Internships and co-ops connect students with real-world career experiences while helping
employers develop and attract emerging talent. These opportunities benefit everyone
by building skills, strengthening workforce connections, and creating pathways to
future employment.
Gain valuable experience, develop career-ready skills, and help employers build
a strong pipeline of skilled, motivated talent through internships and co-ops.
Employer Benefits of Internships & Co-Ops
Acquire skilled, enthusiastic workers who are growing both academically and professionally.
Establish strong, qualified candidates to fill future part- and full-time positions.
Lower costs for recruiting and training experiential learning students who already
have some pre-training when they come to a job.
Enhance a company's recruiting efforts as experiential learning students returning
to campus can act ambassadors of good will.
Student Benefits of Internships & Co-Ops
Exposure to current, relevant practices in a designated field
Opportunity to explore career possibilities
Networking with and learning from professionals in the field
Earning a working wage, offsetting some college costs
The most efficient and effective way to post co-op/internship opportunities with your
organization is to submit on-line the posting exactly how you would like it to be
listed. Log in or create your Handshake account today to get started.
All students have access to this website as do all Teaching Faculty, and Counselors
and Advisors.
You are welcome to post any type of position (paid or unpaid) internship and/or full
or part–time or temporary employment opportunities.
The Verification of Hours form must be filled out and given to the student at the conclusion of the work experience.
A co-op student must work a minimum of 180 hours.
An internship student (Independent Study) must consist of a minimum of 135 total work
hours.
Both the Student Performance Evaluation Form and the Verification of Hours Form should
be given to the student to submit to his or her MCC Instructor.
A student is training for a career under the supervision of a seasoned employee who
will work directly with the student on a daily basis. Obviously, the employer's role
is significant in the success of a co-op.
Two forms have to be completed with the assistance of the employer at the beginning
of a co-op.
Objectives for the intern need to be identified (after conversation between the student and the employer).
A learning objective is a statement naming a task to be accomplished, for example,
"to develop a flow chart," "to increase effectiveness on the job," "to improve communication
skills," "to change behavior in dealing with people," "to improve in attitude or motivation."
Learning objectives should be mutually developed and agreed upon by you, the college
supervisor (seminar instructor), and the student.
The student is responsible for submitting both forms to his co-op seminar instructor
within the first week of the lecture class.
At the end of the semester, the student will receive a grade and approximately 40-50%
of the student's final grade is based on the Employer's evaluation of the student's
actual job performance.
The objectives of a student participating in an internships or co-op are to:
Explore career alternatives prior to graduation.
Integrate theory and practice.
Assess interests and abilities in their field of study.
Learn to appreciate work and its function in the economy.
Develop work habits and attitudes necessary for job success.
Develop communication, interpersonal and other critical skills in the job interview
process.
Build a record of work experience.
Acquire employment contacts leading directly to a full-time job following graduation
from college.
Identify, write down, and carry out performance objectives (mutually agreed upon by
the employer, the MCC experiential learning supervisor, and the student) related to
their job assignment.
Students earn credit and receive a grade for their experiential learning experience.
The grade is based in part (40-50%) on the employer's written evaluation.
The Co-Op Evaluation Form contains traits that are considered to be crucial for success
on the job. Please fully complete each category and make comments to support your
rating of the student.
Comment on the degree to which the student has achieved his/her predetermined "learning
objectives" at the job site. Learning objectives were initially formalized on the
Co-op objectives form during the first week. They are used to assess the extent and
value of what was learned on the job.
While a registered MCC student, is also your employee for the work term. Listed below
are some tips on how to help the student become an integral and more productive member
of your organization:
Assist student in developing on-the-job objectives.
Explain responsibilities and expectations to the student by reviewing completed evaluation.
Provide an orientation. Help students become familiar with your organization, (e.g.
objectives of the company, key personnel, and
organizational structure), employment policies and procedures.
Assign a seasoned employee to be the student's mentor, someone who will be working
with the student on a daily basis and can give the student the proper supervision
to ensure success and mastery of the job duties and objectives.
Encourage regular employees to share their expertise freely with students and help
the student become integrated and mainstreamed, as much as appropriate, into the total
operation. Students must be made to feel they are contributing and not being exploited
as cheap labor.
Relate assignments directly to the student's curriculum, career goals and performance
objectives. Employers who challenge students with career and/or curriculum relevant
work will experience an employee motivated to provide a significant contribution to
the organization.
Provide students with a variety of on-the-job experiences. As students progress, they
should be given an increasing amount of responsibility. To acquire the full benefit
from the experience, students need to be "stretched" into new situations, new challenges,
and new tasks.
Provide sufficient work. Nothing is more demoralizing to college students as down
time. Even though periods might occur at the job site when the workload is low, every
effort should be made to keep the students occupied with enough work to keep them
busy. Students generally do not complain if overworked, but many complain if they
are not well utilized.
Mold character and work habits. Since the student may be in an impressionable stage
where personality traits are being formulated, and since these traits will follow
them in their career, it is important to help guide, mentor and support each student
where appropriate in: human relations, personal appearance, ability to make decisions,
natural curiosity about the work, enthusiasm and diligence to work, dependability,
and overall quality of work. Any behaviors that do not meet high standards (relative
to a model employee) should be identified and communicated to the student.
Help students build proper attitudes about the "company" that will be conveyed to
other students on campus. Doing this will ensure the permeation of good company images
into the student "grapevine" which will in turn aid the employer as he/she seeks to
interview graduating seniors.
Contact MCC as soon as possible when a problem occurs with the student's job performance
or attitude.
Evaluate the student's progress based on the length of a semester (15 weeks), regardless
of whether or not the student will be staying on longer. The employer's evaluation
is 40-50% of the student's grade.
In April of 2010, the United States Department of Labor - Wage and Hour Division -
provided updated information regarding unpaid internships. This information is designed
to help employers determine whether interns must be paid a wage and overtime under
the Fair Labor Standards Act for services they provided to "for-profit" private sector
employers.
The following content, taken directly from the DOL website, is included in this packet
to help you, the employer, decide if the intern position(s) you are offering should
be paid or not. Please note the six criteria that must be applied when making your
determination.
