College of Arts and Sciences

Students are advised to have at least one internship before graduating for either credit or non-credit. Internships give students hands on experiences in their field of study that can lead to future employment opportunities. Learn more about the steps needed to getting an internship, how to finance it, frequently asked questions about internship experiences and connect with the internship coordinator for your department. 

Career Development Center Contacts:

• Les Miller (millerlc1@appstate.edu), Associate Director of Student Employment and Internships
• Melissa Auten (autenmd@appstate.edu), CAS Career Coach 

Budgeting for tuition, housing, travel and hours on-site are factors to consider as you plan for your internship.

Credit: Consult with your academic advisor and/or internship coordinator to assess how many credit hours you need to satisfy the requirements of your program of study/major. It is important to avoid earning and paying for more academic credit that you need. You will pay for each credit hour you earn as an intern as with any other credit-bearing course.

Tuition: Appalachian State tuition costs can be found on the Student Accounts page under Tuition and Fees.

Financial Aid: If you are receiving financial aid, managing your financial aid package and maintaining your satisfactory academic progress is critical. Remember to seek the advice from The Office of Student Financial Aid when addressing your Financial Aid package. 

Work: Take into consideration whether you can maintain part or all of your on/off campus job while you intern.

Housing: Think about whether or not you can secure an internship where you have a place to live. Factor in the cost of your housing arrangement. 

Travel: Examine costs of commuting to your internship. Account for your time and transportation costs (gasoline, mileage, public transportation fees, etc.).

Pay, Stipend or Experience-Only: The value of an internship is measured by its ability to provide the opportunity to meet your learning and skill development goals for your career and for the completion of your degree program/major. Academic credit can be considered whether you are paid for your internship or not. Internship sites vary in their ability to pay or to offer a stipend to their intern. It is likely most interns will secure an unpaid internship.

Why should I do an internship?

Employers and graduate schools value hands-on experience. Plus, this is an opportunity for you to get to know the field a little bit better, to see what parts of the industry you like and the environment of the industry.

When should I do my internship?

Consult with your academic advisor to investigate an ideal time for you to do your internship. Take into consideration your projected graduation date, when required courses for your major are offered and when you can be absent from campus if your internship location is away from Boone. 

Should I do my internship for academic credit?

Some programs of study/majors at Appalachian require an internship which means a student will enroll in an internship and pay tuition and fees as with any other course. For other programs of study/majors, doing an internship for academic credit is strongly encouraged but not required. 

What goals do I want to accomplish in my internship?

Seek an internship that will help expand your skills and competencies. The Internship Coordinator for your major/academic department can assist you in determining whether or not an internship will be substantial enough to count for academic credit. As with all academic credit, you will pay Appalachian tuition and fees.

Why choose to do an internship for academic credit if an internship is not required for your program of study/major?

Internship hosts frequently require that you be enrolled in an internship to be eligible for an internship at their site. When enrolled in an internship, you will have professional and general liability insurance coverage while you are on site.

If you are experiencing any barriers to your learning or in meeting your goals, you have your site supervisor and your faculty supervisor to support you.

A faculty supervisor in your major will be assigned to assist you in completing your agreed upon learning goals and outcomes for your internship. Learning goals will provide structure to ensure you meet your career and skill devleopment goals.

An on-site supervisor with experience in your field of study will be assigned to you to assist in your training and to ensure you have assigned tasks and experiences to meet your learning goals and outcomes.