Internships

You may be asking yourself why an Internship is so important.  What can it do for you and why should you take time out of your busy schedule to do it?

• More and more, employers are looking for experience, even in entry-level jobs.  Internships are a great way for university students to balance out their academics with valuable work experience.
• Employers are more willing and interested in hiring students who completed an internship.  “Not only does participation in an internship make the student a more attractive candidate,” says NACE Executive Director Marilyn Macke, “but it can also be an avenue to a job.”  According to NACE's 2021 Internship and Co-Op Survey Report, employers make full-time offers to 66.4 percent of their interns from the class of 2020. 
• Networking.  Interning with an organization is an excellent way to get your foot in the door and make valuable contacts.  Networking is the number one way to find a job in today's market, and developing those connections are a vital part of the job search and career-building process.  Make sure to utilize networking sites such as LinkedIn in order to stay in touch with your contacts. 
• You may be paid more starting out if you have an Internship on your resume. In 2005, NACE reported that surveyed employers paid their entry-level hires up to 6.5 times MORE if they had an internship experience.
• Skill-building. You can gain valuable skills during an internship experience, such as: teamwork, communication, cooperation, customer service, technical skills, technology, and hands-on experience. This gives you valuable experience that you can market on your resume and in interviews.
• You can confirm your career goals, or even change them completely! Sometimes, even with the best of intentions, we discover that our career goals and aspirations aren't quite what we were hoping for. A career may sound like a great fit on paper, but in reality it might not be as satisfying and beneficial for you as you imagined. Internships are an excellent way to make sure that you are headed in the right direction, and can provide information necessary to tweak your goals.

At WCU, we offer Internships for class credit in most majors for Juniors and Seniors. The Center for Career and Professional Development helps coordinate the process for various academic departments across campus, and is available to answer questions and help you with every step of the process, no matter your major or year.

NC-State Authorization Reciprocity Agreements (SARA)

Western Carolina University has been approved by the North Carolina State Portal Agency to participate in the National Council for State Authorization Reciprocity Agreements. NC-SARA is a voluntary, regional approach to state oversight of post-secondary distance education.

Students from SARA member states may take online courses and programs from WCU. Students (on-campus or online) may conduct internships, clinicals and other field experiences in SARA states.

SARA states are indicated in blue on the map.

Authorization in Non SARA States/Territories:

California and CNMI (Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands .   WCU’s online programs are authorized or exempt from authorization in these states. Internships and field experiences are permitted in these states/territories. 

Special note concerning internships and field experiences in regulated professions in all states: Some state licensing boards may require specific licensure or approvals to conduct a clinical or field experience. It is up to the student or the student’s program to make this determination.

Student Internship Insurance

The University Student Intern Program provides coverage which is intended to protect students, while in performance of course activity, from liability claims for actions or alleged actions from third parties that arise during course of the course-required internships.  University students who are engaging in unpaid internships can be covered by the Student Intern Professional Liability coverage.  These internships must be sponsored, authorized, or approved by the participating University and included in student numbers provided by North Carolina Association of Insurance Agents (NCAIA).  Paid internships are not covered regardless of sponsored status. 

There is only one policy available to student interns:

Mercer - This policy can be used for both medical and non-medical student interns. The policy offers $2M per occurrence and $4M aggregate worth of general liability and professional liability coverage and has a yearly policy term.  The cost of the policy is $12/yearly for Class I Interns and $52.80/yearly for Class II interns (Paramedic, Nurse Practitioner, Doctor of Nursing). A COI (Certificate of Insurance) will be provided to the student to take to their internship site as proof of insurance. Students or faculty interested in enrolling their students in the policy should contact the Safety & Risk Management Office for an enrollment spreadsheet.

*Please contact the Safety & Risk Management Office at 828-227-7443 regarding current student internship policy rates.

JobCat 2.0 is the software program Career Services uses for students to register for all services provided by our office, including Internships. Pertinent information (name, current address, permanent address, etc.) is entered here as well as a resume. You can log into JobCat 2.0 anywhere you have access to the Internet.

Some majors offer internships for course credit. You can check the course catalog or talk to a faculty advisor to find out if that's an option. If you are not required to take an internship course, and you would like to just to build your resume/learn, then you do not need to take an internship course in order to complete an internship.

For most Internships, you will receive 3 credit hours.  Some academic departments offer 1-hour courses as well. You are awarded the credit if the work term and academic requirements are successfully completed. Some majors allow you to earn up to 15 hours of Internship (5 semesters) total credit. Internships usually serve as upper-level elective credit, but you should check with the academic department to be sure.