ACCELERATE TO INDUSTRY (A2I) | For Academic Departments

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A2i - Accelerate to Industry: Founded by the NC State Graduate School

Give Your Graduate Students the Competitive Edge with an A2i Internship

The Accelerate to Industry™ (A2i) Internship program provides experiential learning opportunities and career training beyond the typical academic setting. A2i internships offer a structured setting for graduate students to demonstrate the knowledge and skills they’ve gained from their academic program while making valuable contributions within a variety of industries. Through internships, students are provided with opportunities to upskill and reskill as they prepare to enter complex job markets. These experiences also give students a space to further develop professional “soft” skills in areas like leadership and communication; skills that are increasingly valuable both within and outside of the academy.

A2i internships are designed to complement and enhance your department’s professional development initiatives. Faculty are essential partners in the success of the A2i internship program. If you have a connection with an organization that you would like to leverage into an internship opportunity for your students, we can help!

Student Eligibility:

Applicants must be enrolled full time in a graduate degree program at the University of Delaware, be in good academic standing (maintaining a 3.0 GPA or above), and making satisfactory progress toward their degree.

A2i Interns must remain enrolled full time during the internship period to maintain UD student health insurance.

A graduate student interested in participating in an A2i internship with estimated weekly commitment of less than 9.5 hours and does not already have another regularly scheduled commitment on- or off-campus is not required to disclose their participation in the A2i internship program to their home department. That said, the Graduate College encourages open communication between students and advisors.

A graduate student on RA, TA, and GA contracts interested in participating in an A2i internship with estimated weekly commitment exceeding 9.5 hours per week, must complete the additional work policy form as part of the application process. This form is required so that a student can be considered for an internship. Completing this form does not guarantee an internship placement for the student.

Students are encouraged to continue performing their RA, TA, or GA responsibilities during their A2i internship period. We encourage the students to do this so that the effect of internships on students’ time to degree and publication records are not negatively affected by the internship experience. We also encourage research advisors to discuss their expectations with the students and help them develop a realistic set of goals and expectations for their effort in the lab during the internship.

The internship duration can be during the fall, winter, spring, and summer sessions. Precise dates and hours of employment are agreed upon between the internship supervisors and students prior to the start of the internship.

If selected for an A2i internship, the students may be asked to sign Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA), Confidentiality Agreement (CDA), or Non-Compete Agreement (NCA) with the sponsoring partner organization and waive the intellectual property rights on any discoveries that could result from their work for the sponsoring partner organizations.

Additional resources

University of Delaware Student Health Insurance Plan | University Health Plans, Inc.

Guidelines for Graduate Students on Fellowship or Assistantship Contracts

Students who are awarded a fellowship or an assistantship for the fall and/or spring semester assume a contract with the University and are expected to give their full-time attention to graduate study in those semesters. Students are classified as "on contract" if paid at least 50% of the U.D. minimum stipend in the fall and/or spring semester and are matriculated as a full-time student. Students who receive no stipend but receive a departmental tuition scholarship of at least 50% in the fall and/or spring semester and are matriculated as full-time students are also classified as "on contract." Students who are classified as research assistants and are paid at least 100% of the minimum stipend in the months of June and July and/or August are classified as "on contract" in the summer months.

