1. Determine if you will take the internship for-credit or not-for-credit. Talking with your academic/program advisor is highly encouraged.
2. Complete a Student Learning Contract, which you will fill out based on the learning outcomes for your major or college.
   1. Business Majors (ACCT, DATA, FINA, MGMT, MKTG, SPML) 
   2. Psychology Majors
   3. Non-business Majors (including BUSL)
   4. Engineering Majors

3. Report your internship in Handshake in the "Experiences" section to "request an Experience"

*Students may only begin to accrue hours toward the course after internship credits are registered for and the course has started. Internship hours may not be counted prior to the course start date.  

Internships are available for 0-12 credits and are dependent upon the number of hours worked. In a regular semester, you can take up to 12 credits of internship; in the summer, the maximum number of credits is nine. Some academic departments require a specific number of internship credits. Note that average hours per week varies slightly during the summer semester, which is accelerated and based on a 12 week semester as opposed to the typical 16 week semester. Students may apply up to 15-credits of internship towards graduation. 

To get academic credit for your internship, you will fill out a Student Learning Outcomes forms based on the learning outcomes of your major or your college, and you will complete assignments for the online internship course. Among other assignments, you will do self-evaluations, an updated resume and LinkedIn profile, attend events, and present at the Interns in Action poster session. 

No. "Career Exploration Internships" are not-for-credit experiences. We suggest a commitment of at least 40 hours within a semester.

If you are taking your internship for-credit, be sure to check with your academic advisor so you are enrolling in the correct number of credits in the right semester. Students will not be able to register for an internship course on their own. You must report your internship using the instructions in the section above and then contact Advising and Career Development and fill out additional paperwork for registration.

Internship credits cost the same as any other classes at Viterbo except in the summer when they are $75/credit for undergraduate internships.
Your financial aid may help cover the tuition cost. Some students elect to do an internship and not take it for academic credit. Advising and Career Development will assist you in finding an internship regardless of whether you take it for credit or not. Remember: You MUST be enrolled to receive financial aid. Take this into consideration if you are thinking about doing a summer internship, as you will need to pay for a summer internship during the summer semester. Students using tuition remission pay for summer internship tuition out-of-pocket. 

Yes. Some internships are paid by the provider and others are unpaid. Your ability to take an internship for-credit is not hindered by payment or no-payment from the internship site. 

Dahl School of Business Students are guaranteed one paid, domestic, for-credit internship. Dahl School of Business majors considering accepting an unpaid internship must contact the internship coordinator to receive funding permission. Unpaid internships must be completed in the United States. Viterbo is not able to honor the guarantee for unpaid internships outside of the country.  

The answer is "maybe." You cannot get internship credit for doing what you are already doing. You'll need to take on new responsibilities or a new project to turn your existing job into a viable site for internship credit. Talk with your employer about "special projects" you could complete for internship hours and then contact Advising and Career Development. 

No. Credits must be taken during the semester in which the work is performed. Students may only begin to accrue hours after internship credits are registered for and the course has started. Internship hours may not be counted prior to the course start date.  

There are many pieces you will want to complete before starting your internship search, and Advising and Career Development has the info to get you started on all of them: 

1. Polished resume
2. Complete Handshake profile
3. Professional LinkedIn profile
4. Consider how to navigate diversity 

Yes. We have had interns across the United States and in other countries.

Viterbo partners with Eastern Mennonite University to provide The Washington Community Scholars' Center experience (WCSC). This is an independent, nonprofit organization that provides unique opportunities for students in all majors to work and learn for academic credit in Washington, D.C. 

Viterbo students who apply and are accepted into the WCSC Internship Program will take courses with EMU that transfer back to Viterbo.  In addition to academic courses, WCSC will find a semester-long professional internship in the Washington, D.C. area to match your interests.

Sample Internship Sites: 

• Little Friends for Peace Project
• DC Jobs with Justice
• CASA

For more information, visit https://emu.edu/wcsc/terms-credits and make an appointment with Advising and Career Development or talk with Matthew Bersagel-Braley.

Internship Housing

Need somewhere to stay during your internship? Many colleges and universities across the county offer discounted housing for summer interns. Here are a couple of starting points. You can also look for alumni in the area or extended stay hotel or Airbnb. Some employers will also help you find housing, provide housing, or give you a living stipend so be sure to ask! 

