Applying for Internship Courses

Earning credit for your internship is optional, with the exception of Semester in Los Angeles or Summer in London internships.

You can apply for one, two, or three credits. The more credits you choose, the more hours and coursework you will be required to complete in order to receive a Satisfactory (S) grade in the course.

Minimum work hour requirements vary by course:

• X374: WIUX Internship: 45 work hours per credit hour
• X375: IUSTV Internship: 45 work hours per credit hour
• X376: IDS Internship: 45 work hours per credit hour
• X377: NSJC Internship: 45 work hours per credit hour
• X472: Media Internship: 45 work hours per credit hour
• X474: Journalism Internship: 120 work hours per credit hour
• X489: Arnolt Center Internship (undergraduate): 50 work hours per credit hour
• J575: Arnolt Center Inernship (graduate): 50 work hours per credit hour
• J592: Graduate Student Media Internship: 45 work hours per credit hour

While the course can be repeated with a different internship, you cannot exceed six total hours of X472 and/or X474 or six total hours of X374, X375, X376, and/or X377.

In most cases, the course will be considered elective credit.

The following are deadlines for professional (X474 and X476) and student media (X374, X375, X376, and X377) internships.

• Spring semester: Feb. 1
• Summer semester: June 1
• Fall semester: Oct. 1

Contact the Arnolt Center and Semester in LA programs for information about their deadlines.

To qualify for X472 or X474, you must:

• be a certified Media School student.
• have earned at least 12 credits from The Media School prior to the start of the course. Direct admits are exempt from this requirement.
• have not exceeded the maximum allowed credits of X472 and X474 (six).

To qualify for X374, X375, X376 and X377, you must:

• be an active member of the organization.
• be approved by the organization.
• have not exceeded the maximum allowed credits of X374, X375, X376 and X377 (six).

In order for your internship to be eligible for credit, the experience must reflect the broad goals of your major or area of concentration. It must involve the planning, production, execution and/or analysis of media. Internships that consist solely of non-media roles, such as facilities operation, accounting or retail sales, are not eligible for internship credit.

It must also:

• enhance your career development or offer the opportunity to apply knowledge you’ve gained in the classroom to real-world scenarios. It should not exist to simply advance the operations of the employer or replace the work that a regular employee would routinely perform.
• help you earn skills and knowledge that are transferable to other employment settings.
• occur during the same semester in which you are seeking credit. We can’t approve hours retroactively, so no work hours will be counted until your internship is approved.

If your proposed internship is with an organization where you have previously worked for internship credit, you must have a different supervisor, a different job title, a different job description and duties and a new set of learning objectives. You may not repeat the same internship with the same organization. 

Your internship supervisor may not be an immediate or close family member (parent or sibling).

Internship structure requirements

In general, your internship must have a defined beginning and end.

You also need a written job description that outlines your projects, duties and/or responsibilities. Please ensure that your employer pays close attention to this requirement so that you can get credit.

Your internship must also:

• have clearly defined learning objectives/goals related to your academic coursework or professional goals.
• include supervision by a professional with expertise and educational and/or professional background in the field of the experience.
• provide routine feedback from an experienced supervisor.
• support your learning objectives/goals with resources, equipment and facilities provided by your host employer.

In addition to your internship work, the following must be completed satisfactorily to earn a passing grade.

• Mid-semester survey: You'll receive this survey by email. This allows the instructor to touch base and see how things are going.
• Supervisor evaluation: Your supervisor will receive this by email at the end of the semester.
• Reflection paper: At the end of the semester, you must submit a paper that reflects on your work duties and your overall experience.

Yes. We recommend you coordinate with your Education Abroad advisor to identify programs that include internship placements. Once you have an internship confirmed in writing, please email mschint@iu.edu to discuss whether your internship can qualify for X472 or X474.