Learning Agreement

Cooperative Education, sometimes referred to as Internships, Practicums, or Field Experience, allows students to earn elective credits and gain valuable work experience in paid or unpaid positions related to their academic programs. To qualify, students must be matriculated (formally admitted to KSC) undergraduates who have earned at least 24 credits with a minimum 2.0 cumulative grade point average. Students must also meet any additional requirements established by academic departments.

Application for most positions will require a professional quality resume. Resume assistance, through individual resume critiques, is available in Academic & Career Advising. See the handout entitled Co-op/Internship Resumes to get started. Ask a faculty member in your field to review your resume as well.

Students are responsible for recruiting a faculty sponsor from the appropriate department. It is very important that the student establish a solid working relationship with the faculty member before finding a position. Co-op sponsors must be full-time faculty members but do not need to be the student's advisor. The number of students each faculty member can supervise per semester is limited, so it is important to get a commitment from a faculty sponsor as early as possible.

Co-op/Internship opportunities will be posted in the individual departments. Academic & Career Advising also compiles potential openings, and students may locate or develop Cooperative Education positions themselves. Students submit their resumes directly to the employers. Employers then select and contact the students they want to interview (either by phone or in person); from those interviews, employers choose which students they want to hire.

When a student is hired for a Cooperative Education position, a Learning Agreement is developed in consultation with the faculty sponsor and the employer. This agreement specifies all expectations/requirements for the position from both the employer and the faculty sponsor. The Learning Agreement must be signed by the student, the employer and the faculty sponsor, then taken to the Registrar's Office before the Cooperative Education experience begins.

Note: not all departments offer Cooperative Education credits; check the Courses of Instruction section of the KSC Catalog by department for course numbers 294 (Cooperative Education) and 494 (Advanced Cooperative Education).

Cooperative Education positions must be new learning experiences for the students and must last a minimum of 10 hours per week for at least 12 weeks within an academic semester. Students can earn 1-3 credits for part-time experiences (less than 30 hours per week) or 4-6 credits for full-time experiences (full-time status as determined by the employer). A maximum of six credits can be earned per semester, including summer; Cooperative Education is repeatable for a total of 12 credits.

Because Cooperative Education is meant to be a learning experience, the student's on-site supervisor must be a professional in the specific field who is willing to mentor the student throughout the experience. Cooperative Education students should not serve as consultants in situations where they are the experts and no one on-site is more knowledgeable in the field.

Students may undertake Cooperative Education experiences in the fall, spring, or summer semesters. Cooperative Education credits are paid for in the same manner and at the same rate as other courses. (Summer credits are registered through the Continuing Education Office. No bill will be sent for summer courses; payment plans are available through the Bursar's Office.) Students who are involved in full-time Cooperative Education experiences during the academic year are considered full-time students by the college even though they earn and pay for only six credits for their co-op.

It is important to note that once students are registered, they may not drop or withdraw from a Cooperative Education course. Grading is pass/fail and is assigned by the faculty sponsor based on satisfactory completion of all listed requirements on the Learning Agreement within the specified time period.

Cooperative Education is NOT:
Credit granted for an existing job - it must be a new learning experience.
Retroactive - credits cannot be granted for past experience, even if related.
Possible during Winter Break - the experience must last at least 12 weeks.

Please note: Mandatory drug testing is a requirement of many Cooperative Education/Internships positions.

Grading System
Grades at Keene State College are recorded as A (4.0), AB (3.5), B (3.0), BC (2.5), C (2.0), CD (1.5), D (1.0), and F (0.0). These courses are graded Pass/Fail (P/F):