Co-ops & Internships

Co-ops and internships provide university students with an opportunity to apply their knowledge working in a real engineering environment. Often these work experiences lead to employment after college — and always give the student an opportunity to see what it is like to work with professional engineers solving problems. Co-op programs vary widely from school to school. Some schools have comprehensive programs that cover all fields of engineering, and involve dozens of businesses. Some schools even require students to participate in a co-op prior to graduation.

TryEngineering's university search engine will indicate whether a school has this type of comprehensive program available for undergraduates. However, other schools may have smaller, individual field co-op programs, or even just one professor who places students in on or two local businesses. So, if participating in a co-op is important to you, be sure to ask a university's admissions office for more details about their co-op program. Find out how long it has been in existence, how many companies or organizations participate each year, what percentage of students are placed annually, and ask to speak to a student or two about how the co-op program enhanced their educational experience.