Undergraduate students are encouraged to wait until they have completed some or all core courses before applying to an internship. The internship is intended to give students a chance to consolidate and extend what they have learned in class by working in a professional setting under the guidance of a supervisor who is a practitioner in an HCDE-related field. Graduate students may start employment at any time throughout their course of study, provided that they are eligible (international students, see section below).
International students wishing to pursue an internship must first review CPT eligibility criteria, CPT authorization dates and application process through the ISS website. As of Autumn 2026, F-1 students enrolled in the BS and MS HCDE degrees are not eligible for CPT. PhD students may request CPT if integral to their approved dissertation research required to complete your degree.
Registering for credit
In order to receive credit for an internship, undergraduate students should register for ENGR 321 and graduate students should register for ENGR 601 through the CC@E internship form. Students may not retroactively register for credit from previous quarters.
- ENGR 321: Students may register for 1-2 credits. A maximum of 4 credits of ENGR 321 may count towards the experiential learning requirement for the HCDE major.
- ENGR 601: Students may register for 5 credits for a part-time (20 hrs or fewer/week) internship and 10 credits for a full-time (21+ hours/week) internship in a given quarter. A maximum of 5 credits of ENGR 601 may be counted towards the MS HCDE degree.
- HCDE 601: For HCDE PhD graduate students only. Students may register for a minimum of 2 credits and a maximum of 5 in a given quarter. Summer internship credits may be deferred to autumn quarter. Contact the Academic Services Director, Kathleen Rascon at khorenst@uw.edu, for registration details.
- HCDE 800: For HCDE PhD graduate students only. Students may register for a minimum of 2 credits and a maximum of 10 in a given quarter. Internship field work experience must be integral to their approved dissertation research. Contact the Academic Services Director, Kathleen Rascon at khorenst@uw.edu, for registration details.