Nine graduate credits or sustaining in the fall and spring semesters is the minimum registration requirement to be classified as a full-time student for those who receive a fellowship.
Six graduate credits or sustaining in the fall and spring semesters is the minimum registration requirement for students to be classified as a full-time student for those who receive an assistantship. Programs may require that students register in more than six credits if holding an assistantship as stated in the plan of study for that program.
Three graduate credits in research or sustaining in the 7 1/2-week summer session is the minimum registration requirement for students to be classified as a full-time student for those who receive a 100% research assistantship in the summer.
Registration is not required in Winter Session for students who are classified "on contract" when the contract is written to include the fall and spring semesters.
Students classified as graduate or research assistants are required to provide an average of 20 hours of service per week in the winter session as part of their fall and spring award.
Students who are classified as "on contract" are eligible to receive the medical and/or dental insurance reduction benefit.
Students who withdraw or are dismissed from the University during the time of the contract appointment will become responsible for the tuition in that semester.
The appointment is for the time period as indicated on the contract form and the unit does not need to report non-renewal to the student.
Federal and state taxes, if applicable, will be withheld from the stipend check.
Tuition scholarships are not taxed.
Attendance at the Graduate Teaching Assistant (GTA) workshop is required for all first time GTAs. International GTAs must also attend the ELI ITA training program and meet the SPEAK/UDIA score requirements to be eligible for a GTA appointment.
Students holding assistantships are expected to be at the assistantship site except for times when the University is officially closed or as noted on the contract form in the reporting hours section. Winter session is considered a regular session and graduate and research assistants are required to be at their assignment site during the winter session time period if the contract has been written from 9/1 through 5/31.
This contract does not provide for payment of the Student fees that are charged by the University each semester unless so noted as part of the contract.
An offer of continuation of the appointment is contingent upon satisfactory performance of assigned duties each semester, continued academic eligibility in each semester (minimum cumulative GPA of 3.00), compliance with the University's Code of Conduct, availability of funds and stated policies of the program as to the number of semesters that a student is eligible to receive fellowships or assistantships.
Any exception to the policies stated must be presented in writing by the appropriate departmental/college office to the Office of Graduate and Professional Education for consideration and action.

Academic Department FAQs

How does participating in an internship benefit my students?

Experiential learning opportunities such as the A2i internship is a pathway to career growth for graduate students. The internship gives them a competitive edge when applying for jobs after graduation. We frequently hear from employers that given candidates with the same academic background and accomplishments, they would choose the candidate who has done an internship. An A2i internship is a serious learning opportunity. It provides students with professional experience, helps expand their network in the career fields they are interested in, and gives them opportunities to demonstrate the value of their graduate education in solving real-world problems. This peer-reviewed article shows that participation in career exploration and professional development programming did not impact graduate students’ time to degree or numbers of manuscripts published (Brandt et al., 2021).

If I give my consent for my student to participate in A2i internship, are they guaranteed an internship?

No. Your permission is part of the application and will help streamline the process if the student is selected by the industry sponsor for an internship. The student still needs to go through an interview process. The internship is only guaranteed if the student selected by the industry sponsor has your A2i internship permission in place.

When will the internships start? How long does an internship last?

The start date and duration of an internship varies depending on the position. The internship duration can be during the fall, winter, spring, and summer sessions. Precise dates and hours of employment are agreed upon between the internship supervisors and students prior to the start of the internship.

How many hours per week will my student be working on the internship project?

It depends on the internship and when in the academic year the internship takes place. This table provides an overview of possible combinations.

Internship Duration	Estimated work hours
September 1 - December 31	Up to 9 hours per week Up to 20 hours per week
January 1 - January 31	Up to 9 hours per week Up to 20 hours per week Up to 30 hours per week Up to 40 hours per week
February 1 - May 31	Up to 9 hours per week Up to 20 hours per week
June 1 - August 31	Up to 9 hours per week Up to 20 hours per week Up to 30 hours per week Up to 40 hours per week

Will students be allowed to “keep projects going” by coming into the lab on nights and/or weekends while doing their internships?

Absolutely! We encourage the students to do this so that the effect of internships on students’ time to degree and publication records are not negatively affected by the internship experience.

We also encourage research advisors to discuss their expectations with the students and help them develop a realistic set of goals and expectations for their effort in the lab during the internship.

Who pays for the internship?

The stipend for the A2i internship is paid directly to the student by the industry sponsor.

Can any graduate student participate?

Applicants must be enrolled full time in a degree program at the University of Delaware, be in good academic standing (maintaining a 3.0 GPA or above), and making satisfactory progress toward their degree. Please see details regarding eligibility above and contact gradsuccess@udel.edu with any questions you may have.

NOTE: Graduate students from Lerner College should participate in the Graduate Internship Program administered by Lerner’s Career Services team.

If the course does not count toward the degree but the student is taking it while they are in their regular coursework, who pays for the tuition?

If the student is on contract that covers tuition, the tuition for the internship course would be covered by the department that originates the contract.

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