WOU Internship Network (WIN)
Applications will open March 1, 2027.
What is WIN?
The WOU Internship Network – WIN- connects students with hands-on, meaningful work experiences that bridge the classroom and the workplace. Through WIN, students gain the opportunity to explore potential career paths, apply the knowledge and skills they’ve developed in their coursework, and build practical, real-world experience that prepares them for life after graduation.
Beyond benefiting students, WIN partners with local organizations and agencies to support their growth and success — helping them access motivated, emerging talent while contributing to a stronger, more diverse workforce across the community.
The next round of internships will take place summer 2027.
What are the Benefits of Participating in WIN?
- Get a realistic view of the workplace and hands-on experience
- Integrate academic learning with practical skills
- Network with professionals in their chosen field
- Explore career paths and develop transferable skills
Eligibility to Participate
- Enrollment: Students must be enrolled at Western Oregon University
- Academic Standing: Students must be in good academic standing
- Judicial Standing: Students must be in good judicial standing
How can faculty and staff get involved?
WIN is contiuosuly seeking partnerhsips that will benefit students. If you have contacts you think would be a great to explore, please send them our way! We are also open to suggestions regarding businesses or agencies you would like to see a part of the program.
Feel free to contact Erin Lieuallen, Assistant Director, Experiential Learning Coordinator
We’re growing… and we want you to be a part of it!
The WOU Internship Network – WIN- connects students with paid hands-on, meaningful work experiences that bridge the classroom and the workplace. Through WIN, students gain the opportunity to explore potential career paths, apply the knowledge and skills they’ve developed in their coursework, and build practical, real-world experience that prepares them for life after graduation.
Beyond benefiting students, WIN partners with local organizations and agencies to support their growth and success — helping them access motivated, emerging talent while contributing to a stronger, more diverse workforce across the community.
The next round of internships will take place summer 2027.
Providing an internship is a significant time and financial investment for any organization, so we want to work with you to build a internship that meets your needs as well as those of our students.
Please reach out to Erin Lieuallen at lieuallene@mail.wou.edu to explore your options.
Need more Information?
Quick Employer Guide to Internships
Ready to build an Internship?
Please fill out this WIN Interest Form
Employer Benefits
- Gain short-term support to increase team productivity
- Attract enthusiastic, innovative talent
- Evaluate potential future employees and build a talent pipeline
- Increase diversity and access students with specialized skills
- Boost agency visibility on college campuses
- Provide leadership opportunities for employees as mentors and supervisors
- Free up full-time staff for high-level tasks
- Strengthen ties with local colleges/universities
- Contribute to local workforce development and youth empowerment
Employer Responsibilities
To ensure a high-impact, meaningful experience, we ask host agencies to:
- Provide compensation to the intern, ideally hiring as an employee and providing workers’ compensation insurance. If this is not feasible, we will work with you to develop an alternate solution.
- Assign a supervisor and a dedicated mentor to support the intern
- Provide real, meaningful work assignments
- Develop and implement orientation for the intern, mentor, and supervisor
- Offer networking opportunities and facilitate connections across the organization
- Train supervisors and mentors to set expectations and provide support
- Prepare ongoing feedback and request feedback from the intern
- Encourage leadership, initiative, and engagement
We’re growing… and we want you to be a part of it!
The WOU Internship Network – WIN- connects students with paid hands-on, meaningful work experiences that bridge the classroom and the workplace. Through WIN, students gain the opportunity to explore potential career paths, apply the knowledge and skills they’ve developed in their coursework, and build practical, real-world experience that prepares them for life after graduation.
Beyond benefiting students, WIN partners with local organizations and agencies to support their growth and success — helping them access motivated, emerging talent while contributing to a stronger, more diverse workforce across the community.
The next round of internships will take place summer 2027.
Providing an internship is a significant time and financial investment for any organization, so we want to work with you to build a internship that meets your needs as well as those of our students.
Please reach out to Erin Lieuallen at lieuallene@mail.wou.edu to explore your options.
Need more Information?
Quick Employer Guide to Internships
Ready to build an Internship?
Please fill out this WIN Interest Form
Employer Benefits
- Gain short-term support to increase team productivity
- Attract enthusiastic, innovative talent
- Evaluate potential future employees and build a talent pipeline
- Increase diversity and access students with specialized skills
- Boost agency visibility on college campuses
- Provide leadership opportunities for employees as mentors and supervisors
- Free up full-time staff for high-level tasks
- Strengthen ties with local colleges/universities
- Contribute to local workforce development and youth empowerment
Employer Responsibilities
To ensure a high-impact, meaningful experience, we ask host agencies to:
- Provide compensation to the intern, ideally hiring as an employee and providing workers’ compensation insurance. If this is not feasible, we will work with you to develop an alternate solution.
