Illinois Tech Career Services · Experiential Learning
Internships & Co-ops
Real work with real employers, structured toward your major — undergraduate and graduate, all five colleges.
Paid
Most Co-op Placements
3 Terms
To the Co-op Degree Designation
All 5
Colleges, Undergrad & Grad
21–40
Hours a Week, Full-Time
An internship or co-op is the single highest-return thing you can do with a summer or a semester. It is also the one experience employers ask about first, because it is the only line on a resume that proves you have already done the work under someone else’s deadline. Everything you need to plan one — credit rules, hour limits, timing, and work authorization — is below.
Employers use the words internship and co-op interchangeably. Illinois Tech does not, and the difference changes your credits, your course load, and your transcript. Start with Section 2 if you are not sure which one you are being offered.
The two panels below open and close, the same as the nine numbered sections further down. If you already have an offer in hand, open Four Checks Before You Accept an Offer first.
Co-ops and Internships Help You
One
Apply skills in real-world settings
Coursework becomes something you have actually built, shipped, or fixed under a deadline that was not set by a syllabus.
Two
Build industry connections that lead to job offers
A large share of full-time offers go to people the team already worked with. This is how you become that person.
Three
Develop professional workplace skills
Running a meeting, writing an update your manager reads, and asking for help early are learned on the job, not in a classroom.
Four
Gain career path clarity
Six weeks inside a role tells you more about whether you want it than four years of reading about it.
The Illinois Tech AdvantageThree Reasons This Is Worth the Paperwork
Stronger first-job outcomes, experience employers can verify, and a designation on your diploma▾
- 1It pays, literally. Illinois Tech students who complete an internship or co-op have gone on to report meaningfully higher first-job salaries than those who did not. The current figures, by college and by program, are in the outcomes report.
- 2It is built into the degree, not bolted on. Elevate is designed so that participating students graduate with professional experience an employer can verify, employer-recognized credentials, and coaching that runs across all four years rather than starting in senior year.
- 3It goes on the degree. Three co-op terms as an undergraduate, or one to two as a graduate student, adds the designation to your diploma: B.S. in Electrical Engineering with Co-op Completion.
Every experience below runs through the experiential learning application procedure — that is what puts it on your official transcript. Do it before you start, not after.
International students: Work authorization comes first, before you accept anything. CPT takes two offices, in order. Career Services approves your CPT form and issues the course registration number; the Office of Global Services then issues the updated I-20 that actually authorizes the work. Open Section 6, then book with a career coach.
Read This FirstFour Checks Before You Accept an Offer
Work authorization, administrative credits, the final-semester rule, and the application that puts it on your transcript▾
Almost everything that goes wrong with an internship or co-op goes wrong before it starts, in one of these four places. Each links to the section that explains it.
- 1Are you an international student? F-1 students need CPT, approved before your first day of work. CPT runs through two offices in sequence — Career Services approves the form, then the Office of Global Services issues the I-20. Treat the date on that I-20 as your real start date, not the offer date. Section 6
- 2Do you actually need administrative credits? If you take them, your experience must run from the first working day after drop/add to the last day of courses. If you do not need them for aid or visa status, you gain real flexibility on start and end dates. Section 4
- 3Is this your final semester? You cannot enroll exclusively in online coursework and still do a co-op or internship. You need an on-campus presence to be eligible, and this catches graduating seniors every year. Section 4
- 4Have you filed the experiential learning application? This is the step that puts the experience on your official transcript. Do it before you start, not after — and note that hours worked outside the term dates may not count. Start the application
Not sure on any of these four? Bring the offer letter to a coach — thirty free minutes, and it is the cheapest insurance on this page.
Every section below opens and closes. Nothing is hidden from you — open only what you need, and skip the rest.
1Five Doors In: Where to Find an Internship or Co-op
Handshake, the IL Tech Career Network, Bridge Recruitment, a coach, and the path if you are not ready yet▾
Most students check one board and stop. These are five different doors into the same building, and the ones with fewer applicants are the ones most students never open.
Open to Everyone
Handshake →the primary open-access posting site, with hundreds of internship and co-op listings at any given time. Log in with your Illinois Tech credentialsBook a career coach →thirty free minutes to match your program, your timeline, and your work authorization to the right searchEarned Access
IL Tech Career Network. Exclusive postings from formal partner companies, unlocked once you complete a series of professional development tasks. These are the companies most likely to hire Illinois Tech students, which is exactly why the effort is worth it.
IL Tech Career Network →the partner-company portalAsk a coach how to start the pathway →the task list is shorter than it looks, and a coach can sequence it for youIn Person, on Campus
Bridge Recruitment in the MTCC. Weekly employer tabling through recruiting season, run by our Employer Relations team. Walk up with a resume in hand — a two-minute conversation at a table beats a cold application, every time.
Events calendar →Bridge Recruitment dates, career fairs, and employer info sessionsMeet the Experiential Learning team →the people who run co-op placement and employer relationsDoor Five
Not application-ready? That is a real answer, not a failure. Job simulations and job shadowing are free and require no application. A simulation runs anywhere from 30 minutes to about five hours depending on the program, and a shadow is a single day. Both produce exactly the resume lines that get you the internship interview next cycle. Section 9 has the whole ladder.
