International Internship, Research and Practicum Experiences

Your experience abroad may be credit bearing or noncredit bearing, and may include academic components such as

  • Internship
  • Research
  • Field work
  • Practicum
  • Service-learning

Even though this experience may not be considered a traditional "education abroad" program, its affiliation with Missouri State defines it as an international academic experience. Thus, it must follow Education Abroad protocol to remain in compliance with state laws, federal regulations, university standards of good practice, and university policy.

Receiving MSU Course Credit

All students are advised to follow the regular process presented in the “6 Steps to Education Abroad.” However, for students who are completing an internship or service-learning experience that is NOT affiliated with a different university (meaning that it will not be transferred in through a separate university, and that credit will be given by MSU), please follow the steps below to explore the possibility of receiving credit through MSU for the experience. If you are unsure how your credit is transferred from your internship/service-learning experience, reach out to your program provider to find out.

  1. Meet with your department head to discuss the idea. You would need to clarify which internship/service-learning program you are wanting to attend, which course(s) it could count for, and which faculty member would oversee the internship.
    1. The department head has the authority to approve or deny the request.
    2. Students must abide by the internship requirements and policies of their department and college.
      1. Note that most departments either deem 40 or 48 hours of internship work as (1) credit hour.
    3. If students are not approved for a desired class within their major, they may choose to request to transfer it as IDS 297 or GEN 000. This can be done directly through Education Abroad. To request to receive credit for your internship in this way, please contact Education Abroad.
  2. Connect with your faculty member. This will be a professor who will assign coursework to go alongside your internship. Students may be required to locate a faculty member on their own and then report back to the department head, or the department head might make the connection for the student.
  3. Confirm your classes with Education Abroad. Some department heads may build the class code, however, our office will be happy to build it for you/your department head – just let us know the course code.
  4. Proceed to Follow the 6 Steps to Education Abroad. This guide walks you through visas, health and safety, financial aid, and more!