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Internships & Research

Internships

Students at a business function

Internships allow you to apply academic knowledge in real-world business contexts. Most students in the Stead Department of Business Administration and Economics complete an internship during their time at Coe. 

Located in the heart of a midsized Midwestern city, Coe has forged connections with local businesses to provide unique practical internship experiences, as well as career opportunities after graduation. The internship program has been invaluable to our accounting students in gaining experience that has led to full-time employment or improved marketability in seeking employment upon graduation. 

Internships are available in a range of industries at a wide variety of local companies ranging in size (from small to large) and business scope (from domestic to international), including AEGON USA, Cedar Rapids Freedom Festival, Clifton Gunderson LLP, GreatAmerica Leasing, Merrill Lynch, Red Cross, Rockwell-Collins, St. Luke’s Hospital and Van Meter Industrial. Internships also are available in many nonprofit organizations in the Cedar Rapids area.

Internships typically are completed during your junior or senior year and can be done during the fall or spring terms, May Term or summer break. Although many students choose to complete internships with local Cedar Rapids organizations, you may complete qualified internships anywhere, including your hometown during May Term or summer break, or as part of an off-campus experience such as the Chicago Business, Entrepreneurship and Society Program, New York Term or Washington D.C. Term.

To learn more about internship opportunities at Coe, visit the Coe College Center for Creativity and Careers. To access a list of local Chamber of Commerce member organizations, visit the Cedar Rapids Chamber of Commerce web site.

Additional Opportunities

  • The Spellman Summer Research Program: Each year, eight to 10 business, economics and accounting majors are selected as Spellman Research Associates and are invited to spend the summer at Coe, working on a research project with a department faculty member. Research Associates receive a stipend, housing allowance and a free course credit for the summer.
  • The Birkey Investment Fund: Each year, a group of junior and senior majors in accounting, business, or economics participate in a year-long hands-on course focused on understanding the investment industry, and in particular, the factors frequently considered when investing in stocks or mutual funds. The course, first taught in 2000, was developed in response to conversations with recent alumni of the Department who were working in careers in finance and investing. The alumni, convinced of the benefits to students of learning about investing by actually making investment decisions, generously contributed money to the Department to be used specifically for the newly-designed course.  Several alumni now serve as the Fund’s Advisory Board, sharing their time and expertise with students who take the Investment Fund course each year. In 2010, the fund was named The Birkey Investment Fund to honor Peter Birkey, who was instrumental in creating the course and who has been a dedicated member of the Advisory Board since 2000. Birkey, majoring in business and economics at Coe, began working in finance immediately following graduation after a successful internship in his senior year. He later earned an MBA from University of Chicago and a CFA. Birkey serves on Coe's Board of Trustees.
  • Off-Campus Study: Numerous domestic and international study programs are available. Business administration and economics majors have gained classroom and work experience while participating in these programs. For more information on off-campus study, please contact the Office of Admission.
  • Honors Program: The departmental honors program is strongly recommended if you plan to attend graduate school. Departmental honors are granted to qualified students who, during their senior year, complete a two-class sequence of rigorous research that results in a thesis written with faculty guidance and assistance. In recent years, honors students have had opportunities to present the results of their research at professional meetings and to publish articles in professional journals.
  • May Term: Our month-long May Term allows faculty to offer courses beyond our regular catalog offerings. This enables you to study advanced topics such as total quality management, employment law, sports economics, computer business applications and business ethics. Internships and off-campus courses also are available during May Term.