The internship program is designed to enrich graduate studies and provide GSE students with opportunities to better connect their academic learning to real-world experience in the education sector. We strongly encourage students to only participate in internships that directly advance their career goals in the field of education.
Internships are a valuable resource to explore a new career area of interest. An internship should be mutually beneficial; that is, the student will bring new perspectives and value to the organization while the internship adds value to student’s personal, academic, and professional pursuits. Students can also develop diverse professional relationships through participating in an internship. Past students consistently cite the following reasons for participating in internships:
On average 60% of Stanford GSE MA students complete at least one internship. Whether an internship is required, strongly encouraged, or not part of the graduate experience depends on the MA program. To find more information about MA programs that do have internship-specific requirements, see below:
There are two main ways that students find internship opportunities.
The first (our favorite!) is when students find an internship opportunity from a posting in our EdCareers Database. To search for an internship, log on to the EdCareers Database, click on "All Jobs/Internships”, and use the advanced search to search by “Position Type: Internship (Student Position)”.
Internship resources are available to you here and in the Document Library on the EdCareers Database.
The second is when the student and organization connect with each other directly and formulate an internship that meets the goals of both parties.
Students wishing to pursue an internship are required to submit an Internship Agreement via the EdCareers Database for each quarter they are interning. The Internship Agreement is essentially a “contract” between the student and manager. It’s an essential part of the process to ensure that the internship matches professional aspirations, and that clear goals are set and monitored from the beginning of each quarter. Upon logging in, click on “My Internships” in the right sidebar menu, then click on “add new” to fill out the internship agreement. There are two components to the Internship Agreement that must be completed by the deadline specified below:
Students who (with their managers) decide to continue an internship at the same organization for an additional quarter are required to submit a new quarterly internship agreement with updated tasks and goals.
Internships can be 3-10 hours per week (or 30-100 hours per quarter) during the 10-week quarter (Autumn, Winter, Spring). Internships exceeding 10 hours per week (or 100 per quarter) are not permitted, and students are only allowed to do one internship per quarter. Students interested in completing an internship during the Summer quarter must consult with the EdCareers Associate Director to determine the appropriate number of hours.
Students may earn one unit of credit for a paid or unpaid internship. This unit of credit reflects work done specifically for the course, and not for the work being done in the internship. LDT students should enroll in EDUC 215, POLS students should enroll in EDUC 210, and MA/MBA students should enroll in EDUC 380. MA/MBA students must arrange and gain approval for their work and deliverables (beyond work done for the internship itself) with their sponsoring faculty member before enrolling in EDUC 380. Students in other programs should consult with EdCareers about the appropriate course in which to enroll, if there is one. Enrollment must be in the same quarter the student is completing the internship.
Students completing an unpaid internship have an option to earn additional units, up to three units total. Students working an average of 3-5 uncompensated hours per week (30-59 over a 10-week quarter) may earn a total of two units; students working an average of 6-10 uncompensated hours per week (60-100 over a 10-week quarter) may earn a total of three units. Students interested in completing an internship during the Summer quarter must consult with the EdCareers Associate Director to determine the appropriate number of units, if applicable.
We encourage all students to think of the internship as a career position. To increase the likelihood that students will achieve their internship goals, we encourage students to be proactive and evaluate the internship experience by asking these questions:
Students should remember that the value of the internship depends on how well it aligns with their professional goals and aspirations.
The internship manager’s role is two-fold: MENTOR and INTERNSHIP MANAGER. Correspondingly, this makes the student’s role two-fold: MENTEE and INTERN.
We’ve found that successful MENTEES:
Likewise, successful INTERNS demonstrates outstanding performance in these areas:
The GSE Student Affairs Fellows Program is designed for students interested in exploring opportunities in higher education administration, specifically in student affairs. Students participating in a GSE Student Affairs Fellows Program internship at Stanford will have the opportunity to attend a variety of departmental meetings and events with key university administrators including:
Student Affairs Fellows Program opportunities are listed in the Stanford EdCareers Database and will have “EdCareers/Student Affairs Fellows Program” in the internship title.
We encourage all GSE students to pursue an internship in order to build skills, make connections, and gain exposure to organizations in the education industry. International students should always consult with Bechtel International Center to ensure that an internship opportunity (paid or unpaid) does not violate any rules related to visas and employment authorizations.
For further information and resources, please see Stanford’s Bechtel International Center’s website.
If there are any questions after reviewing the information on this page, or if anything for the internship has changed after the Internship Agreement has been submitted, please contact Jennifer Mason, Associate Director of EdCareers, at jmason@stanford.edu.
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