Academic Credit Internship Instructions

Note: There is a $35 maximum professional liability insurance fee per term for each academic internship course. All internships taken for academic credit are charged the normal per credit hour rate.

See the Academic Credit Internship flow chart.

Students may log into CatPAWS or myNorthwest to complete this centralized internship approval process. An email will be generated to the appropriate faculty to "approve" or "deny" the internship experience. The student will receive email notice of the faculty response.

Student Instructions:

1. Enroll in the appropriate internship related course.  See your advisor or department chair for instructions specific to your major/minor.
2. Enter your internship location and personal information into the Student Academic Credit Internship database as follows:

• • Enter CatPAWS, Click on “Student”
  • Locate and click on the “Student Internship” heading
  • Choose from:
    • Complete Internship Agreement
      
      1. Read the document and place your initials in the box
      2. Proceed with sharing your employer and personal contact information.

• • View Internship Information
  • Update Employer Data

    3. Once you have entered the information, an email will be automatically generated to your faculty so that they may approve/deny our internship.
    4. Faculty enter a approve/deny response which generates an email back to the student. This email may include comments or further instructions.
    5. If your internship location/site changes, students are encouraged to revisit this database and update their information.

OR

• Enter myNorthwest, Click on “CatPAWS”
• Locate the “Student Links” section on the lower right of the screen.
• Choose from:
  • Complete Internship Agreement
  • View Internship Information
  • Update Employer Data
  • Finish as directed above

Faculty Instructions:

Academic credit internships are closed classes. Students will need to have an add/drop form completed and submitted to the Registrar's office in order to enroll in the class. Each academic department/school has their own requirements for academic credit internships. Please make sure students are aware of what they are required to do for that particular class.

When the student is officially enrolled in the course they will automatically receive an email directing them to log into CatPAWS and complete the internship agreement. The faculty will then receive an email to approve or deny the experience.

To approve/deny student experiences:

• Enter myNorthwest and go to the “Advisement/Class Resources” tab, click on “Faculty Internship Management” (lower right of screen)
• Approve or Deny each student experience before the student starts at the worksite. 
• The comment box may be used to communicate a message back to the student.

To view current and past term data:

• Enter CatPAWS and go to the "Faculty" tab, click on “Faculty Internship  
  •  Management - Reports

In general, a Northwest academic credit internship means that:

• Northwest is a partner in the internship experience and a faculty member will be supervising the experience.
• Students enroll in a course at Northwest representing this kind of experience.
• Students pay tuition for those academic hours.
• Students may have periodic assignments to reinforce internship learning.
• The employer is asked to sign a simple learning agreement with the student and academic department.
• The employer will return an evaluation of the student's work to the faculty.
• Students generally complete the course with a term paper, project or presentation according to faculty supervisor's specifications.
• Requirements vary by Northwest academic advisor. Discuss details with an academic department advisor.