Important Update
As of Autumn 2025, the GWSS internship requirement (GWSS 497) is being retired. Students graduating in Autumn 2025 or later will not be required to complete an internship. GWSS will not be offering GWSS 497 A seminar classes during the 2025-26 academic year.
If you have any questions, please contact the GWSS advisor at gwssadvs@uw.edu.
What is an Internship?
An internship is a supplemental educational opportunity to explore career options and develop skills related to the GWSS undergraduate major in a work or work-related setting. All internships should provide opportunities to apply classroom knowledge in a professional environment, encourage students to develop and refine skills that are transferable to a variety of work settings, include a position description with relevant and clearly defined learning objectives, and provide feedback from a professional with expertise in that field.
In the course of investigating internships and pursuing opportunities, students should consider what their individual learning goals are, and how the internship activities they are exploring would assist them in meeting those goals.
Students may receive GWSS 497 B credit for hours worked at their internship site, on an independent study basis. Please contact the GWSS undergraduate advisor for more information.
How to Arrange for an Internship
There are many ways to locate organizations that offer internships. You can search online (idealist.org, United Way King Co, etc.), you can search Handshake (formerly Husky Jobs), you can use the list of internship sites other GWSS students have interned with for ideas, or you can research and contact organizations you are interested in. An invaluable resource is the Career and Internship Center right here on the UW Seattle Campus. With a host of resources developed with students like yourself in mind such as workshops, handouts, and videos, the Career and Internship Center has the tools you that can help get you where you want to land. The Career and Internship Center is a great place to start!
International Students
International students must secure CPT authorization from ISS before beginning an internship. It can take three weeks (minimum) for ISS to review and process CPT applications, so it’s best to start the process as soon as possible.