The Academic Internship Program

The internship course provides students with a unique opportunity for learning about particular fields through a combination of direct hands-on experience and formal study and is designed to complement the more traditional curriculum. While the main intent of the program is to provide students with an experiential learning opportunity in their chosen fields, it also provides an opportunity for career exploration.

If a seminar topic is not appropriate to the internship, tutorial work with an individual faculty sponsor may be arranged. Each student is expected to spend eight hours per week on the job and another three or four hours on the academic component. Admission is open to third- and fourth-year students by application; nearly a quarter of all Holy Cross students participate in the program.

Students find that the internship component provides them with an opportunity to learn directly from professionals working in the field, gain valuable hands-on experience, and to apply the theoretical training, analytical capabilities and research and writing skills that they have developed at the College.

Internship

Each student is required to spend eight hours per week at a selected internship site. The College has established an extensive and varied list of internship placements, and is constantly cultivating new opportunities. Through consistent oversight and evaluation of all of our internship sites we have been able to ensure that students are offered a substantive learning experience at their chosen placements. Since our program is designed to serve the needs of all disciplines at the College our placement opportunities cover a wide range of public, private and independent sector organizations concerned with health care, law, business, education, social service, government, and communications.

Seminar

Academic Internship Program students must register for a designated internship seminar as the analytical complement to their fieldwork. Internship seminar offerings vary from semester to semester depending upon need and interest but generally cover such areas as: legal issues, management/leadership, professional wellness, health care, and public policy.

Each seminar meets for two and a half hours per week and provides, through selected readings and student presentations, an opportunity to critically analyze their fieldwork and issues facing their agencies. Students whose internship falls outside of the purview of the offered seminars may apply to work individually in a directed study with a faculty sponsor. This generally entails weekly meetings to discuss a series of selected readings related to the student's fieldwork and a major research project critically analyzing that work.

Application Process

We encourage students to apply as soon as possible to secure a spot in their first choice seminar. Please note you do not need to have a secured internship by the time you apply, however, we do expect you to know how you plan on securing one.

Additionally, the AIP application requires students to upload a resume that has been approved by the Center for Career Development (CCD) to ensure students have a resume ready to send to potential internship sites. Make an appointment with the CCD by logging into Handshake. Once you log in, navigate to Career Center / Appointments. You can also email careers@holycross.edu or call 508-793-3880 for more information. Your application will not be reviewed without a CCD-approved resume.

Application for Fall 2023 is now open with the following deadlines:

• April 12, 2023 - First priority deadline
• April 27, 2023 - Second priority deadline
• August 4, 2023 - Final deadline

Applications will be considered on a rolling basis.