Start your internship journey with these tools and action items.
Before You Apply to an Internship
If you're unsure where to begin, here’s how to get started:
- Review the Career Tool Kit to get an overview to help you be internship ready.
- Learn how to find and maximize your internship through our Internships Career Guide (PDF).
- Navigate how to identify good internship opportunities and avoiding scams
- Review this page under the selection, Employers with Established Opportunities, to review the criteria we recommend to employers on what makes a good internship.
- It is important to be familiar with identifying scam job postings. Before using any job search platform, equip yourself with knowledge to proactively identify scam postings and become aware of actions to take should you encounter them.
- Once you get familiar with our guidelines for employers, you can use this knowledge to confidently identify internships in Handshake that lists these approved criteria within their job descriptions.
Position Type: Internship-Unpaid (limitations for approval at UCI Division of Career Pathways)
- 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-6months
- 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
Academic credit may be an option for some students. It depends on their school affiliation and/or major. To receive credit, students must enroll in a class offered by their school or find a faculty member who will offer independent study. The student must be able to accommodate the extra units in their academic plan to receive credit.
Uni Studies 193 - Open to all majors
University Studies 193 (Uni Studies 193) is an internship course which allows students from all majors to receive credit for an approved internship on or off-campus. For more information, visit this Uni Studies 193 and/or email dcp-internships@uci.edu for details.
Additional Class Credit Options at UCI
Some UCI programs offer major-specific opportunities for earning academic credit through internships. Click on the program name below to learn more:
Here are some programs at UCI that offer stipends or funding for internships and opportunities:
- UCI’s CALIT2 | Make a Difference Opportunity (MADO) Program: Under the UCI California Institute for Telecommunications and Information Technology (CALIT2), the Make a Difference Opportunity (MADO) program provides a unique opportunity for full-time undergraduate and graduate UCI students to gain first-hand experience on a project in the workplace by matching students and local businesses for hands-on experience and to assist them in the transition to the workforce. This program runs from Winter and Spring quarters and students who complete the program will receive a stipend. Visit their FAQ page for more information.
- The DREAM Project Fellowship for undocumented students to receive funding through on-campus units
- School of Humanities Department of Art History – Steckler Family Initiative in Art History (SFIAH) – Eligibility for internship stipend for undergraduates.
- The Internship Program for English Majors - The program runs each fall and offers paid internships in marketing and communications and adjacent fields in both campus and off-campus positions.
Exploring industries and opportunities starts with understanding your unique interests, skills, and personality. Here are some resources from the UCI Division of Career Pathways to help you get started:
- Career assessments are a great tool to help you understand how your unique interests, skills, and personality can lead to various career and educational options that could be a great fit for you: Career Assessments/Focus 2
- UCI Steppingblocks is a service that helps students find career content by gathering education and workforce data. Steppingblocks' mission is to help students and job seekers make decisions that lead to successful careers. They do this by providing access to data and analytics that can help everyone make efficient decisions: Steppingblocks
Internship Application Process
Stand out to employers with a professional resume and cover letter:
- Impress employers with a professional resume and cover letter. See sample templates on our Resumes and Cover Letters page.
- These concise handouts and videos explain career-related subjects like how to write a resume, interview tips, and the application process: Career Guides
- View recordings of past videos and webinars: DCP Webinars and Video Library
- ChatGPT and other generative AI can streamline aspects of the job and internship search. Like other tools, they work best if you know how to use them effectively and ethically: ChatGPT, AI, and the Job Search
- Take Your Resume to The Next Level Using Resume AI: Resume AI
- Utilize technology to help you practice for your interview: Big Interview
Networking and interviewing are key steps in your application process. Use these resources to build connections and prepare for success.
- The following resource can help you leverage your networks and build confidence and skills to make connections: Networking
- Learn the tips and tricks to having a successful interview: Interviewing
- Utilize technology to help you practice for your interview: Big Interview
- Wearing the appropriate attire is part of a successful interview: Interview Attire
- Learn about the next steps to take after your interview: After the Interview
During Your Internship
Stand out at your internship by practicing the various career readiness competencies on the job, assessing the culture and practice networking.
Your internship is an excellent opportunity to grow professionally and strengthen your career readiness skills.
Career Readiness Competencies
- Career readiness is the process of preparing for the workforce and developing skills to be successful in your career.
- Career readiness competencies includes both content skills (such as proficiency in specific software or tools) and transferable, essential skills (such as communication, teamwork, and problem-solving): Career Readiness Competencies
- Recommendation:
- Identify which career readiness competencies you already have an how you can further develop them during the internship through this self-evaluation.
- Ask your internship supervisor for regular mentorship and feedback meetings for the duration of the experience by evaluating you on career readiness competencies.
Networking
- The following resources can help you leverage your networks and build confidence and skills to make connections during the internship: Networking
- Learn about organizational culture, DEI, and how to assess a company's culture.
- Review this resource to help you assess the culture.
After Your Internship
Self Reflect:
- Do a self-evaluation on the Career Readiness Competencies to self-reflect on how much you have developed during this internship and identify areas where you can continue to improve
- Update your resume to include the new experiences and skills you have developed during your internship
- Update your various online profiles such as LinkedIn, Handshake, Anteater Network & other Professional Profiles highlighting these new experiences and skills.
Leave a lasting impression and explore next steps:
- Write a thank you message to your internship supervisor, highlight skills you’ve developed and memorable experiences during your time with them. Leave a lasting impressing by thanking them for the opportunity they provided you and following up with questions you may have post internship.
- If you are looking to secure a full-time position after your internship, continue to leverage the UCI Division of Career Pathways to help you prepare and apply for opportunities on Handshake.