The Career Services office at University of Wisconsin-Stout is expanding its efforts to serve more students and industry partners.
To support a wider array of student work experiences, Career Services has changed and renamed the Cooperative Education Program to the Cooperative Education and Internship Program.
The co-op program had worked with students who were in paid positions related to their academic programs. CEIP will serve students who also are in unpaid and volunteer positions related to their field of study.
All students in CEIP will receive the same preparation, evaluations, course expectations and support during their work experience. Career Services will serve as a one-stop resource for students, employers and faculty and staff engaged in experiences.
Career Services estimates that the program update will increase student participation by 500 to 600 for a total of more than 1,500 annually.
“The changes will strengthen and expand campus partnerships while providing centralized resources for industry partners and academic programs,” said Career Services Director Bryan Barts.
The goal of student work experiences is to balance classroom theory with periods of practical, hands-on experience prior to graduation. As a polytechnic university, UW-Stout’s focus is a blend of liberal arts and applied learning; career focus; and collaboration with business and industry.
CEIP is coordinated through the Career Services office in cooperation with the academic departments of the university.
All degree-seeking students, undergraduate and graduate, are eligible. Each of UW-Stout’s 49 undergraduate and 23 graduate programs has an experiential learning component.
“The program supports UW-Stout’s polytechnic designation by providing students the opportunity to experience an active and applied focus on learning in their professional field,” Barts said.
CEIP is based on a framework of collaborative partnerships between employers, students and the university, said Bethany Henthorn, CEIP coordinator.
“Participating in a co-op or internship is not only about getting a job, but rather it is a programmatic approach to intellectual and professional growth and career success that demands continual learning and integration,” Henthorn said.
The Cooperative Education program started in 1982 at UW-Stout and has grown to be one of the largest in the Midwest. It enrolls more than 1,000 students annually who work at more than 600 employer sites and in more than 35 states and internationally.
CEIP basic requirements
The basic requirements for the Cooperative Education and Internship Program are:
- Eight-week minimum work experience
- Job duties/responsibilities related to student's area of study
- Co-op and internship courses are taken for academic credit during fall, spring and/or summer; single- and multiple-term experiences approved
- Logistics of position determines student course enrollment track
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CO-OP TRACK |
FIELD EXPERIENCE TRACK |
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Typical industry partners |
For profit companies |
Nonprofit organizations |
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Type of payment |
Paid employment |
Paid or unpaid |
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Required hours (per week) |
32 hours per week minimum full-time student status awarded |
Hours per week will vary
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Required hours (per term) |
320 hours minimum per semester |
80 hours minimum per semester |
Students and industry partners interested in CEIP should contact Career Services, 715-232-1601, careerservices@uwstout.edu.
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Photos
UW-Stout’s Sophie Gelhar, an engineering technology major, enjoys a visit to NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California during her NASA summer internship in 2019 at Ames Research Center in Mountain View, Calif. The university’s Career Services has expanded its co-op program to include internships and volunteer positions related to students’ majors.
Bryan Barts, UW-Stout Career Services director
Bethany Henthorn, Cooperative Education and Internship Program coordinator
