Internships
Career & Professional Development seeks to partner with faculty to promote student engagement in internships. Internships are an effective way for students to develop relevant skills for success in their future careers. As faculty often advise students on internships that align with particular majors, it is important that you maintain an awareness of the industry definition of an internship:
An internship is a form of experiential learning that integrates knowledge and theory learned in the classroom with practical application and skills development in a professional setting. Internships give students the opportunity to gain valuable applied experience and make connections in professional fields they are considering for career paths; and give employers the opportunity to guide and evaluate talent.
This definition and the following criteria are defined by the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE), a global organization comprised of career services professionals and employment professionals.
Criteria For An Experience To Be Defined As An Internship
To ensure that an experience—whether it is a traditional internship or one conducted remotely or virtually—is educational, and thus eligible to be considered a legitimate internship by the NACE definition, all the following criteria must be met:
- The experience must be an extension of the classroom: a learning experience that provides for applying the knowledge gained in the classroom. It must not be simply to advance the operations of the employer or be the work that a regular employee would routinely perform.
- The skills or knowledge learned must be transferable to other employment settings.
- The experience has a defined beginning and end, and a job description with desired qualifications.
- There are clearly defined learning objectives/goals related to the professional goals of the student’s academic coursework.
- There is supervision by a professional with expertise and educational and/or professional background in the field of the experience.
- There is routine feedback by the experienced supervisor.
- There are resources, equipment, and facilities provided by the host employer that support learning objectives/goals.
If these criteria are followed, it is the opinion of NACE that the experience can be considered a legitimate internship. Whether an internship is paid, unpaid, or grants academic credit, Career & Professional Development seeks for the above criteria to be consistently met to ensure an appropriate developmental experience for our students.
While academic credit legitimizes an unpaid experience, in order to be identified as an internship, that experience must fit the above criteria. For experiences that employers make available only if academic credit is awarded, the college or university’s requirements in combination with the criteria laid out above should be used to determine if the experience is a legitimate internship.
We encourage faculty members to support students by facilitating internships for academic credit when possible, particularly in cases where an employer will not be providing compensation. If you have questions about this process, please contact our office. Campus Greensboro, Humanities at Work, and the SECU Foundation Public Fellows are just a few of the fantastic internship programs available to Spartans.
Source: Position Statement: U.S. Internships, National Association of Colleges and Employers
Local Internships
We have curated a collection of local internships and made them available to students in Handshake. The list below contains a few of the internships in that collection. Please have your students log in to Handshake to see the entire collection.
- Employer: Wake Forest School of Medicine Expires: 01/11/2026 The Department of Biomedical Engineering (BME) and Center for Artificial Intelligence Research (CAIR) at Wake Forest University School of Medicine will offer several summer research opportunities in 2026 to undergraduate and master's students. Our 10-week summer research internship program will be offered between May 26th […]
- Employer: High Point-Thomasville HiToms Expires: 01/04/2026 The High Point-Thomasville HiToms are in search of a driven undergraduate college student looking for experience in sports broadcasting and marketing to join their spring internship program.The HiToms are a summer college league baseball team that competes in the Coastal Plain League (CPL) comprised of teams from […]
- Employer: High Point-Thomasville HiToms Expires: 01/04/2026 The High Point-Thomasville HiToms are in search of driven undergraduate college students looking for experience in baseball operations or recreation management to join their summer internship program for the 2026 baseball season. The HiToms are a summer college league baseball team that competes in the Coastal Plain League […]
- Employer: Wake Forest School of Medicine Expires: 01/04/2026 Cardiovascular Sciences Summer Research Program **Applicants MUST apply must through the online application at Wake Forest University School of Medicine – Handshake applications are NOT accepted** Job description The Cardiovascular […]
- Employer: North Carolina Network of Grantmakers Expires: 01/03/2026 The Nonprofit Internship Program (NPIP) is an eight-week long paid summer internship (beginning around May 31st for most) where students are matched with and work with nonprofit organizations from across North Carolina. Internships offer a range of exposure and skill-building opportunities in areas such as […]
- Employer: Gilbarco Veeder-Root Expires: 01/03/2026 The Transportation and Logistics Intern will analyze data from various sources to assist in influencing business decisions and planning with the focus of identifying, creating, and sustaining improvements in GVR’s global network surrounding Quality, Delivery, Cost, and Inventory.Responsibilities• Analyze data from various sources to identify potential savings opportunities and […]
- Employer: Lincoln Financial Expires: 01/03/2026 The Role at a Glance We are excited to bring on a Cyber Security/Cyber Risk (SRT) Intern to join our 2026 Summer cohort. As a Cyber Security/Cyber Risk Intern, you will part of a team that conducts in-depth security risk assessments of Lincoln Financial’s third parties in order to ensure […]