Internships for Academic Credit

Any student who is at least a sophomore and in good academic standing may earn academic credit in the College of Arts & Science for an internship during the fall, spring, or summer sessions. The credit hours earned count towards the total credit hours needed for graduation. Internship courses do not count toward the college’s general education requirements (AXLE for students entering prior to Fall 2025; College Core for students entering Fall 2025 and later). In most cases, internship courses do not count towards major or minor requirements, but some departments do allow departmental internships (see below) to count towards their major or minor requirements.

Students doing an internship for academic credit must complete a weekly journal of activities and a final written paper that is evaluated by an Arts & Science faculty member. A&S faculty members at the rank of senior lecturer or above are eligible to serve as a faculty supervisor of an internship.

The College of Arts & Science offers two types of internships for academic credit: interdisciplinary and departmental.

Interdisciplinary Internships

These internships are listed under the INDS heading in YES. Any student who is at least a sophomore and in good academic standing may enroll in an interdisciplinary internship. There are no prerequisites to enroll in an interdisciplinary internship course other than class and academic standing. The following courses are available to students:

• INDS 3880: One credit hour only. Only available on a pass/fail basis. Repeatable for a maximum of 3 credit hours in 3880 and 3884, combined. May be taken in the fall, spring, or summer session.
• INDS 3884: One credit hour only. Only available on a pass/fail basis. Repeatable for a maximum of 3 credit hours in 3880 and 3884, combined. Only available in the summer. This course number is only used for students applying for a tuition subsidy because they are required to earn academic credit for their summer internship.
• INDS 3990/3991: INDS 3990 and 3991 are co-requisite. INDS 3990: Internship Training may be taken for 1-3 credit hours, based on the number of hours spent working during the session (see details below). INDS 3990 is only available on a pass/fail basis. INDS 3991: Internship Readings and Research may be taken for 1-3 credit hours, based on the amount of reading assigned and the final paper (see details below). INDS 3991 is only available on a graded basis.

Students may enroll in INDS 3880 and/or 3884 a combined total of three times during their time at Vanderbilt. The INDS 3990 and 3991 courses may only be taken once.

Departmental Internships

Many departments offer internships, which are listed under that department’s heading in YES. To enroll in a departmental internship, students must have completed at least 6 credit hours of prior work and must meet the minimum GPA requirements in the department in which they wish to enroll. Departmental internships are not repeatable within the same department.

All internships under this designation are taken as two classes concurrently. Departmental Course 3880: Internship Training is taken for variable credit hours (1-9), based on the number of hours spent working during the session (see details below). Departmental Course 3880 is only available on a pass/fail basis. The second course is Departmental Course 3881 (or 3882 or 3883): Internship Readings or Research, which is also taken for variable credit hours (1-6), based on the amount of reading assigned and the length of the final paper that will be written (see details below). Departmental Course 3881 (or 3882 or 3883) is only available on a graded basis.

Internships taken during the fall or spring semester will fall under the normal tuition charge unless the student exceeds 18 credit hours during the semester. The hourly tuition rate will apply to any credit hours taken over 18, which must be approved by the Office of Undergraduate Education in the College of Arts and Science.

During the summer, all classes carry the hourly tuition rate. Internship courses taken during the summer also carry a tuition charge. Some summer internships require students to earn academic credit as a condition of their participation in the internship. In such cases, the university subsidizes the tuition for a 1-credit-hour internship course, called INDS 3884. Students will pay only $200 for INDS 3884, rather than the regular summer hourly tuition rate. Students must document that they are required to earn academic credit for their internship in order to enroll in INDS 3884. Students who are not required to earn academic credit for their summer internship may enroll in INDS 3880, INDS 3990/3991, or a departmental internship and pay the accompanying tuition to earn academic credit over the summer.

Students doing an internship for academic credit must complete a weekly journal of activities and a final written paper that is evaluated by an Arts & Science faculty member. The journal entries should include brief descriptions of their activities and their impressions of the internship experience. Students may also use their journals to document anything they find to be exciting or unusual about their experiences at the site, and to reflect on their successes and disappointments.  

The journals and final paper must be turned in to the faculty supervisor by the last day of classes of the semester (or summer session). The faculty member then submits the grade for the course through YES during the final exam period.

INDS 3880 and 3884

Students must write a final paper that is at least 5 pages in length. The paper is usually a summary of readings, a small research paper, or a reflection on the internship experience itself. The recommended length of readings for INDS 3880 and 3884 is 250 pages, which may include readings and research assigned to the student by supervisors at the worksite.

A student must work at the internship site a minimum of 5 hours per week during a semester or summer for 15 weeks (or a total of 75 hours) to earn one hour of credit for either INDS 3880 or 3884.

Departmental Internships and INDS 3990/3991

The amount of credit hours earned for the graded Research or Readings course (INDS 3991 or Departmental Course 3881, 3882, or 3883) varies with the length of the final paper and amount of reading assigned. The recommended length of readings for the Research and Readings component in these internships is 250 pages per graded hour, which may include readings and research assigned to the student by supervisors at the worksite. The project must result in a written project that is at least 5 pages in length per graded credit hour. The paper is usually a summary of readings or a research paper. The amount of credit hours earned for the Readings and Research course is determined in collaboration with the faculty supervisor.