Internships and CO-OPs
CDM encourages experiential learning by providing internship courses that may be taken for credit. Internship courses are available for undergraduate and graduate students.
Undergraduate students may enroll in either CSC 298 or DC 298 to satisfy the Liberal Studies Program requirement in Experiential Learning. Students in the School of Computing enroll in CSC 298 and students in the School of Cinema and Interactive Media enroll in DC 298. Each course carries 4 credit hours.
An undergraduate may earn additional credits through internships. Either CSC 398 or DC 299 may be taken for up to 8 credit hours. However, neither of these courses satisfies the Liberal Studies Program requirement in Experiential Learning. Click here for detailed instructions for CSC 398.
In summary, an undergraduate student may earn as many as 12 credit hours through internships.
- 4 credit hours through either CSC 298 or DC 298 (LSP Experiential Learning credit)
- as many as 8 more credit hours through either CSC 398 or DC 299
Graduate students in the School of Computing may enroll in CSC 697 for a maximum of 4 credit hours and students in the School of Cinema and Interactive Media may enroll in DC 499 for a variable number of credit hours. The expected use of DC 499 is for large projects.
CO-OP, or cooperative education, is a program that allows undergraduate students to integrate classroom study with periods of supervised, paid work experiences related to their academic major, concentration and professional goals. It is different from an internship in that it is always a paid work experience and has a longer duration (generally over multiple quarters). CO-OP placements are only available to students in the sophomore or junior year and require a minimum of nine quarters with the same employer.
- Secure an internship.
- Download, print, and complete the internship application form.
- Contact the internship coordinator or faculty member supervising the internship for enrollment pending verification of internship placement.
- If approved, you will receive an enrollment number to register for the course or enrollment verification if the enrollment requires faculty input.
If the internship application is approved, you will recieve a confirming email with instructions for course registration. Please note that completing an internship application form does NOT enroll you in the course.
In addition to internships that meet CDM requirements, students are eligible to secure internships through the DePaul Career Center. Many new students assume that someone at DePaul will "place" them in an internship somewhere. This rarely happens. Students either apply for a job/internship listing that they find in the Career Center, on the CDM website, or they find a job and bring it to the designated internship coordinator to be approved as an internship.
Search for DePaul Internships and CO-OPs
Do you already have a computer related job that you'd like to apply towards internship credit? Since many students are already working, they can apply to have their job approved for internship credit. The benefit of this approach is that you already have the job and don't have to spend the time looking for another one.
In order to receive internship credit, students must work during the quarter in which they earn the credit (retroactive credit is not allowed.) Internship experiences should be highly reflective and meaningful. In the internship class, students write about their work and reflect on the culture of the workplace, and about how this workplace fulfills their career aims.
Many employers create jobs that are intended for students that are called “internships” and do not require that the students be enrolled in an internship class while they complete the internship. They are usually short-term jobs that are used to attract future, full-time employees or they are a cost-effective way to get some technology work done during tight budget times.
While these opportunities may not offer class credit, they can often offer great experience that you can list on your resume when looking for that first job after graduation.
Some corporations offer formal summer internship programs. These programs are usually very competitive and require students to apply for them months ahead of time.
Summer internships are occasionally combined with research opportunities for those who are considering graduate study in computer science. There are a number of ways to obtain these special internships. The Career Center sometimes assists organizations in interviewing candidates for these types of internships.
Often students will need a faculty member or a former employer to write a letter of recommendation for these internships.
International students in the graduate program who wish to take
CSC 697 or DC 499 must first attend one of the Curricular Practical Training information sessions offered by the
International Student Office (ISO). Following attendance at one of these sessions, you will need to make a follow-up appointment with an ISO staff member to apply for curricular practical training employment authorization.
Please note that you are required by law to obtain this authorization before you begin your employment. Questions? For more information e-mail CDM Advising.