• Colleges and Universities
• NYC Summer Housing, St. John's University

Paid summer nursing internships/externships for sophomore and junior nursing students are incredibly competitive. Applications often require a nursing resume, transcripts, and essay question responses. Pay special attention to internships that require students to register for academic credit as these will cost extra money in tuition fees. 

Summer internship/externships start posting in fall of the prior year and close anywhere between December-March. Career Services staff encourage nursing students to have their resume reviewed by a staff member, apply to multiple opportunities, and look at internships in geographic regions outside of WI, especially if they are considering moving. This is an incomplete listing of regional opportunities. Students are encouraged to visit organizational websites and national search engines like Indeed.com. 

Hospital Student Nurse Internships

Illinois 

• FHN
• HSHS (Multiple Locations)
• Northwestern
• Shriners Hospitals for Children 

Iowa

• MercyOne (Multiple Locations)
• UnityPoint Health (Multiple Locations)
• University of Iowa Hospitals & Clinics (Multiple Locations)

Minnesota

• Mayo Rochester and Mankato
• Allina (Multiple Sites)
• Carris Health
• Centra Care
• Children's Minnesota
• Fairview and Health East
• Gillette Childrens
• Health Partners: Regions Hospital
• Park Nicollet 
• Sanford Health (Multiple sites in SD and ND)
• St. Luke’s and Essentia
• Winona Health

Wisconsin

• Ascension (Multiple Locations)
• Aspirus (Multiple Locations)
• Children's Wisconsin
• Door County Medical Center (extern)
• Froedtert South
• Hayward Area Memorial Hospital and Water's Edge
• HSHS (Multiple Locations)
• Gundersen Health System
• Mayo La Crosse
• Marshfield Clinic (Multiple Locations)
• Mercy Health (Multiple Locations)
• Tomah VA Medical Center VALOR Program
• UnityPoint Health - Meriter
• UW Health 

Summer Camp Student Nurse Opportunities

Wisconsin

• Beber Camp
• Birch Trail Camp for Girls
• Camp Ojibwa
• Camp Menominee
• Camp Nicolet
• Crossways Camping Ministries
• Easter Seals Wisconsin
• True Friends

International Nursing Internships

• Work the World

Viterbo students have interned all over La Crosse, Wisconsin, the Midwest, the US, and even internationally! Some of our most popular internship sites are: (alphabetically) 

• Advisors Management Group
• Aptiv
• Eagle Crest Senior Communities
• City of La Crosse
• Disney College Program
• Downtown Mainstreet, Inc. 
• ESPN Radio La Crosse
• Family & Children's Center
• Gundersen Health System
• Inland
• Jay Buckley's Baseball Tours
• Kaplan Professional Education
• La Crosse Area Family YMCA
• La Crosse County
• La Crosse Loggers
• Mayo Clinic Health System
• Mutual of Omaha
• Rottinghaus, Inc. 
• State of Wisconsin Summer Diversity Intern Program
• Trane/Ingersoll Rand

More information about these and other internship sites is available on Handshake or by contacting Advising and Career Development.  Check out our Viterbo University Intern playlist on YouTube for more internship ideas! 

You are responsible for finding your site; Advising and Career Development maintains a listing of possibilities. You will also want to prepare a resume.

• For internships in the La Crosse area, use Viterbo's job and internship board, Handshake
• For internships outside of the La Crosse area, check these sites:
  WisConnect - internships across the state
  Internships.com - internships across the country
  Indeed - internships across the country
  Vault - internships across the country
  LinkedIn - internships worldwide
  USAJobs  or Go Government- government internships
• Set up a meeting with the Internship Coordinator 
• As your academic advisor and instructors
• Attend career fairs and explore company websites 
• Ask about internship possibilities when you are networking with people in your field
• Do an online search for internships in specific communities. 

International internships are a wonderful opportunity to gain experience in a new setting. The Advising and Career Development office and Study Abroad Offices work collaboratively to help students find vetted internship providers with genuine, high-impact experiences. In most cases, internships completed abroad have the option to transfer back to Viterbo for required internship or upper-division credits.

If you are interested in an international internship, please set up a meeting with the Advising and Career Development Office. Students will also need to meet with the Study Abroad Director and complete a study abroad application, a partner application, and student learning contract.
International Internship Partners: 

• AIFS Study Abroad
• API
• Bridging Gaps
• Germanista Internships
• isa
• Work the World

The popularity of micro and virtual internships have been on the rise in the last five years, but they have exploded with the on-site work limitations brought on by COVID-19. These are the most up-to-date resources we have on finding micro and virtual internships:

Micro-internships are short-term, paid, professional assignments that are similar to those given to new hires or interns. They usually consist of 5 to 40 hours of work, and can occur any time of year and can be remote or on-site.

