Internship Courses for Credit (Master's Students)
Overview of ENGR 595
Student Eligibility Requirements
To be eligible to enroll in this course you must meet all of the following:
Hours
- In the Fall/Spring semester, the internship must be a minimum of 10 hours but can not exceed 20 hours
- In the Summer, the internship can be 40 hours per week
Internship Length
To ensure a rewarding internship experience and earn academic credit for your internship course, internships must be
- At least 12 weeks during Fall and Spring semesters
- At least 10 weeks during the Summer semester
- Internships shorter than 10-12 weeks will be considered on a case-by-case basis please email engrinternshipcourses@usc.edu
International Students
- Time at USC
- Maintained full-time F-1 student status for at least one academic year (fall and spring).
- If you attended undergraduate or Master's programs at a U.S. institution and were issued a Transfer I-20 at USC, you may be eligible for CPT earlier.
- Please visit OIS drop-in advising to discuss whether you are eligible to participate in CPT. Once you receive approval, please email vasems@usc.edu with an email from OIS confirming CPT eligibility in your first semester.
- GPA
- Fall/Spring CPT: 3.0 +
- Summer CPT: 2.75+
Domestic Students
- Time at USC - no requirement
- GPA
- Fall/Spring CPT: 3.0 +
- Summer CPT: 2.75+
- If a student has a GPA of 0.00, Viterbi Student & Academic Services will process if the student is meeting satisfactory academic progress. Meet with a VGAS advisor if you have questions.
Application Process
Dates & Deadlines
|
Fall 2026 |
Spring 2027 |
Summer 2027 |
|
| Application Opens |
July 13, 2026 |
TBD: Nov 2026 |
TBD: April 2027 |
| Application Deadline |
Oct. 9, 2026 |
February 16, 2027 |
TBD: June 2027 |
|
Internship duration: (If it is your final semester) |
Aug. 24 - Dec. 16 |
Jan. 11 - May 14 |
May 17 - Aug. 10 |
| Internship duration: (If it is NOT your final semester) |
Aug. 24 - Jan. 8 |
Jan. 11 - May 14 |
May 17 - Aug. 20 |
*The Application deadline - Students must submit their Internship Course Request (ICR) Application in myViterbi by this deadline. You will not be able to submit a new application in myViterbi after this date.*
CPT & International Student Information
- International students must register for an internship course during the semester if they wish to do an internship and obtain CPT.
- Follow the internship course syllabus and contact the Viterbi Career Connections (VCC) at engrinternshipcourses@usc.edu for your questions regarding the internship course.
- If you cannot continue the internship, please contact engrinternshipcourses@usc.edu as soon as possible.
- Remove your application from any pending recruiting processes after you accept one offer.
NOTE: As part of your agreement for CPT, you agree not to accept additional job offers after submitting a CPT application for the semester. Internship offers from new employers will not be approved. If you have received an additional internship offer after submitting for CPT, the VCC staff will do their best to assist you with negotiating and retaining both internships. We also encourage you to visit the Job & Internship Tool Kit for Evaluating & Negotiating Offers or schedule an appointment with a career advisor on Handshake for tips on negotiating a start date for next semester with the second employer. Successful completion of the course is required to be considered for future CPT authorizations. If a student receives a No Credit (NC), they will be ineligible for future CPT.
Internship Hours and Location
If it's your final semester, you can work full-time if your course enrollment is no more than 4 credits (not including CPT credit). 10-20 hours per week is considered part-time and 21-40 per week is considered full-time.
If it's NOT your final semester, you can only work part-time with full-time course enrollment
**Students cannot take academic difficulty RCL with CPT simultaneously.
All International Students must adhere to In-Person Learning Requirements
Please review the In-Person Learning Requirements for Viterbi Students Participating in CPT. Viterbi will only approve fall or spring CPT applications for out-of-area internship opportunities after students agree to the conditions identified in the memo. In addition, job offer letters for out-of-area full-time internships must state hybrid or remote to get approval. Offer letters must indicate a minimum of one remote day for out-of-the-area internships. Offer letters for out-of-area in-person internships will not be approved.