San Jose State University : Career Center

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Internship Recruitment

SJSU is a cultural crossroads...

...reflecting the great diversity of the region and state. Our students from the local region and around the world bring a wealth of hands-on experience and classroom knowledge of current trends to your organization.

They seek diverse internship experiences to enrich and supplement their education, to apply their classroom knowledge, and to possibly sustain themselves financially.



Academic Credit

San Jose State University does not offer a university-wide requirement regarding internships. Each department independently may or may not offer an internship course or elective course that can be used towards internship credit. Please have your candidates contact their major department regarding the possible credit requirements for internships



Compensation

Many for profit employer internships offered to SJSU students are paid. Interns may be compensated with an hourly rate that is not below the minimum wage of the state where they will work

Benefits to paying interns:
  • Attract skilled interns and remain competitive.
  • Increase intern commitment and compensate for contributions.
  • Broaden the number of qualified applicants by limiting the financial burden of students who cannot afford unpaid internships.
  • It's the right thing to do!

Compensation rates are recommended to be based on the desired qualifications, major, class level, and comparable internship positions in the designated industry.

A stipend is a one time payment. A stipend to cover meals, travel, and living expenses does not correspond to an hourly rate.

Consideration for other types of compensation such as tuition, books, stock options, royalties, etc. also do not meet an hourly rate. Questions about alternative forms of compensation may be answered by legal counsel or your Human Resources department.

Full time 40 hour a week unpaid internships are prohibited in fairness to students who need to support themselves. Consider splitting the time into part-time hours or into multiple positions.

Internships may not be commission based under SJSU Career Center policy. Commissioned based positions can be considered for part-time or full-time postings.

Unpaid internships with structured duties and responsibilities, learning outcomes, supervision may be permissible with compliance to the U.S. Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) which pertains to pay requirements in for–profit organizations.

  • Reduce financial burdens that may require a student to work a second job during their internship (or limit internship opportunities to only those students who can afford them).
  • Offset the cost of paying for tuition when a student chooses (or is required) to earn credit for an internship.
  • Comply with the U.S. Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), which governs minimum wage requirements in for-profit organizations. The U.S. Department of Labor has developed six criteria for identifying a learner/trainee who may be unpaid. These criteria are as follows:

    1. The training, even though it includes actual operation of the employer's facilities, is similar to training that would be given in a vocational school.
    2. The training is for the benefit of the student.
    3. The student does not displace regular employees, but works under the close observation of a regular employee.
    4. The employer provides the training and derives no immediate advantage from the activities of the student. Occasionally, the operations may actually be impeded by the training.
    5. The student is not necessarily entitled to a job at the conclusion of the training period.
    6. The employer and the student understand that the student is not entitled to wages for the time spent training. All six requirements must be satisfied in order for an intern to be deemed a non-employee trainee (exempt from FLSA minimum wage requirements). http://students.asu.edu/career/employers-internships