Welcome to the UH Cooperative Education Program

The University of Houston Cooperative Education Program (CO-OP) is an internship program that gives UH students an opportunity to receive career training with pay as they work with professionals in their major fields of study. Work experience in areas such as government, business, industry, and human services enhances the students’ academic training. This professional and educational experience is documented on the student’s official college transcript and is viewed as a valuable asset by potential employers.

CO-OP consists of competitive industry leaders and higher education institutions “cooperating” with one another to provide hands-on work experience to full-time actively enrolled students within a degree seeking program, while simultaneously receiving vital assistance from student interns to complete company projects and initiatives.

Most employers who hire CO-OP interns use the CO-OP concept as a recruiting tool. They tend to fill their new hire vacancies with graduates from their own CO-OP programs, whenever possible, since they already know the capabilities and work habits of the CO-OP interns they have trained. CO-OP positions are offered on a part-time, parallel basis (20 hours or less weekly) or a full-time, alternating basis (21-40 hours weekly). UH CO-OP is not offered to recent UH graduates or alumni.

UH students at all levels are eligible to apply after completing a minimum of two semesters of college in the United States, including currently enrolled post-baccalaureate, DACA, F-1 international, and graduate students. Students must be in good academic standing within their college, enrolled full-time for the long semester (fall or spring) prior to participating in CO-OP, and enrolled full-time the semester after participating in the CO-OP program (if the student is not graduating). CO-OP positions are available in most UH college disciplines, especially engineering, business, and natural science and mathematics.

UHin4 Students: While participation in UH CO-OP is an exception to the continuous enrollment requirement, it does not exempt you from the four-year graduation requirement. It is your responsibility to discuss with your academic advisor how accepting this CO-OP opportunity will impact your UHin4 and Fixed Tuition eligibility.

For students:

• Become more valuable to an employer and more marketable during your job search.
• Earn money from your employer while gaining hands on experience.
• Make academic work more meaningful through practical application of classroom principles. Many employers have lab facilities and equipment that may not be available on campus.
• Explore career choices and be professionally exposed to diverse opportunities within a specific field of study before graduation.
• Collaborate and network with professionals who have many years of experience in your major field of study.
• Retain actively enrolled status while working as a CO-OP intern.
• Have CO-OP officially recognized on your academic transcripts.

For employers:

• Use CO-OP as a recruiting tool. Bring qualified and innovative interns on for short and long-term projects.

Yes, there is a $215 non-refundable program fee charged each semester a student receives education/training as a UH CO-OP intern, and the fee is posted directly to the student’s PeopleSoft account. Some employers reimburse the student for the fee and it is up to the student to discuss with the employer regarding CO-OP fee reimbursement. If the employer agrees to reimburse the student, the student should contact the CO-OP office about the fee reimbursement procedure once they have paid the fee in PeopleSoft.

CO-OP is graded on a S/U (satisfactory/unsatisfactory) grading scale for each semester of CO-OP a student completes. Grades are determined by the completion of the internship and on-time submission of the Work Report. Failure to complete either may result in a grade of ‘U’. Instructions and deadlines for each semester’s Work Report is provided in Blackboard upon enrolment of each semester for each course.

The CO-OP Work Report must be completed to verify the work is educational training in a particular field of study. The Work Report contains an employer evaluation form which must be completed and signed before the student can submit the Work Report. It is strongly encouraged that students download and review of the Work Report with their employer within the first week of their internship.

No. Full-time rotational work experience (21+ hours or more per week) during fall or spring cannot be completed back to back. To maintain full-time actively enrolled status CO-OP interns must be on one semester and off the next semester for full-time work experience within the UH Cooperative Education Program.

Employers should reach out to ecareers [at] central.uh.edu.