Earn Academic Credit

Students wishing to earn elective academic credit for internship participation are guided by the following requirements:

150 hours (minimum) of internship participation are required to earn three academic credits, the standard for most internship experiences
Identification of Learning Objectives at the beginning of the internship
Mentoring from a supervisor with professional expertise corresponding directly with the internship focus area
Completion of meaningful academic assignments as outlined in our internship syllabus

How to Report Your Internship

Review and save our Internship Fact Sheet for full details. Requests for academic credit must be submitted prior to, or at the very start of, the internship experience. We do not grant retroactive credit.

Once you have secured an internship offer, obtain a detailed internship description using the posting to which you applied, or by requesting an internship description from your employer.
Log in to BizLink, and click the "Experiential Learning" tile from your home page.
Click the blue "Add New" button, which takes you to the Experiential Learning Form. Be sure to select the correct semester (work term) for your internship. Complete the form in full, and then submit. Please note: we do not act on forms left in draft mode.
Our staff will review your Experiential Learning Form. Once approved, we will email your employer and instruct them to review and e-sign the Management by Objectives (MBO) learning agreement. You will be copied on that email, and you are also required to e-sign.
Email the completed MBO to mgt-internships@buffalo.edu. Registrations are completed in the order in which documents are received. International students are required to follow additional steps.

If I complete a summer credit-bearing internship, do I pay summer tuition?

Yes, a credit-bearing internship is linked to actual academic credits. You must pay tuition upon the semester of enrollment. This is the case for any course taken within the SUNY system. Current tuition rates can be found on the Student Accounts website.

Are there academic assignments during my internship?

Yes, you are required to complete assignments as outlined on our syllabus, sent to all credit-bearing interns via email after registrations are complete. Syllabi are also available in UBLearns.

Do I have to register my internship for academic credit?

Legally, for-profit companies cannot offer unpaid internships unless they are recognized by the university as connected to the academic curriculum. If you are working as an intern in a for-profit company and are not paid or registered for credit, the employer is violating U.S. Department of Labor regulations. Nonprofit organizations often prefer students to be registered for credit during internships as well.
International (F-1 status) students must always register their internships for academic credit as a first step in obtaining CPT work authorization.

Can I exceed 18 credit hours to add an internship to my course load?

An undergraduate internship registration that will cause you to exceed 18 credit hours requires an override on your HUB account. Please bring this issue to our attention before we attempt to complete your registration.
An MBA student is not usually eligible to participate in a credit-bearing internship if doing so will cause his or her total credits for the semester to exceed 18. Contact us for assistance.