open a DocuSign document to complete the information listed above. 

Once all approvals are received, the college coordinator will email you to let you know your application has been approved and provide you with a permission number to register. It is up to you to make sure you register for the Internship for Credit Course - COEN 3930.

Apply for an internship or co-op for credit

If you have questions, please contact Sharon.E.Anderson@Colorado.Edu 

              

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