Internship in Business is designed to provide students real-world experience in a business-related area while they work toward completing their degree. This experiential learning course emphasizes learned skills, exposure to business techniques, and hands-on experience within a business enterprise. 

Credit: 1 semester-hour
Frequency: meets 4 times during the semester 
Duration: 16 weeks

Finding an Internship Placement

To enroll in the internship course, the graduate student must secure an internship position at an organization outside the University. Students are responsible for finding their own internships, although they may request assistance from Concordia-Chicago staff. All work sites should be vetted and positions must be approved by the course instructor and Program Chair.  

Types of Internship Positions

Many Concordia-Chicago graduate business students seek out internships in their chosen field of study in positions with job titles such as: marketing intern coordinator, management trainee, IT analyst, marketing analyst, management intern, etc.

Course Benefits

  • Gain practical business experience, which is essential for a complete understanding of the application of business theories and practices.
  • Connect what is learned in the classroom and on the job in order to further develop analytical, critical thinking and interpersonal skills.
  • Analyze and evaluate solutions to business problems to assess which options optimize revenue and profits.
  • Contribute to the record of work experience shown on the student's resume, thereby improving the outlook for future career path.

Who may take the course

The internship course is open to any domestic or international student currently enrolled in a graduate business program. International students, please click here for more information about employment types, requirements and conditions.  

Course Modules

Module 1. Graduate students develop an Internship Learning Contract that outlines the learning objectives and activities that will be performed in the internship. The student, supervisor and faculty sign the Internship Contract.

Module 2. Students seek out informational interviews and networking events within the internship industry. An informational interview is not a job interview, but a low-stress way to gather information by connecting with professionals in your field of interest and gaining insight from those conversations. Informational interviewing is a powerful way to build and expand your professional network, to learn more about your chosen field or industry, and clarify your internship and career development goals.

Module 3. Students identify the ethical standards within organizations and strategize how to navigate ethical dilemmas. A discussion exercise will require the student to identify an ethical dilemma within the internship organization, explore the circumstances leading to the situation, evaluate how it was handled, and develop strategies to handle ethical dilemmas in the future. The students' reflection journals are reviewed, in which students document the questions, perceptions, feelings, and new skills learned throughout the internship.

Module 4. Students summarize their internship experience and its contribution toward career development.  The interns revisit to their signed Internship Learning contracts and retrospectively evaluate the learning goals and activities. Students create and present a final project using PowerPoint, summarizing their work activities, course discussions and assignments in order to to understand and describe the career development that has occurred over the course of the semester.