Internship Process

An internship formally integrates a student’s academic study with practical experience at a cooperating organization or site. It is an off-campus activity designed to serve educational purposes by offering experience in a service learning, business, non-profit, or government setting. The University recognizes the beneficial educational purpose of student internships, as well as the need to maximize the experience while mitigating the risks to participants and minimizing the university’s liability exposure. 

Below is a summary of the required steps for credit bearing internships per Executive Order 1064 and Executive Memorandum 19-025. Any questions regarding the academic aspects of an internship should be directed to the College or department awarding the academic credit. Note, the Executive Order and Executive Memorandum do not apply to teacher preparation placements or clinical placements such as for nursing, counseling, physical therapy or occupational therapy. In addition, questions related to non-credit bearing internships should be directed to the Career Center.

 Before you begin the process, you should check with Procurement and Contract Services (studentplacementagmt@csuchico.edu or 898-5126) to see if the following steps have already been completed for a specific site/hosting agency.

1. Site Assessment (Not required for on-campus internships including internships hosted by our auxiliaries).

The Site Assessment serves as an evaluation of the internship site (or hosting agency if field placement) to ensure the site is appropriate for meeting the educational objectives of the internship, and to identify any potential safety concerns at the site. The Site Assessment form is to be completed by the faculty member or department sponsoring the internship and the completed Site Assessment must be forwarded to Procurement & Contract Services at studentplacementagmt@csuchico.edu. Any questions or concerns identified when completing the Site Assessment should be directed to risk@csuchico.edu. A pdf version of the Site Assessment can be found here, and an online version can be found here.  

2. Student Placement Agreement (Not required for paid internships; Not required for on-campus internships including internships hosted by our auxiliaries).

Upon receipt of a completed Site Assessment, Procurement and Contract Services will facilitate the execution of a Student Placement Agreement (SPA) with the hosting site. The SPA is a legally binding document that outlines the internship responsibilities of the hosting agency and the University.  A fully executed SPA must be in place before students begin their internship, and SPA’s are typically valid for 5 years.

3. Student Learning Plan (Required for all internships).

The Student Learning Plan guides the faculty of record, individual student intern, and the site supervisor about expectations regarding performance of duties including hours of work required, evaluation of student performance and expected learning outcomes. A Student Learning Plan template can be found here, but a different template can be utilized provided it captures the same information.