All students are eligible to register for one internship course. Students earning a cumulative grade point average of 3.2 or above may petition to take a second internship for credit.
Normally, first-year students and sophomores are not eligible for participation in an internship program, and no credit may be given ex post facto for internships.
Internships are offered by several academic departments and involve practical, hands-on experience at jobs generally outside the College community. Academic departments and programs that offer internship courses for credit include A.B. engineering, art, economics, English, government and law, history, interdisciplinary, women and gender studies, music, and psychology.
Students participating in internships will be graded on a credit/no credit basis. The student’s course work must be approved in advance and be supervised by a member of the department, as well as by personnel at the workplace. Internships may, by departmental approval, be offered under project or independent courses in engineering. At the conclusion of the internship, the student typically prepares a paper on the experience.
Summer internships are available through selected academic departments or the College-wide internship program (INT 200). INT 200 credit is recorded on the transcript, but may not be used to fulfill the minimum course requirement for graduation.
This course emphasizes learning through the interplay between academic work and fieldwork in a various entities during the summer months. Each internship will be supervised by a faculty member, who will provide a formal evaluation of its outcome in consultation with the relevant personnel in the workplace. Under the supervisor’s guidance, each intern will produce a tangible academic project during the internship experience, such as a paper, journal, or portfolio.
Internships pursued as part of a semester abroad/away program also may earn academic credit. Students should follow normal study abroad/away procedures.
The Gateway Career Center coordinates the non-credit internship program. The majority of these opportunities occur in the summer and can be paid or unpaid. Lafayette alumni and parent volunteers offer many of the available internships. Interested students should visit the Gateway Career Center in 201 Hogg Hall to learn more about the search and selection of a summer internship. Students should be encouraged to begin their search in the fall semester since many of the most competitive internships have deadlines as early as December or January.