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Internship Employer Information

Equal Opportunity Employer

What is field study?

This program is a great way for organizations to find quality interns who are serious about pursuing their career interests! UC Santa Cruz economics majors can earn course credit while gaining valuable firsthand experience in the workplace in fields such as accounting, administration, events, marketing, management, research, sales, and more! The internships can range from 5-28 hours per week. We strongly encourage internships be paid at the minimum wage rate or higher, especially with for-profit companies as they face a high standard to meet (i.e., not displacing paid employees). We cannot accept 100% remote internships and the campus prohibits internships and internship meetings at residential addresses.

Organizations that work in partnership with our program are called 'field study supervisors'. The field study supervisor defines the student's position and responsibilities, provides training, and evaluates the student's performance at the end of each quarter. The field study supervisor agrees to provide orientation and training, meet with students every week for 30 minutes of individual supervision or 60 minutes of group supervision, and submit an evaluation of each student’s performance at the end of the quarter.

Interested in collaborating with us?

Field Study internships must meet UC Santa Cruz Career Success Center's General Employer Policies and Experiential and Internship guidelines, which also follow the Department of Labor's guidelines and NACE's internship criteria.

If your internship meets the standards, please fill out the following two forms:

How it works:

STEP 1:  
Students apply for our program. Once accepted, they will be added to our field study Canvas page where they will have access to a list of department pre-approved internship listings as well as submit assignments. It is the student's responsibility to search and seek out interviews. You will have students apply and interview at your discretion. Please make your intern selection prior to the start of the quarter (see dates below) so students can enroll in their field study course in a timely manner.

STEP 2:
Once a student has secured an internship with you, they need to notify us and we'll provide them with the Field Study Plan & Contract. This is an agreement between the student, field study supervisor (that's you), faculty sponsor, and field study coordinator that determines the intern's responsibilities, time commitment, and agreement that you will provide training.

STEP 3:
Student begins internship with you! Typically, students work at their internship either 5-6 hours per week (for 2 units) or 12-14 hours per week (for 5 units). Students are limited to 10 units total of field study credit during their time at UC Santa Cruz. Internships take place during time periods corresponding to UC Santa Cruz's 10-week quarter system (see "Internship timelines" below). 

STEP 4:
At the end of the quarter, you will be emailed a Field Study Supervisor Evaluation form. This evaluation is designed to provide feedback on internship performance and related issues. It is required so the student can earn a grade.

Internship quarterly (10-week) timelines

Fall 2024: September 26 - December 6

Winter 2025: January 6 - March 14

Spring 2025: March 31 - June 6

Summer 2025: June 23 - August 29

Questions?

If you have questions or would like to schedule a phone or Zoom appointment, please contact our field study coordinator at econintern@ucsc.edu.