Internships

Internships

Purpose

Internships provide students at SUNY Geneseo with an opportunity to gain meaningful field experience with public and private companies and agencies. Qualified students supplement classroom learning with first-hand experience in professional settings that are appropriate for their academic background and career objectives. We expect that the student will gain from the experience, and that the intern will be of assistance to the sponsoring agency.

How to Learn More

Geneseo's Career Design Center supports students' internship searches and oversees internship registration. Career Design maintains an Internship FAQ. This is a good place to start exploring how an internship may provide vocational experiences to complement a student's academic studies and introduce them to professional activities related to their baccalaureate degree programs. Students may also make an appointment with the Career Design Center.

Students should start their internship planning at least six months before they plan to intern. They should discuss their plans with their faculty advisor and, if applicable, with their department internship coordinator.

Academic Policy for Internships

College academic policy, published in the College Bulletin, states the following:

"Several departments offer internship experiences related to their majors; these are identified in the Bulletin with the department’s prefix and the number X95. The internships take place in field settings within participating firms or agencies and are supervised by faculty from the sponsoring academic departments. Interns are required to fulfill a set of objectives related to their majors, mutually agreed upon by the student, the faculty director, and the agency. Internships vary in length and credit value. Arrangements for internships are made by the student in cooperation with the student’s department chair, or the department's internship coordinator, and the Career Design Center. Students enrolled in internships must provide their own transportation.

"Internships may also be arranged as INTD X95 directly with Geneseo’s Internship Coordinator and the field supervisor. INTD internships are graded S/U. 

"Enrollment in internships is generally limited to those students who have earned at least a 2.00 cumulative grade point average and a 2.50 in prerequisite courses. An exemption from this requirement may be granted if the department chair and/or internship coordinator approve. Students may apply no more than 15 credits of internship credit toward the baccalaureate degree. The application of credit in internships toward the requirements for the major is governed by the departments, except that no department may accept more than 6 internship credits to be included in the credits required in the major."

Registering for Academic Credit for Internships

The college uses GradLeader software to establish an internship contract similar to a syllabus for a credit-bearing internship. Log into GradLeader. Students will need a field supervisor and a faculty supervisor for academic credit, each of whom will approve the contract in GradLeader prior to registration. When the contract is completed, the Registrar's Office registers students for the internship, and the students will see it in their schedules in Knightweb.

Students may earn a total of 1-15 credits according to the contact hour chart listed below. A total of 15 activity hours, including internship hours, may be applied to a baccalaureate degree.

Number of Credits Min clock-hours of work required for semester
1 40
2 80
3 120
4 160
5 200
6 240
8 320
9 360
12 480
15 600

Application of Internship Credits to Major and Degree Requirements

  • Internship credits will be counted as part of the maximum semester hours allowed within a department.
  • Students will not be registered in internship credits while studying abroad.
  • The maximum number of internship credits which may be applied toward requirements in the major will be six credits or less, as determined by the major department. The maximum number of internship credits allowed in a minor will be three credits, unless the internship is a specified requirement in the minor.
  • The maximum number of internship credits allowed for the undergraduate degree is 15.
  • We encourage students to register for no more than 16 hrs. (including the internship) during a semester in which they are doing an internship.

Evaluation of Internship Activities and Grading

  • The specific field duties and responsibilities of the intern will be agreed to by the intern coordinator, faculty director, field supervisor, and the intern, and will be outlined in the internship contract in GradLeader.
  • Academic requirements are also specified in GradLeader and will be supervised your faculty supervisor or the department's internship coordinator.
  • Interns should understand that their field performance will be evaluated by their field supervisor and that unsatisfactory performance may result in the field supervisor's terminating the field placement.
  • Failure to complete all requirements for the internship will lead to an incomplete or an Unsatisfactory grade to be given by the faculty director.
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