4 days ago September 25, 2025Leslie Urena

Summer Internship Caveat: Pay Out of Pocket for Academic Credits

For DMJ students, for-credit internships are required for their major. When applying for internship eligibility and finding for-credit internship placement, you have a choice of interning during the fall semester, spring semester, or summer session.

Summer can be a popular time to complete an internship, however, what is often overlooked is that summer credits are not part of your annual tuition charges. You are earning academic credits for working at an internship. Therefore, you will have to pay for these credits out of your own pocket, and payment is per credit. 

REQUIRED MINIMUM INTERNSHIP CREDITS FOR DMJ STUDENTS:

  • Production major: 3 credit
  • Media Studies major: 3 credits
  • Journalism major: 4 credits
  • Journalism minor: 3 credits
  • DMJ491 Internship Seminar: 1 credit (required at same time as student’s first internship)

Be sure to ask Student Accounts and the Financial Aid Office how much it will cost to earn internship credits during the summer. Remember to count the 1-credit Internship Seminar plus the Internship Credits.

Then, make an informed decision that is right for you.

To learn more, please visit https://www.newpaltz.edu/summer/ for more information on tuition & fees. For information on receiving summer financial aid, visit https://www.newpaltz.edu/financialaid/summer.html.

Did You Know? If you are considering doing your internship in summer, you will have to pay out of pocket. Credits earned during the summer are not part of your fall or spring tuition, and are not guaranteed to be paid for by your financial aid package. Know the $$ cost before you commit!