Frequently Asked Questions
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 Why is an internship so important?
An internship provides you with an opportunity to get to know a career from the inside. It allows you to work side-by-side with professionals in your discipline and to learn about what this type of career is like from their perspective.
You are able to directly observe what skills and personal attributes are needed for the profession, how analytical and problem-solving skills are used to face challenges and resolve them, what it is like to manage daily priorities and meet deadlines, and how professionals create a balance between their individual tasks and their responsibilities as a team member.
Internships also serve as a screening function for employers since internships often lead to full-time employment after graduation. A good deal of time and resources are dedicated to training an intern. Ideally, if there is a good fit between the intern and the organization, the intern will receive be converted to a full-time hire and the employer will benefit from a return on the investment it has already put into the intern’s training.
Graduate school admissions committees also recognize the value of internships. Law schools, MBA programs, other professional graduate programs, and many academic disciplines include internships and other experiential learning when selecting candidates for admission.
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How does it add value to my resume?
It cannot be overemphasized how much internships strengthen your resume with “relevant experience.” Employers often review numerous resumes for one opening. Those who have relevant experience as determined by one, two, or three internships will make the first cut and move forward in the screening process.
There is no question that your internship experience enables you to compete with others applying for the position. How effectively you compete and how successful you are in landing an interview depends on your ability to identify, articulate, and market the skills and training you received as professional qualifications for the position you are seeking.
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Are internships required?
Generally, internships are optional and not required at Santa Clara. However, individual academic departments offer guidelines for you about internships and let you know about if any of their programs or courses require them.
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May I receive credit for an internship?
A few majors require an internship as part of the academic curriculum. Each department has certain requirements that must be completed in order to receive credit. A faculty advisor may provide on-going monitoring of the internship including reading assignments, a term report, or doing a critical analysis of a project. You may also be asked to keep a journal to help you reflect on what you've learned from your internship experience.
For most majors, academic credit is not required to do an internship – it's an option. For more information on doing an internship for academic credit, please check with your faculty advisor.
Keep in mind that it is easier and less expensive for you to earn credit for an internship during the academic year rather than during the summer. During the year your internship units are included in your tuition fees for the quarter. During the summer you will need to pay the per unit tuition rate.
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Will my internship be paid?
The majority of internships offered to Santa Clara University students are paid. Hourly wages for interns vary according to the student’s experience, academic level, and the particular field or discipline of the internship.
Unpaid internships also have value for students as long as the duties and responsibilities, learning objectives and outcomes, and commitment to supervision are of the highest quality.
While some employers are forced to offer unpaid internships due to limited financial resources, they are encouraged to limit the hours required for unpaid internships so that students may concurrently have a part-time job or internship which is paid. This enables you to earn money to defray the costs of tuition. However, a 40-hour-per-week unpaid summer internship may offer so much value to you because of the unique experience involved that you choose to accept it.
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What do students typically earn in paid internships?
The average pay rate for most undergraduate internships is $10-14 an hour, sometimes higher for technical students, finance/accounting majors, or for students with extensive work experience.
However, compensation doesn't always come in the form of a weekly paycheck. Some employers offer a stipend (a "lump sum”) at the end of the internship as a reward for your hard work. Some enterprising employers offer terrific perks – work-related travel (all expenses paid), breakfast with the CEO, catered lunches, holiday parties, etc.
But regardless of the pay and perks, it is always important to keep in mind that an internship is a valuable experience in itself. Many students working in non-paying internships have agreed that the experience and lessons learned were more valuable than a paycheck.
You may refer to our 2005-2006 Internship and Co-op Salary Data which has been gathered from students who held internships and co-ops from the summer of 2005 through the spring of 2006. This will offer a glimpse of what students providing the information reported as their hourly wages for their internships.
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I need to get a Hold Harmless Agreement signed. Where do I go for that?
Faculty, staff, and other representatives of Santa Clara University are not at liberty to sign Hold Harmless Agreements. The few employers who request these documents will need to make an exception to this custom when recruiting Santa Clara students. Please contact Enzie Lagattuta for additional information about these documents and refer employers to him for assistance.
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How can I turn my internship into a full-position?
An internship may serve as your passport to future employment opportunities. Getting your foot in the door by landing the internship is only half of the challenge in turning your career dreams into reality. The more vital half is that you build a good reputation during this career experience that will culminate in receiving a full-time job offer. A growing number of employers think of internships as a three-month interview, a way to gain a first in-depth look at prospective employees. In this respect, both you and your employer have a common goal –- namely, to determine if there is a good fit between you.
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