• Parker Dewey 
• CIS Abroad

Domestic Virtual Internships are a program where the intern gains paid or unpaid experience while working in a remote professional setting and is not physically present at the job location. 

• The Commons Internship Relief
• Virtual Federal Student Service Program
• Extensive list, courtesy of the Florida State University Career Center
• Indeed.com 
• The Intern Group
• Covintern

International Virtual Internships are a program where the intern gains paid or unpaid experience while working in a remote professional setting and is not physically present at the job location.

• CEA Internship Abroad
• CIS Abroad
• Virtual Internships in partnership with CRCC Asia
• GE Virtuoso via AIFS Study Abroad

Please see our information on scam or fraudulent postings to keep yourself safe. Vetting virtual/remote work requires an extra level of diligence. 

International students may complete paid off-campus work that is either required by a major or provides a student with internship credit through Curricular Practical Training (CPT). CPT work must be an "integral part" of your program and be approved by Kenneth Felts. You will need to secure a letter from your internship site indicating your title, a brief description of your duties, and the start/end dates for the internship. This letter should be on company letterhead and signed by your supervisor. Your faculty advisor will also need to email Kenneth Felts indicating that the internship is required and/or you'll receive university credit that will count towards your degree completion.

International students may also complete unpaid internships for no-credit as those do not require CPT. Note: if the internship you are considering is a position that would normally be paid, you cannot volunteer to do it on an unpaid basis. 

For additional questions about internships, please contact Advising and Career Development. 

"An academic internship is a form of experiential education that integrates knowledge and theory learned in the classroom with practical application and skill development in a professional setting. Students earn academic credit, or there is some other connection to a degree‐granting, educational institution. This work/learning arrangement is overseen by a faculty or staff member of an educational institution and by a designated employee of an organization. The internship is usually the length or equivalent of an academic term, may be part‐time or full‐time, paid or unpaid. An integral component of the experience that distinguishes it from other types of work is one or more forms of structured and deliberate reflection contained within learning agendas or objectives."  (formulated by subscribers to the Internship‐Net Listserv – May 2010)

Anyone can do a no-credit internship at any time. All majors may participate in a for-credit internship provided they meet the minimum GPA requirement (minimum cumulative: 2.5) and have the approval of their academic advisor.

Practicum and field experiences are different from internships. Students in psychology, addiction studies, nutrition & dietetics, and social work should check with their academic advisor to ensure registration for the proper course. Nursing internships are not eligible for academic credit.

An internship can bridge a gap between college and the work world, allowing students to experience the roles, expectations, and behaviors of the job arena. Students learn about their strengths, interests, problem-solving skills, and abilities to deal with clients and work under pressure. Students gain experience they can note on their resumes and for application to graduate school and may gain great networking connections and professional references. Also, the national average of college graduates have done AT LEAST TWO internships before graduation! So, you should do at least one internship during your college career in order to stay competitive within the job market -- even if it is not required by your major.

"I have learned that I can actually do this [work]. Being in school for five years, you start to question your abilities. The only experience college gives you is book knowledge. I learned that I wish I would have done at least two internships throughout my college experience. This internship has given me the confidence I need to start a new career as a new college graduate.”

"My internship solidified my career plans. From a single marketing class I had in high school, I decided I wanted to go to college for marketing. However, I began questioning my choice at times. But, the experience I have gained through my internship has made me realize that marketing is something that I enjoy."

"I was able to employ counseling strategies and had the opportunity to act in an emergency situation. This helped me realize that I have the skills that will make me successful in my future career." 

"I have learned that I enjoy working in a lab and working with others who also enjoy science. Lab has a lot of troubleshooting and I enjoy being able to work out the solution to why something is not working. I also enjoy being surrounded by other scientists that are all knowledgeable and enjoy discussing science topics with me. It is a great way to expand your knowledge."

"I was able to live in Washington D.C. and intern for one of the most influential non-profits related to my career. I have learned so much, and was also connected to many well-known nutrition research professionals who have helped me learn more about nutrition and how to start my career."

"Even though I was at this internship for less than 150 hours, I feel that I learned much more than I would have in a classroom setting for a semester. If I had to suggest one thing for any student at Viterbo to do it would be to find internships along their way to increase not only their learning but their resume as well."