- Assign a supervisor and a dedicated mentor to support the intern
- Provide real, meaningful work assignments
- Develop and implement orientation for the intern, mentor, and supervisor
- Offer networking opportunities and facilitate connections across the organization
- Train supervisors and mentors to set expectations and provide support
- Prepare ongoing feedback and request feedback from the intern
- Encourage leadership, initiative, and engagement
WIN TIMELINES
Student Timeline
- March 1: Student applications open
- March 29: Student applications close
- March 29 – April 5: 1st Round of interviews
- April 16 – 29: 2nd Round of interviews
- May 7: Deadline for chosen students to accept or deny their offer
- May 10 – 14: Student orientations
- May 14 – August 27: Internships period (exact dates determined by employer needs)
- August 23 – September 3, 2027: Program evaluation and feedback
Employer Timeline
- July 2026 – January 2027: Employer recruitment
- February 1 – 12: Finalize employer participants
- February 8 – 19: Employer orientations
- March 1 – Student application opens
- April 7 – 14: 1st Round of interviews
- April 15: Top applicants are forwarded to employers
- April 16 – 29: 2nd Round of interviews
- May 3: Employers send their decisions to CPP
- May 7: Deadline for students to accept or deny offered positions
- May 10 – 14: Student orientations
- May 14 – August 27: Internships period (exact dates determined by employer needs)
- August 23 – September 3, 2027: Program evaluation and feedback
Available Internships
Check back in February for 2027 internships.
Past Internships
Urban Forestry Intern (2026) – Dallas OR
You will utilize TreePlotter software to take inventory of Dallas’ urban trees while supporting City Parks staff with maintaining trees by pruning, removal, watering and managing invasive species.
Minimum requirements:
- High school Diploma or GED
- College coursework in forestry, botany, or related fields
- Familiarity with native trees and plant species
- Ability to identify tree and plant species and record date using apps and tablets
- Ability to use hand tools such as clippers, saws and rakes
- Ability to work outside in various weather conditions
- Lift up to 50 lbs
Nothing becomes real until it is experienced.
It’s no secret that internships are the most effective way for students to gain work experience before graduation. In fact, studies show that 7 out of 10 internships turn into full-time jobs. Most importantly, internships are a great way for you to explore your interests, develop professional skills, and grow your professional network. Follow your interests and find your passion.
Reduce Internship Inequity
- Paid Internships: Financial barriers often prevent low-income students from accessing high-quality internships, many of which are unpaid.
- Access to Professional Networks: Not everyone has a family or friend network that easily refers them to professionals in their industries of interest. Connecting with faculty and staff creates opportunities for students to connect with professionals.
Diversity & Democracy, 13(3).Expectation
Internship vs. Part-Time Job: What’s the Difference?
What makes internships unique is the focus on student learning. This is an opportunity for you to apply skills learned in the classroom or elsewhere, that tie to your academic, career or personal goals. While you might perform some roles that are not for your learning, the goal is for you to explore and practice your professional identity under supervision and with mentoring.
An example could be a student wanting to apply their writing skills and learn professionalism by writing press releases for a department. The expectation is that the student needs some coaching and guidance and not be expected to accomplish the task perfectly on the first try. With gentle feedback, however, the final output will be professional, well written and offer a fresh, student oriented perspective. Use the goal agreement examples below to help define your own goal.
Goal Agreement Examples
Learn more about internships and WOU’s Internship Fund: wou.edu/professional-pathways/internships
Guiding Principles
Eight Principles of Good Practice, National Society for Experiential Education
Intention; Preparedness and Planning; Authenticity; Reflection; Orientation and Training; Monitoring and Continuous Improvement; Assessment and Evaluation; and Acknowledgment
Recognition
Integrating Academic and Career Development: strategies to scale experiential learning and reflection across the curriculum, Education Advisory Board, August 2016
University as Employer: Western Oregon University Community Internship Program (pg 40 – 41)
Typical Internship Components Also Exist on Campus: position within a functioning business; Reporting line to a professional with expertise in the field; Assignments target field-specific learning outcomes; Skills developed are transferable to other organizations or companies; and access to resources and facilities necessary for learning outcomes.
Clark, A. & Plummer, K. First-Generation Students: Making Internships Possible, National Association of Colleges and Employers Annual Conference, June 2016.
Diversity and Inclusion Excellence Award (finalist), National Association of Colleges and Employers, June 2016