2Internship vs. Co-op: How Illinois Tech Defines Them
Employers use the terms interchangeably. The university does not, and it changes your credits▾
An employer may advertise a co-op and mean an internship, or the reverse. What matters for your transcript is how Illinois Tech classifies it — so read the offer against these definitions before you sign anything.
Internship
- One semester or one summer
- Paid or unpaid, with varying responsibilities
- Generally not tied to academic requirements
Co-op (Cooperative Education)
- Multi-semester, with responsibility that increases each term
- Usually paid, through a formalized university-employer partnership
- Tied to academic prerequisites and requirements
True of Both
- Eligible for administrative credits
- Appear on your official transcript, but only if you go through the experiential learning application process
Three co-op terms as an undergraduate — one to two as a graduate student — earns the co-op designation on your degree. An internship does not carry that, which is the practical reason to ask an employer whether a repeat term is possible before you finish the first one.
3Part-Time or Full-Time: Hours, Credits, and Course Requirements
The table that answers most questions — undergraduate and graduate, fall, spring, and summer▾
You must enroll in academic courses each fall and spring semester to maintain full-time status and keep making progress toward your degree — even if you are doing a full-time experience. The chart below is the whole rule set.
| Part-Time Experience | Full-Time Experience | |
|---|---|---|
| Hours you can work per week | Up to 20 hours per week | 21 to 40 hours per week |
| Administrative credits, fall and spring | Undergraduates: 6 Graduates: 4.5 Experiences that start after the drop/add date or end before the end of the semester do not receive administrative credits. |
Undergraduates: 12 Graduates: 9 Experiences that start after the drop/add date or end before the end of the semester do not receive administrative credits. |
| Administrative credits, summer | Undergraduates: 4 Graduates: 3 |
Undergraduates: 8 Graduates: 6 |
| Academic course requirements | At least 2 academic courses in addition to the part-time experience. In summer, students who are not in their final semester do not need to register for any academic courses. Students in their final semester must still be enrolled. |
At least 1 academic course in addition to the full-time experience. In summer, students who are not in their final semester do not need to register for any academic courses. Students in their final semester must still be enrolled. |
Credit counts and course minimums are set by the university and can change. Confirm your specific term with a career coach or the Experiential Learning Office before you register.
4Administrative Credit, Timing, and the Final Semester
What administrative credit actually does, when your experience has to start and end, and the online-coursework rule▾
Administrative Credit Only
Co-ops and internships award administrative credit only. Administrative credits let you maintain full-time status — which matters for financial aid, visa status, and housing — but they do not count as academic credit toward your degree. Plan your degree audit accordingly; a co-op term is not a term of coursework.
It Must Span the Whole Term
If you take administrative credits, your experience must start by the first working day after the drop/add date and cannot end any earlier than the last day of courses. If you do not take administrative credits, your start and end dates are far more flexible — which is sometimes the better trade.
The Final-Semester Rule
Doing a co-op or internship in your final semester? You may not enroll exclusively in online coursework. You must have an on-campus presence to be eligible. This catches graduating seniors every year — check it before you build your last schedule.
The Question to Ask First
Do you actually need the administrative credits? If you are already enrolled full-time in coursework, taking them adds calendar constraints without adding much. If you need full-time status for aid or visa reasons, they are essential. A coach will answer this in five minutes and it changes how you negotiate your start date.
5Summer Terms Work Differently
No course requirement — but the undergraduate and graduate rules are not the same▾
During the summer term, students are not required to take academic courses alongside a co-op or internship. That is the main reason summer is the easiest term to do one. Past that, undergraduates and graduate students are governed by different policies.
Undergraduate Students
You are allowed to take summer courses alongside a full-time co-op or internship. Whether you should is a workload question, not a policy one — a 40-hour week plus a summer course is a real load, so be honest with yourself about it.
Graduate Students
You cannot take summer courses concurrently with a full-time co-op or internship. This is set by Graduate Academic Affairs, not by Career Services, so plan your summer around one or the other.
Questions about this policy go to Graduate Academic Affairs directly.
Summer Credit Amounts
Administrative credits are lower in summer: undergraduates receive 4 part-time or 8 full-time; graduate students receive 3 part-time or 6 full-time.
Students in their final semester must still be enrolled, even in summer. Everyone else does not need to register for coursework.
6International Students: Work Authorization Comes First
CPT takes two offices in sequence — both steps finished before the first day of work, not after▾
International students doing experiential learning must obtain work authorization before starting. Two offices are involved and the order matters. Career Services approves your CPT form and issues the course registration number. You then submit the request through the ISSS Portal, and the Office of Global Services issues the updated I-20 that authorizes the work. Skipping the second step leaves you unauthorized no matter how complete the rest of your paperwork looks. Working before authorization is granted is a status violation with consequences far bigger than the job, so treat the authorization date, not the offer date, as your real start date.
