Employer Information

Cooperative Work Experience is a unique work-based academic program in which the student, employer, and college cooperate to combine study and practical work experience.  Units are awarded based on the completion of learning objectives that have specific and measurable outcomes, hours worked, a written report and completion of all required paperwork.

No.  Since internships are offered through an academic course, an intern may begin an internship at the start of each Semester/term.  The CWE staff needs upwards of eight weeks to identify a student to apply and not all internships get filled at the first recruitment.  Please refer to our academic calendar (link below) when planning for internship recruitment:

Academic Calendar:  http://www.hancockcollege.edu/admissions/calendar.php

Employers will be expected to provide the intern with a minimum of 60 hours per semester for an unpaid internship, and 75 hours per semester for a paid internship.  The minimum hours are set by the state and directly correlate to the number of units the intern registers for.  The details can be worked out at the time of the candidate interview.  Refer to the chart below for required hours.

Interns are students first and have other life commitments.  It is wise to be flexible.  Most employers provide a two day schedule such as “Tuesday and Thursday” and a few ask for a three day schedule such as “Monday, Wednesday and Friday.”  It’s reasonable to ask for a 4-6 hour shift, but ultimately the intern will identify a schedule they can work.  If hours are not flexible, write the schedule requirement in the job description.

Employers should provide interns with opportunities to understand important concepts, develop essential skills, and apply what they learn in the classroom to real-world problems and opportunities.  Supervisors should offer challenging projects and tasks, which would be recognized within the business/industry as a valuable experience.  Whenever possible, the intern should be included in meetings and organization events.  Interns should be mentored and are expected to learn generally accepted business principles, standards and work ethics.

• An internship allows an employer to assess the intern as a potential employee, without obligation of hiring the intern
• If the intern becomes an employee, employer training costs and employee turnover are minimized. Nationally, 60 percent of interns go to work for their internship employers.
• Employers establish a cooperative relationship with the college, providing an opportunity to influence vocational education and address industry training needs.
• CWE students are often more motivated, enthusiastic employees because their work is evaluated and translated into college units.