Navigating Business Administration Internships: A Comprehensive Guide

Internships are invaluable for students pursuing business administration degrees. They offer practical experience, expand professional networks, and provide opportunities to apply classroom knowledge to real-world scenarios. This article explores the requirements, benefits, and strategies for securing and maximizing business administration internships.

The Value of Internships

Internships provide you with relevant experience in your field of study or desired industry while helping you to build your professional network. You also have an opportunity to receive a wage/stipend and academic credits.

Internship opportunities for business students can foster great exploration of the field, since there are so many paths in business to consider and understand. Getting an internship in business could not be more exciting considering the sheer amount of opportunities in different businesses. Business internships provide valuable experiences, giving a real taste of what it’ll be like to work in business down the line. You’ll connect with potential mentors, learn business trade secrets, and build relationships with coworkers with a range of expertise. It’s also a plus if it’s a paid business internship!

The best business internship programs beef up resumes, provide valuable avenues to letters of recommendation, and can even turn into full-time jobs. If you consider all of these perks of a business internship and add the benefit of exploring different facets of one field, then start your business internship search now!

Finding Internship Opportunities

Handshake can help you find amazing jobs and internships and stay up-to-date on upcoming events. When searching for business internships, it’s key to use the location filters provided on Handshake. You’ll be able to pinpoint business internships exactly where you want to intern just by selecting the city you want in the search bar. Easy business internships in your preferred city are just a search away.

Read also: Business Letter Writing

You can even research possible job roles that you might want to explore during your business internship. Handshake also makes it easy to learn about roles in business simply by using the job role search bar. And if you want to take your research one step further, you can even research top employers in the business field on Handshake. Even companies that don’t seem to have a main focus in business are looking for bright interns to help them develop.

Academic Credit and Internship Programs

Internship participation and academic credit are not mandatory for CSULB College of Business students. However, some employers do require academic credit as a condition of an internship and CBA-493 can fulfill this requirement. Other students may choose to take CBA-493 as an elective.

CBA-493 is a variable one to three unit, pass/fail course. Domestic students must register for the full three units. International students may register for one unit if they desire, but an international student planning to petition to substitute CBA-493 for a Marketing or IB elective must register for the full three units. CBA-493 is offered fall and spring. If a student begins an internship after registration is closed, the student may request permission from the course instructor to take the course in the next available session.

Business Internship (1-3). Eligible students must have a minimum 2.0 GPA and a concurrent or recent internship. The course meets during the term and attendance is required. Homework is assigned and must be satisfactorily completed to pass the course.

Requirements for International Students

International students should coordinate with Center for International Education and Global Engagement (CIE) in Brotman Hall regarding Curricular Practical Training (CPT) requirements and internship participation eligibility. Once an internship offer has been secured, international students must provide the CBA-493 course instructor with the completed Curricular Practical Training (CPT) packet obtained through CIE and a copy of the internship offer letter on the company’s letterhead, with the employer’s signature.

Internship Roles and Responsibilities

Internships in business can fall under any of the following roles. Internships are meant to guide you towards your true desired career path.

Marketing Manager: Marketing managers oversee the promotional efforts of a company through marketing and advertising campaigns. They manage the research, planning, strategy, and execution of the company's marketing initiatives, which ultimately aim to increase sales or brand awareness.
Business Analysts: Business analysts and management consultants provide organizations with valuable strategic insights and strategies on how to ensure prime efficiency in the workplace and improve weaker areas of their business. They often possess a business degree and have extensive knowledge on business practices and organizational behavior.
Accountant: Accountants record and analyze data from financial records. After assessing a person or company's accounts, accountants advise their client on the best way to organize and manage their funds.
Public Relations Managers: Public relations managers and specialists communicate with journalists and media outlets to promote news and create a specific public image for an individual, group, or organization. Their responsibilities may include managing social media accounts, writing press releases, and planning press events.
Project Manager: Project managers (PMs) oversee the planning and execution of given projects for a company or client by managing a team of workers, scheduling deadlines, and acting as the point of contact for any outsourced resources.
Data Analyst: Data analysts collect and compile data to produce useful insights for a given project, client, or organization.

Skills to Highlight on Your Resume

When putting together your resume, make sure to have all your skills, courses, and accomplishments laid out for employers to view. Also having your preferred job role and location on your Handshake profile is a great way to signal your interest to potential recruiters.

For business interns, some great skills to list would be specific technical skills, time management, ability to follow through and execute, and ability to contribute and collaborate in a team setting.

Compensation for Business Interns

Yes, you can find paid business internships on Handshake by using the search filters! The average annual pay for full time business jobs range from $38,000 to $70,000. The average annual pay for full time jobs in business range from $38,000 to $70,000.

Kaiser Permanente Internship Example

2026 Summer Intern

Location: This internship role is scheduled to be flexible. Please be prepared to spend part of your time working remotely and part of your time working from a Kaiser Permanente regional office.
Finalists MUST reside in one of the following states to be eligible for employment with Kaiser Permanente: CA, OR, WA, HI, CO, GA, MD, VA, CT, DC, or IL.
Department Details: This team drives activities to achieve sustainable growth and improve sales effectiveness. These activities involve sales process redesign, sales pipeline structure, predictive analytics among other teams. Our objective is to enable better targeting, reduce friction in the sales cycle, and help our teams secure more high-quality opportunities.
Internship Projects: The business intern will support cross functional sales program, coordination of activities, oversight of integrated project plan, tracking cross teams deliverables. The IT intern or similar intern will analyze sales data, identify trends and opportunities, provide recommendations that will inform decision making process to improve sales.
Target Majors: Business Administration; Program Management, Economics
Target Skillset: Strong organizational skills, detail oriented and technology oriented Strong communication, cross functional collaboration, driven and curious personality.
Job Summary: Lay the groundwork for a dynamic future with an industry leader. At Kaiser Permanente, you'll forge lasting relationships with colleagues across the organization while enjoying the opportunity to grow your experience and hone your expertise on assignments that have real impact. Our interns have worked on everything from analyzing financial software and developing new marketing strategies, to designing mobile apps and helping clinicians improve care delivery.
Basic Qualifications: Experience N/A Education Pursuing a bachelor's degree or have graduated from an accredited university within the last year. High School Diploma or General Education Development (GED) required.

Maximizing Your Internship Experience

Tips for your resume and profilesBefore you get started on sending out applications, make sure that you have your resume up to date and have fully filled out all your Handshake profile details. With a complete profile, an impressive business internship is more attainable than ever. Recruiters are much more likely to message a student with a complete profile that says you want to work in business than an unfinished one.

Tips for your internship interviewWhen you do land your first interview, be it a virtual interview or in person, make sure to come prepared and dressed to impress. Review your resume and cover letter to make sure you have specific examples of your experience to share, from clubs or coursework. You can even schedule a mock interview with your university’s career center or, if you’re tight on time, ask a trusted friend to grill you on some common interview questions.

Tips for networking at your business internshipOnce you’ve landed an internship in business and settled into the flow of day-to-day life at the office, start chatting with your coworkers. Whether they’re industry professionals or fellow interns, it’s important to treat them with equal respect. You never know what insights they could lend, or who could be a valuable connection down the line, five or ten years from now. Don’t be afraid to ask your new colleagues out for quick coffee chats, or request 15-minute informational interviews about their career trajectory.

Looking for specific advice before your internship begins? Or are you hungry for further information even after your internship is over? A good way to delve even deeper into your career path growth is to attend a virtual event or two. Not only will you be learning more about your own career, but there will also be chances to network with employers, industry specialists, and other students sharing different perspectives.

tags: #business #administration #internships #requirements