CPT While You Are Enrolled
F-1 students need Curricular Practical Training (CPT) to work off campus, and getting it takes both offices. Start with Career Services to get your CPT form approved and your course registration number issued. Then submit the request through the ISSS Portal so the Office of Global Services can issue your updated I-20. Career Services advises filing at least three weeks ahead of your intended start date. Do not begin work until the new I-20 is in your hands.
Start your CPT request with Career Services →eligibility, the request process, and how long it takesExperiential learning application →required in addition to CPT — file it before you startOffice of Global Services — CPT I-20 →the ISSS Portal request and the I-20 that authorizes the work — the step after Career ServicesOPT After You Graduate
Optional Practical Training (OPT) is post-graduation employment authorization, and it is handled by the Office of Global Services. Start that conversation well before you finish, because the filing windows are unforgiving.
Optional Practical Training (OPT) →Office of Global Services — post-graduation onlyJ-1 Academic Training →J-1 students: start with Career Services, who will coordinate the sign-offWhere to Start
Career Services — step one for CPT →book before you accept an offer, not after. Form approval and your course registration number start hereOffice of Global Services — step two for CPT, and OPT →issues the updated I-20 through the ISSS Portal; also handles post-graduation OPTInternational Student Hub →Illinois Tech career resources built for international studentsInterstride →visa-aware job search and employer sponsorship data, free through Illinois Tech7Employers, and Students Who Know One
Co-ops built your way or ours — and a five-minute form that starts the whole thing▾
Employers have the flexibility — and our full support — to design a co-op around their own team and hiring timeline, or to start from several ready-made co-op packages and tailor from there. Employers, students, and Illinois Tech work the placement together, with open communication and clear expectations on all three sides.
This One Is for Students Too
Already working somewhere, or know a company that should be hiring Illinois Tech students? Send them the employer interest form. It takes five minutes, and our Employer Relations team handles everything after that — you do not have to know how to pitch a co-op program. Converting your current part-time job into a formal co-op is one of the most common and most overlooked routes onto this page.
Employer Interest Form →Who to Contact
Associate Director of Experiential Learning and Cooperative Education
cstewart4@illinoistech.edu
Associate Director of Employer Engagement and Outreach
cmcgee1@illinoistech.edu
8Get Application-Ready
The resume, the interview, the platforms you already pay for, and your career community▾
Most rejected applications are not rejected on merit — they are rejected on a resume that does not match the posting. Every tool below is free to you and most students never open half of them.
Sharpen the Application
Resume and cover letter guide →templates, examples, and how to mirror the posting’s languageInterview preparation →behavioral questions, technical screens, and what to ask themHave a coach read it before you send it →a human who knows the employer and the posting will catch what a template cannot — free, year roundSearch Wider
Parker Dewey micro-internships →paid projects of roughly 5 to 40 hours — the fastest route to a first paid line on a resumeCareerShift →aggregates postings across many sites and adds company research toolsSearch resource library →the full curated list of search tools and platform loginsJoin Your Career Community
Career Services tuned to your field — the employers who hire into it and the coaches who know it. Free, and it takes a minute.
Architecture, Construction & Planning →Consulting, Entrepreneurship & Business →Education, Government, Human Services & Nonprofits →Life & Health Sciences →Manufacturing, Energy & Logistics →Software Engineering & Information Technology →9If You Are Not Ready to Apply Yet
The ladder that gets you there — ordered by how little it costs you to start▾
A thin resume is a solvable problem, and it is solvable faster than most students think. Work down this list in order — each rung produces a line that makes the next application stronger.
Start Tonight
Job simulations →free, 30 minutes to five hours, no application, real employer-built tasksJob shadowing →a day inside the job before you commit a summer to itBuild a Real Project
IPRO projects →you already take two — a well-chosen one is a portfolio piece, not a requirementResearch opportunities →paid research at national labs and universities, in every disciplineCompetitions and student organizations →where design, hackathon, and case teams recruitAdd a Credential
Career Pathway Courses →four for-credit courses that build career skills and prepare you for industry certificationsVirtual internships →placement supported and remote — a real internship line without relocatingAlumni mentorship →a mentor who did this already and remembers how they got inBring Us the Offer Before You Sign It
Credits, hours, timing, and work authorization all hinge on details in the offer letter. Thirty free minutes with a coach is the cheapest insurance on this page.
Browse current internship and co-op postings below ▾
Internships & Co-ops: Essential Information for Success
Elevate Your Earnings with Proven Data: The Co-op & Internship Advantage.
Illinois Tech Insight: At Illinois Tech, experiential learning is transformative. Students who participate in internships or co-ops at Illinois Tech earn about $10,000 more in their first post-graduation job compared to those who don’t. We are committed to increasing those numbers through innovative strategies because we believe in the transformative power of experiential learning.
Elevate Your Opportunities: Beyond Traditional Education and Professional Experiences.
Illinois Tech Insight: At Illinois Tech, career readiness starts from day one. Our comprehensive Elevate Program ensures 100% of participating students graduate with verified professional experiences, credentials that employers recognize, and personalized career coaching throughout their four years. While other schools offer career services, we make a serious transformative commitments to career preparation – transforming students into career-ready professionals who stand out in today’s competitive job market.
