Internships & Experiential Learning

You must have earned at least 45 credits and have at least a 2.0 GPA to enroll into an internship.

To enroll in an internship students need:

• To have earned at least 45 credits and have at least a 2.0 GPA overall
• The name of an employer sponsoring the student; this can be a paid or unpaid experience
• The name of a faculty member crediting the internship, they will submit your grade in SPIRE

Hourly requirements for credit-bearing internships:

• Courses counting toward curriculum requirements must be at least 3 credits
• Each credit requires 40 hours of work, most internships are 13 weeks in length
• Examples: 40 hours= 1 credit,  80 hours= 2 credits, 120 hours= 3 credits, 240 hours = 6 credits (counting as 2 curriculum courses)

Students with a BDIC major should click on the following link to connect with our program’s Career Services: https://www.umass.edu/careers/bdic

Those still taking BDIC 396P Proposal Writing should contact Associate Director of Professional Transitions Joanna Miles @email

Internship and Co-op registration is now on Spire, and no longer on Handshake.

To register your experience, submit a request through the Experiential Learning module of SPIRE.  Directions are found here: Experiential Learning Guide: Students 

Students must have the following to complete the enrollment request:

From employer:  employer’s name, internship start and end dates, total hours worked per week, and total hours worked per week.

From faculty sponsor: the number of credits you are requesting, a course number, and your academic project.

If your sponsor is in a department other than BDIC, speak with your BDIC advisor to determine which department you will register in.

Your application will be sent directly to your employer and faculty sponsor to approve electronically.

It is often best to seek a sponsor you already know, this could be someone you’ve worked with or taken a class with.

Contact BDIC [email protected] and we will do our best to help you find one.

Absolutely, many students do.

Yes, many students count internships towards their BDIC curriculum. Keep in mind, a maximum of 6 internship credits (equivalent to 2 classes) can count towards your 12 class/36 credit BDIC curriculum requirement. 

You are always free to go beyond this (and many BDIC students do), but the additional credits won’t count towards the requirement.

In general, 40 total hours worked is equivalent to 1 credit.

• 40 hours = 1 credit
• 80 hours = 2 credits
• 120 hours = 3 credits
• 240 hours = 6 credits (equivalent to two curriculum courses)

Example: If you work 40 hours per week for three weeks, this would add up to 120 hours and qualify as a 3-credit internship.

Most internships, however, are spread over longer periods and may have varying weekly hours.

1. Fall/Spring Semester Internships (typically 13 weeks):
   • To earn 3 credits, you would need to work 9 hours per week over 13 weeks.
     • Calculation: 13 weeks x 9 hours per week = 117 total hours ≈ 3 credits.
   • For a 1-credit internship: 3 hours per week over 13 weeks.
   • For a 2-credit internship: 6 hours per week over 13 weeks.

1. Summer/Winter Internships:
   • Internship lengths vary, so calculate credits based on total hours worked:
     • Determine the number of weeks and hours per week.
     • Multiply the two to get the total hours worked, then divide by 40 to find credits.

Example: If you work 15 hours per week for 8 weeks in the summer:

Calculation: 8 weeks x 15 hours per week = 120 total hours
- 120 hours / 40 = 3 credits (For a 6-credit internship: 30 hours per week over 8 weeks.)

Though there are some exceptions, BDIC students who are in their junior year or below use 398A, and seniors use 498A. If enrolling in a department other than BDIC, your sponsor will help you determine your course number.