For Employers: Would you like a chance to engage the energy and talent of outstanding UCF students on important strategic challenges or special projects that would promote your company’s success?  Then consider hiring an Enterprising Intern through UCF’s Experiential Learning office.  Our interns bring excellent training, research skills, and creativity that can expand your capacity to establish and improve your business.  Experiential Learning pre-screens students based on your preferred criteria and then sends you resumes of candidates who are interested, qualified, and in good academic standing.  Best of all, these services are offered to you for free.

UCF’s Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation has partnered with UCF’s award-winning Experiential Learning office to create the Enterprising Interns Program.  This program seeks to connect small businesses, such as those who are clients of small business support agencies residing in the Disney Entrepreneur Center (e.g., UCF Small Business Development Center, UCF Technology Incubator) with UCF students from all academic disciplines.  Opportunities exist to work with both undergraduate and graduate students, and may focus on either business or technical challenges.

We encourage you to learn more about engaging an Enterprising Intern by exploring the information below.

What are the benefits to me as an employer?
How does an internship work?
How do I get started?

What are the benefits to me as an employer?

• Provides temporary help necessary to execute special projects, pursue strategic changes, and enhance operations
• Offers a fresh, well-informed perspective that may improve your company’s initiatives
• Lowers costs associated with employing college-trained talent
• Provides an opportunity to “test drive” potential employees you may choose to hire after graduation

How does an internship work?

UCF’s Experiential Learning office offers internship and co-op experiences to you and our students.  Enterprising Interns work for one semester to gain academic major or career-related experience in an entrepreneurial environment.  It is possible to continue a student’s engagement by establishing a co-op experience, a series of progressively responsible internships in which you and a student commit to longer term goals that improve a student’s academic preparation.  As an employer, we ask that you provide students with a supervised, meaningful, professional work experience (more than clerical or physical labor tasks) so that students have the opportunity to practice the skills they learn in the classroom.  Pay is strongly encouraged, as most organizations who offer a reasonable wage find that turnover is reduced, work output is increased, and there is a greater likelihood that students will accept a full-time job offer from you upon graduation.  However, if the experiences are strong enough and provide excellent experience in entrepreneurship, students may accept unpaid positions.  Once each semester, we will ask you to evaluate each intern in an online survey.  

To review responses to frequently asked questions visit the Experiential Learning page.

How do I get started?

• Please visit our website http://www.explearning.ucf.edu/?go=employers-post and complete the job posting form.
• Print, sign, and fax the Employer Agreement to 407-823-1001. 
• Within 2 business days, you may be contacted by an Experiential Learning faculty member if clarification is needed.  The faculty member can also discuss the opportunity with you and answer any questions you may have at that time. 
• The faculty member will advertise the position to students in all related majors and send you resumes of interested and qualified students. 
• Once you begin receiving resumes, you may call the students directly to set up interviews and hire whomever you choose. 
• Once you select a candidate, please contact our office to let us know so the student can be registered in the appropriate Experiential Learning course for credit or non-credit.

The Experiential Learning office has many students who are searching for a chance to learn from experienced entrepreneurs.  If you are willing to help them take their learning to the next level, please do not hesitate to contact Experiential Learning at 407-823-2667 with any questions.