The Office of Student Employment has developed the On-Campus Internship Program to aid departments in developing opportunities for students to gain valuable internship experience in areas directly related to their academic programs. Qualified positions allow interns to earn course credit. Positions developed and approved within the program will be able to hire every academic year, and student employment will pay up to 50% of the students' wages to offset the cost to the department.
Program overview
Funding Breakdown
The On-Campus Internship Program will cover up to 40% of the students' income. Additional information about the funding breakdown is below.
If departments hire a student who is eligible for work-study, the student's income will be split between their work-study funds and the program. Of their income, 75% will come directly from their work-study funds, and the remaining 25% will be covered by the program.
If students exhaust all of their funds throughout the year, the students' income will be split at 60/40 between the department and the program for the remainder of the year.
If departments hire a student who does not have work-study funding, the student's income will be split between the hiring department and our program. Of the student's income, 40% will be covered by the program's budget, and the department will be responsible for the remainder (60%).
Our program now offers a referral benefit for departments who refer new supervisors or departments to the program. If a new supervisor or department is referred to the On-Campus Internship Program or the Hire Achievers program and the new supervisor is accepted and hires a student in either program, the referring supervisor's student's income will be covered at 100% by the program regardless of the student's work-study eligibility.
Are you eligible to apply?
There are certain eligibility requirements of supervisors, students, and the positions being filled in the program. Before applying, review the eligibility details to determine if you meet the program criteria.
Please review the program rules and responsibilities to learn more about participant eligibility and structure of the program.
Supervisors of students in this program must meet the following criteria:
- The direct supervisor must complete the application and vetting process.
- Any supervisors who the interns will work for must have completed Jaguar Series One prior to approval.*
- Supervisor must meet with students regularly as a part of the program.
- It is required that all supervisors regularly check Canvas and submit summaries of four coaching chats throughout the year in accordance with program timelines.
- Supervisors must participate in one site visit per student.
*Alternative training programs may be approved at the discretion of the program coordinator.
Students hired into approved internships within this program are only eligible to participate if:
- They are a sophomore or junior status at the time in which they will be employed.*
- They have at least a 2.5 GPA.
- They are enrolled in at least 12 credits for both semesters within which they are employed as interns.
- They agree to register for an internship course within one of the semesters they are employed as an intern.
- They agree to complete the point requirements and the public showcase.
- They agree to participate in one site visit during the program.
*Freshmen may be considered at the discretion of the program coordinator and hiring supervisor. Seniors will not be considered.
Once the supervisor and internship opening(s) are approved, instructions will be provided on how to recruit and hire your student(s). Before applying for the program, review the following criteria to determine if your positions are eligible to be offered as a part of the program:
- Positions must pay a minimum of $12.00 per hour.
- Positions must be at a level in which students could earn internship credit within their programs.
- Position descriptions must use the job description template when submitting the application.
- Positions must be posted on Handshake when recruiting student interns (additional instructions will be provided on approval to the program).
- Position descriptions must be accurate to the responsibilities the intern is actually completing.
- Student employment will cover 40% of the student's earnings unless the student is utilizing a work-study award, then 25% of their earnings will be covered.*
*Supervisors who refer new supervisors or departments to the program will have their students covered at 100%. See the funding breakdown section above for more details.
Student requirements
As a part of the program, students have requirements that must be met throughout their internship experience. Supervisors should clearly communicate these requirements to students prior to extending an offer for the position. Students must agree to the established requirements before choosing to participate in the program.
Interns are required to seek academic credit for one of the two semesters of employment. This can be through the student's program of study or another approved course.
As an additional learning component, students will be required to participate in professional development activities of their choice. This requirement follows a point system in which students will participate in development activities and submit a reflection form to earn points. Students are required to earn a total of 12 points. Supervisors are expected to support students throughout this process. For details about the points, please visit the internship student page.
After completing a year within the program and obtaining 12 points, interns will be able to indicate their experience on their IU Indianapolis Experiential and Applied Learning Record.
Supervisor expectations
Participating supervisors also have requirements they must complete as a part of this program. However, additional support, tips, resources, and guidance are provided to supervisors throughout the year. Our office is here to support participating supervisors just as much as students. We are happy to help every step of the way!
