Credit for Internships

Whether or not an internship is paid or unpaid, with or without credit, it offers you a wonderful learning experience. Many students do internships simply for the experience.

Tufts offers two options for recognizing your internship: Academic Credit or Career Center Internship Credit.

Academic Internship Credit

The Career Center does not offer academic credit. If you are seeking academic credit, you need to determine if an academic department or program offers an internship course for credit. Several departments at Tufts offer internship courses for academic credit, but these courses may not be available each semester. Please contact the appropriate academic department for more information.

Below are links to departments currently providing internship course/credit information on their websites.

Communications Internship

Many employers in the communications industry only offer internships if students receive academic credit. To receive academic credit, you must go through Film and Media Studies and register for the course FMS99. For more information, contact Leslie Goldberg.

Finance/Business Interns

Students may get academic credit through the Economics department. This option is typically used by students pursuing finance positions and is justified by the student’s overall course of study. For more information, contact Pat Schena (Patrick.Schena@tufts.edu).

Career Center Internship Credit

Tufts Career Center Internship Credit is an official way to note an internship on your transcript upon satisfactory completion. Students may register for this credit when their employer requires some sort of recognition by the University for an unpaid internship and internship credit is not available through an academic department.

Career Center Internship Credit is not academic credit. It does not affect the total number of credits you need for graduation. Since you do not receive a grade, it does not affect your grade-point average. This internship option does not fulfill major, minor, or degree requirements. No faculty sponsorship is required. There is no cost for Career Center Internship Credit, and there is no limit on the number of times you may receive this credit.

Please Note: Some organizations will not accept Career Center Internship Credit for unpaid internships. It is your responsibility to determine credit requirements and make plans accordingly.

Prerequisites for Career Center Internship Credit:

  • You must be a matriculated, enrolled student at Tufts University.
  • You must complete the internship before graduation.
  • You must apply for Career Center Internship Credit before the beginning of your internship, and by the applicable deadline; credit will not be given retroactively.
  • Employer must require that student receives credit for their internship.
  • Summer interns must work a minimum of 150 hours. Fall or spring interns must work at least 75 hours.
  • If you are an international student, please check with the International Center before applying for credit to determine if there are any restrictions on your ability to complete an internship and/or if there are any additional requirements you need to fulfill, including registering for CPT.
  • All international opportunities outside the U.S. are subject to adherence with the university’s travel policy and approval of travel review.

View and Complete the Career Center Internship Credit Form

Internship Agreements Required by Internship Employer

Internship Agreement Approval Process and Timeline

Occasionally, an employer will require that their student intern and Tufts sign some type of agreement prior to the start of an internship. If you are required to have any documents signed by Tufts for your internship, the following prerequisites must be met:

  • You must be a fully enrolled, degree-seeking student at Tufts University
  • For summer internships, you must be fully enrolled at Tufts for the following fall
  • You must complete the internship before graduation
  • You should apply for Career Center Internship Credit in addition to submitting your document to be signed
  • If you are an international student, you must first check with the International Center to determine if there are any restrictions on your ability to complete an internship and/or if there are any additional requirements you need to fulfill, including registering for CPT.
  • All international opportunities outside the U.S. are subject to adherence with the university’s travel policy and approval of travel review.

The Career Center has a Standard Internship Agreement (CCSIA) available upon request. We can also review an employer’s document if they will not accept our standard agreement, but that will take up to an additional 4 weeks to be reviewed by Tufts General Counsel and Risk Management Team to verify that the agreement can be signed by the University.

Deadlines to submit documents to be signed:

Employer DocumentCCSIA
Summer InternshipsMay 1 or at least 4 weeks prior to internship start dateJune 1
Fall InternshipsAugust 1 or at least 4 weeks prior to internship start dateAugust 15
Spring InternshipsDecember 15 or at least 4 weeks prior to internship start dateJanuary 1

To request a Career Center Internship Agreement, or to have an employer’s document reviewed and signed, please send the following to internships@tufts.edu:

  • Your full name
  • Major
  • Degree
  • Year of graduation
  • Confirm that you are fully enrolled (not on leave) for the duration of the internship (For summer internships, confirm that you are fully enrolled for the fall)
  • If you are an international student, confirm that you have checked with the I-Center to be sure you are eligible for the internship and have complied with CPT/other requirements
  • Employer name
  • Dates of Internship
  • Date you applied for Career Center Internship Credit
  • Attach employer agreement or request CCSIA from the Career Center

Questions? Please email internships@tufts.edu.