Rutgers Internship and Co-Op Course (RICC)

The Rutgers Internship and Co-Op Course (RICC) is a 3 or 6 credit general elective course that students can take concurrently with an internship or co-op experience in order to earn academic credit for it. The course is housed in Canvas and is an asynchronous course with 3 virtual synchronous meetings throughout the semester. Students must earn a Pass grade by earning at least 70 points on Assignments and by submitting all required evaluations & documentation.

• Must secure an internship before applying to the course
• Jan-May and/or Sept-Dec : Internship must last for a minimum of 120 hours over a minimum of 10 weeks
• Jun-Aug : Internship must last for a minimum of 120 hours over a minimum of 6 weeks
• Co-Op must be a 30+ hour a week role for a minimum of 20 weeks during one academic semester (Jan-June or July-Dec)
• Rutgers University-New Brunswick undergraduate student
• 2.5 +GPA
• 30+ credits by course start
• Transfers must have completed 12 credits at RUNB before course start. Appeals can be sent to internships@echo.rutgers.edu
• Students should also check “What internships are eligible for this course?” to see what other criteria must be met for approval.

• Summer Applications open around Spring Break and close in mid-June.
• Fall applications open in April and close in early September.
• Spring applications open in November and close in January
• The electronic application consists of a portion that you fill out, and then an email is sent to your supervisor for them to fill out regarding the role itself. Your supervisor should fill this out and submit it. Once the supervisor portion is submitted, you'll receive their response, your application is considered complete and review-ready!
• Applications can take anywhere from 2 to 7 business days to review, depending on what information is needed. Keep an eye out in your email for any questions or clarifications requested.
• If approved, you will receive an email from internships@echo.rutgers.edu detailing instructions on how to register for the course in WebReg or for further next steps.

Usually, most opportunities will meet the requirements of the course.  We look to allow for a learning focused role, complete with mentorship, feedback and the ability to ask questions. The focus should be this as a professional development experience- not just you doing tasks. Click here for a list of items that we will typically ‘red-flag’ in an application. Feel free to email internships@echo.rutgers.edu for questions and clarification.

If you are working at an organization that also employs a family member, please note that you will need to be supervised by a different, eligible individual at the organization.

• For the purpose of earning credit through the Rutgers Internship and Co-Op Course, an internship must meet the following definition:
  • The intern is working at least 120 hours over a minimum of 10 weeks (6 in the summer) during the semester that they are taking the course.
    • Semesters are defined as the following:
      • January through May = Spring
      • June through August = Summer
      • September through December = Fall
    • This means that if this minimum is met during a timeframe that does not match with a traditional semester (ex: a position that goes from November through February), it will not be eligible for internship credit.
  • If the intern is working at least 29+ hours a week, they must be financially compensated at no less than state minimum wage.
  • There must be at least 5 duties/tasks/responsibilities that the intern is working on, and no more than one of them can be unrelated to NACE Career Core Competency building.
  • There must be at least four NACE career core competencies that the intern will be actively developing in this internship.
  • The supervisor must be a paid, full-time employee of the organization that is employing the intern.
  • The supervisor must meet one of the following: has a Bachelor’s Degree or higher and at least two years of professional, full-time experience, an Associate’s Degree and at least five years of professional, full-time experience, at least seven years of professional full-time experience, or a US Armed Services veteran.
  •  The supervisor must be able to support and supervise the intern, providing regular feedback and meeting with the intern at least once a week.
  •  Interns in hybrid/in person positions cannot be on premises without at least two other individuals (for a total of three), one of them being a full-time employee, present.
  • The position must be learning focused, with objectives and goals being central to their experience.
    • This is where the distinction between an internship, a part time job and a volunteer opportunity come in – the learning aspect is not inherently built into experiences that are not internships.
  • Visit careers.rutgers.edu/ricc to find more information about RICC and what qualifies/does not qualify on our website.

You sure can! You don’t have to earn credit for your internships- but if you choose to take a course, it will offer you an advocate in terms of professional development, academic support, and career development preparation for your next role!

YES. Employers cannot issue academic credit- only an academic program can. So- if your employer says that you can earn credit for the internship, that means that they are willing to do the required documentation to help you pass the course. You must take/enroll in a course to earn academic credit- just like any other class at Rutgers.

RICC is an asynchronous Canvas course that must be completed just like any other. The course does not have any lectures or additional content. Rather – it is comprised of tailored, internship and learning specific assignments throughout the semester. Students must earn 70 out of 100 points on assignments to be eligible to pass the course. In addition to assignments, there are several required documents that students must have filled out and submit. These include midterm and end of semester evaluations from their supervisor, among others. This course also has two synchronous meetings that are anywhere from 15-60 minutes long. Students must submit all required documentation and earn at least 70 points through assignments in order to pass the course and earn the credit. The course is pass/no credit and does not impact GPA. Email internships@echo.rutgers.edu if you’d like to see an example syllabus.

No. Students are responsible for finding their own opportunities prior to applying for the course. However, our office is happy to assist with this! You can schedule an appointment with one of our advisors, or search on Rutgers Handshake for on and off-campus internship and job opportunities.

The 3 credit Internship course runs 3x a year:

• Spring class runs from approx. late January through mid-May.
  • Students apply between November and January
  • Students must register by the end of January.
• Summer class runs from approx. late June through mid-August.
  • Students apply between March and June
  • Students must register by the end of June.
• Fall class runs from approx. mid-September through mid-December.
  • Students apply between April and September
  • Students must register by mid-September.

The 6 credit Co-Op Course runs 2x a year:

• Spring class runs from approx. late January through mid-May
  • Students must register by the end of January
  • Students must work (paid) 30+ hours a week for a minimum of 17 weeks between January through May to qualify for the 6-credit version of the course.
• Fall class runs from approx. mid-September through late December
  • Students must register by the middle of September.
  • Students must work (paid) 30+ hours a week for a minimum of 17 weeks between September and December to qualify for the 6-credit version. 

Students can take RICC no more than two times in any combination of 3 or 6 credits. For a repeating experience, students can only retake RICC if the experience changes significantly.

Students apply to RICC after they have secured their internship position but before the end of Registration for that semester. Students cannot register mid-semester for an internship course.

• Student secures internship and discusses with supervisor to ensure that the supervisor can support the student’s course needs.
• Students determine if they are eligible to take RICC.
  • New Brunswick undergraduate full time student (Only exception is for students who needs less than 15 credits to graduate- they do not have to be full time)
  • 2.5 GPA minimum
  • For Transfer Students completed at least 1 semester at Rutgers
  • Students must have at least 30 credits by the start of the semester that they are taking RICC during.
• Student applies on careers.rutgers.edu/ricc
• The application includes a student portion and a portion that goes directly to the supervisor to fill out.
• Once all portions of the application are complete, the RICC team reviews the student and the experience for eligibility.
• If the application is approved, the student is sent a special permission number to register for the course. They must register for the course in order to be enrolled in it/earn the credit.
• RICC is a pass/no credit course, with embedded assignments and supervisor evaluations.
• Be sure that you are applying to take the course DURING the semester that you are interning. You must be registered for the course during regular semester add/drop time periods. Look at “How Do I Apply?” for more information.

RICC is the most available option for undergraduate students to earn internship credit. Students may have other options through their school, department or major. Consult with an academic advisor to see what options are available.

Please find more information about RICC and what qualifies/does not qualify on our website: careers.rutgers.edu/ricc under the ‘What internships are eligible for this course?” link