Once positions have been approved, the supervisors must complete a brief online orientation to the program to understand the requirements in more detail. It is then the supervisors' responsibility to post and screen potential candidates for their positions. Once students have been selected, supervisors will be given additional information about the hiring process and may proceed to train and onboard as usual.
The main requirement of supervisors is the facilitation of regular coaching conversations with each intern. Summaries of each coaching conversation must be submitted within Canvas. See the breakdown below for more details about the approximate timeline and structure of the coaching chats. Additional guidelines and support are provided to help supervisors and students be successful in these conversations.
| Chat 1: PDP Development | Chat 1 is usually due around mid-October and focuses on meeting with the interns to establish goals that they would like to strive for throughout their experience. Supervisors are expected to offer guidance on establishing SMART goals and helping them structure these within a professional development plan. |
| Chat 2: Measure Progress | Chat 2 is usually due before the end of the fall semester. The goal of this conversation is to check in on goal progress and to help students reflect on their experience up to that point. Supervisors are expected to discuss specific skills development and progress in addition to goal development. |
| Chat 3: Reflect and Reset | Chat 3 is completed at the start of the spring semester. This conversation revolves around planning the final months of the semester. Supervisors should assist students with setting new goals (if applicable) and discuss how they will focus the remainder of their time in the internship. This chat also requires supervisors to begin supporting their interns with planning the public showcase. |
| Chat 4: Wrap it Up | Chat 4 is due at the end of the spring semester and focuses on helping students reflect on their learning throughout the year. Supervisors should revisit the interns' goals one last time and help the students reflect on their progress and growth. |
2024–25 academic year timeline
July 20, 2024* | Online application process opens; applications will be approved on an ongoing basis. |
*Please provide at least seven business days for us to process your application. Once your application is approved, you'll be notified regarding next steps for hiring your student(s). | |
August 26, 2024 | First eligible day students can begin working within the program for the 2024–25 academic year. |
September 30, 2024 | Online application process closes; no applications will be accepted after this date. |
October 18, 2024** | Last day to hire initial students into approved positions. |
**If you have student turnover after the initial October 18 hiring deadline, please contact the program coordinator to discuss replacing the student staff using the program funding. | |
2025 calendar year timeline
October 18, 2024 | Application process opens; applications will be approved on an ongoing basis. |
January 24, 2025 | Application deadline; no applications will be accepted after this date. |
January 13, 2025 | First eligible day students can begin working within the program for the 2025 year. |
March 21, 2025* | Last day to hire initial students into approved positions. |
*If you have student turnover after the initial March 21 hiring deadline, please contact the program coordinator to discuss replacing the student staff using the program funding. | |
Application process
Applications are now being accepted for the 2025 calendar year (January–May or January–December).
Please ensure that the direct supervisor completes the application as the requirements pertain to their role. Notification of acceptance will be sent to applicants on a rolling basis.
Frequently asked questions
Two interns per supervisor can be hired in the program.
When students are about to run out of work study funds, the student or supervisor should first request an increase. If the student is not eligible for an increase, then the program will transition to covering 40% of the student’s income.
Yes. Supervisors must apply and be accepted every year to participate.
Students cannot participate in the same internship more than one year in this program. However, it is possible that students may obtain a new internship in the program for an additional year. Additionally, departments are welcome to keep their students on their own payroll after the program is over.
Departments are welcome to pay students at a higher rate as long as they pay for the increase from their own budget line. However, it is recommended that supervisors discuss alternative pay rates with the program coordinator before posting to determine if alternative rates can be approved.
If supervisors expect students to work beyond 15 hours a week, they will need to set up an additional record for students to clock in/out of beyond the allotted 15 hours. It should be noted that students are not permitted to work more than 29 hours a week (in all combined positions) per university policy.
The program does not cover hiring costs (background check, I-9, uniforms, training costs, nametags, etc.). All additional costs associated with setting up a new hire (outside of the student’s hourly rate of pay) are the sole responsibility of the hiring department.
Our office is happy to help any supervisors write job descriptions. Please feel free to reach out if you are unsure of how to write a solid job description, or if you would like assistance thinking strategically about how to align your position more closely with the program.
Yes! We have many departments that hire students in both programs. However, we highly recommend that departments plan accordingly for each supervisor’s capacity to manage students and maintain the program requirements.
Want to know more or need additional assistance?
Contact the program coordinator, Karla McLaughlin, for more information about the program, application process, or for more details about how your department can participate.