Design students may enroll in DES 495: Undergraduate Internship for Credit to receive a maximum of 10 cumulative credits for a design internship. Faculty sponsorship is required for enrollment in DES 495. To be considered for faculty sponsorship, students must submit a proposal under the following the instructions below. 

Eligibility

• The proposed student must be a junior or senior in good academic standing in the Design program.
• Must have received an offer for an eligible Internship:
  • The internship should not exceed 15 hours per week during the academic year to avoid interference with the student’s academic performance. During the summer, internships may be full-time.
  • Internships must be appropriately compensated.
  • Interns should be assigned to a full-time professional who agrees to mentor the intern and oversee his/her activities.
  • Students should be assigned to specific design projects that broaden their knowledge of the field. Internships that only introduce students to general design office conduct are insufficient for academic credit.
  • An internship that the student completed in the past is not eligible for credit.
• The proposed student agrees to complete the presentation and submit the written report and supervisor evaluation listed below to receive credit.

Requirements for Credit

Upon completion of the internship, students must complete the following requirements to receive credit. The materials must be submitted to the Design Program chair by Wednesday of finals week during the internship quarter.

• A written report/assessment of their internship experience. The assigned faculty sponsor must approve the report. A missing or insufficient report will result in a lack of credit for DES 495. See report examples.
• A written evaluation of his/her performance by the supervisor at the conclusion of the internship. The proposing student is responsible for ensuring his/her internship supervisor emails the evaluation to Design Program Chair (see above) by the deadline (Wednesday of finals week). A negative or missing evaluation may result in a lack of credit for DES 495. Supervisors are encouraged to share their written evaluation with the student intern, so that he/she receives feedback that helps them improve their performance in the future.
• The student agrees to give a public presentation on their internship experience at the annual UW Design Internship Pecha Kucha event. See previous Pecha Kucha talks.

Proposal Process

Students must complete the online internship proposal form at least two weeks in advance of the internship quarter. For summer internships, all proposals are due June 1st. Any internships acquired after this deadline will be considered on a case-by-case deadline. Please email your design program chair at least two weeks before the start of your internship to inquire about receiving credit.

Requirements

• Most recent unofficial UW transcript
• Contract, letter or email (saved as a PDF) from the employer verifying the terms of your employment.
• Describe the specific learning objectives of the internship.
• Describe how you (the intern) will be supervised.
• Describe how you (the intern) will be financially compensated for your working hours.

Complete Proposal Form

Decision Timeline

Design faculty will review all internship applications as a group. Students will receive approvals or denials within two weeks. Approved applications will include an assigned faculty sponsor.

Questions? 

Contact the Design Program Chair. Not sure who that is? See the directory.