Work-based Experiences

On-Campus Work Opportunities

Work-Study positions give students opportunities to earn money while gaining real work experience. Federal Work-Study and Institutional Work-Study jobs include on-campus and some community positions, with hours scheduled around classes. Most roles don’t require specific skills and help build valuable workplace abilities.

Explore EA Work Study Programs

Off-Campus Work Opportunities

Internships

An official program offered by an employer to potential employees. Interns work either part-time or full-time at a company or organization. The experience should be supervised and intentional, and serve to enhance a student’s academic, career, and personal development.

Externships

Short-term experience with a working professional to observe and get a preview of the day-to-day activities—typically 40-120 hours.

Job Shadowing

An educational opportunity to learn about a particular occupation or profession by listening to or talking with an experienced worker about their job or accompanying them as they perform their work.

In job shadowing, a business partners with an educational establishment to provide this experience for a student, so they can get a feel for the type of work and the environment in which it takes place. Job shadowing experiences include:

• Mentoring—An informal opportunity for a student to have scheduled meetings or exchanges with a professional in a particular field of interest to gain insight into their day-to-day work and learn how to best position themselves for a job in a respective field.
• Career/Informational Interview—An activity where a student seeks written or verbal information from an industry professional about their profession and daily activities on the job.
• Career Panels—Career Services programming in which local business partners are invited to be part of a panel and share with current students their industry and occupation experience.
• On-site Career Presenters—Career presentations that could be part of a recruitment event.
• Networking Events—Opportunities for employers and students to engage informally to learn about career opportunities in the community.

Contact Us