Internships
Home Services Career Services Internships
Last modified: February 26, 2018

Internships

Where academics and career meet

Internships

On average, college graduates who have an internship on their resumes are 12% more likely to be hired and earn $7,000 more than graduates who did not.

– CBS News

What is an internship?

An internship gives you a unique, on-the-job perspective of the career path you have chosen and helps connect classroom knowledge to a real work environment.  Internships can be paid, unpaid, for academic credit or not.

What are the benefits?

  • Gain workplace experience in your field
  • See how classroom education translates into the real work world
  • Test-drive your career before you graduate
  • Network with professionals in your field
  • Connect with mentors and build references

Types of Internships

Internships for Academic Credit

Credit internships are supervised by appointed faculty members and certain criteria must be met to receive credit. A list of departments offering Academic Credit is available on Career Services myKC portal page or can be found in the Course Catalogue.

Non-Credit Internships

A non-credit internship is an excellent way to build your skills and experience in your field of study. Non-credit internships can be paid, unpaid or informational. The Career Services can assist you in researching and obtaining a non-credit Internship.

 

Internship process at KC Career Services

Basics to get started

  • At least 12 credit hours or accepted into your major/program
  • 2.5 GPA or higher is advisable
  • Below are some questions to ask yourself:
    • What do I want to get out of an Internship?
    • Which types of organizations do I want to pursue?
    • Do I want to stay local or willing to travel?
  • Write your Résumé
  • Develop your Elevator Speech

The starting process

  • Complete an Internship Application
  • Schedule an appointment in the Career Services, Room C2123 or call 815-825-9472.
  • The initial appointment will help assess your interests, goals and if it is a good fit at this time.
  • Develop an Action Plan which will include:
    • Preparing for an Internship
    • Finding Internship Opportunities
    • Support during your Internship
    • Evaluation and follow-up at the end of the Internship to ensure success

What you will need for your first appointment

  • Internship Application
  • Résumé (If you do not have a résumé we would be happy to help you create your résumé in the Career Services prior to your appointment.)
  • Examples of Internship résumés are available on Career Services myKC portal page

Additional resources for your internship search