How to Host an Intern

Does the internship my organization offers qualify to be approved for students at UCI?

Recognize the types of positions available to students and select the appropriate type for your organization based on the elements of each role.

Position Type: Volunteer (not eligible for approval at UCI Division of Career Pathways)

• Purpose: Support community service initiatives in non-profit and government agencies
• Duration: Short term
• Pay status: Unpaid
• Key components:
  • Freely giving time to support a cause
  • Activity benefits the community at large
  • Little to no training for tasks
  • No expectation of compensation
  • Minimal supervision required
• Time Commitment: Minimal. Determined per event. Generally a few hours.

Position Type: Internship-Unpaid (limitations for approval at UCI DCP)

• Purpose: Pre-professional, short term experience to expose students to a profession or industry
• Duration: 1-2 quarters
• Pay status: Unpaid
• Key Components:
  • Defined learning objectives and goals
  • Defined beginning and end date
  • Significant education and training
  • Practical application related to education and training
  • Supervised by an expert in the field
  • Development of core competencies and transferable skills
  • Special Project
  • Routine feedback/evaluation process
  • Must meet FLSA guidelines
• Time Commitment:
  • Academic Year: 10-15 hours per week including at least one hour of education/mentoring a week
  • Summer: Up to 40 hours per week including at least 4 hours of education/mentoring per week

Position Type: Internship – Paid

• Purpose: Pre-professional experience to develop skills related to a profession
• Duration: 10 weeks-6 months
• Pay Status: Paid
• Key Components:
  • Progressive goal setting over the duration of the internship
  • Education and training related to the profession
  • Mentoring from an experienced professional
  • Immersion in day to day operations
  • Advancement of transferable skills
  • Routine feedback/evaluation
• Time Commitment:
  • Academic Year: Up to 20 hours a week
  • Summer/Break Periods: Up to 40 hours a week

Position Type: Part-Time Job

• Purpose: Required to fill a business need. A means for students to acquire transferable skills
• Duration: As long as needed
• Pay Status: Paid
• Key Components:
  • The role is essential to the functioning of your business
  • The training provided is specific to your business operations
  • The position is not necessarily related to career aspirations of the student
• Time Commitment:
  • Academic Year: Up to 20 hours a week
  • Summer/Break Periods: Up to 40 hours a week

The Internship Programs Under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA standards) provides general information to help determine whether interns and students working for “for-profit” employers are entitled to minimum wages and overtime pay under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA)  

Background 

The FLSA requires “for-profit” employers to pay employees for their work. Interns and students, however, may not be “employees” under the FLSA—in which case the FLSA does not require compensation for their work. 

The Test for Unpaid Interns and Students 

Courts have used the “primary beneficiary test” to determine whether an intern or student is, in fact, an employee under the FLSA. In short, this test allows courts to examine the “economic reality” of the intern-employer relationship to determine which party is the “primary beneficiary” of the relationship. Courts have identified the following seven factors as part of the test: 

1. The extent to which the intern and the employer clearly understand that there is no expectation of compensation. Any promise of compensation, express or implied, suggests that the intern is an employee—and vice versa.
2. The extent to which the internship provides training that would be similar to that which would be given in an educational environment, including the clinical and other hands-on training provided by educational institutions. 
3. The extent to which the internship is tied to the intern’s formal education program by integrated coursework or the receipt of academic credit. 
4. The extent to which the internship accommodates the intern’s academic commitments by corresponding to the academic calendar. 
5. The extent to which the internship’s duration is limited to the period in which the internship provides the intern with beneficial learning. 
6. The extent to which the intern’s work complements, rather than displaces, the work of paid employees while providing significant educational benefits to the intern. 
7. The extent to which the intern and the employer understand that the internship is conducted without entitlement to a paid job at the conclusion of the internship. 

Courts have described the “primary beneficiary test” as a flexible test, and no single factor is determinative. Accordingly, whether an intern or student is an employee under the FLSA necessarily depends on the unique circumstances of each case. 

If analysis of these circumstances reveals that an intern or student is actually an employee, then he or she is entitled to both minimum wage and overtime pay under the FLSA. On the other hand, if the analysis confirms that the intern or student is not an employee, then he or she is not entitled to either minimum wage or overtime pay under the FLSA. 

Source: https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/fact-sheets/71-flsa-internships  

What is an internship? NACE defines an internship as a form of experiential learning that integrates knowledge and theory learned in the classroom with practical application and skills development in a professional workplace setting (across in-person, remote, or hybrid modalities). Internships provide students the opportunity to gain valuable applied experience, develop social capital, explore career fields, and make connections in professional fields. In addition, internships serve as a significant recruiting mechanism for employers, providing them with the opportunity to guide and evaluate potential candidates. NACE believes an internship should include: 

1. A learning experience with a real-world opportunity to apply the knowledge gained in the classroom. It must not be simply to advance the operations of the employer or replace the work that a regular employee would routinely perform. 
2. Learned skills and knowledge that are transferable to other employment settings. 
3. A defined beginning and end that is mutually agreed upon and consistent with institutional sponsor guidelines and schedules. 
4. A position description with clear responsibilities and required/desired qualifications.
5. Clearly defined learning objectives/goals supportive of the student’s academic program goals and institutional requirements.
6. Direct supervision by a professional(s) with relevant expertise and educational and/or professional experience who provides productive feedback, guidance, and the resources and equipment necessary to successfully complete the assignment. 

Source: https://www.naceweb.org/internships  

The Division of Career Pathways does not approve the following types of unpaid internships: 

• The unpaid internship must not fall into any of the following categories: volunteer, sales, administrative support, reception, customer service, marketing, social media, graphic design, or anything related to computer support or programming. 
• Third-Party Listings: The internship must not be an international job listing from third parties. 
• Payment: There must be no requirements for the student to pay the employer in any form for any part of the experience. Also, the employer should not expect any immediate advantage from the intern's activities. 

For more information, please review the Employer Recruiting Guidelines and Policies.

The hiring party will assume liability for interns on their premises. This holds true for both paid and unpaid interns. The University does not accept responsibility for student liability during an internship. No employee or student of the University of California, Irvine is authorized to sign a “hold harmless and indemnification” agreement on behalf of the University or UC Regents. All agreements are between the student and hiring party. 

For more information, please review the Employer Recruiting Guidelines and Policies. 

The UCI Division of Career Pathways reserves the right to refuse service to those who unlawfully discriminate in the selection of employees on the basis of age, national origin, race, religion, sexual orientation, disability or any other basis prohibited by applicable Federal and State laws. 

For more information, please review the Employer Recruiting Guidelines and Policies.