Career Services

Career Services at the ACT Center is here to help you:

  • learn more about your interests, skills, values and goals
  • discover the career options best suited to you
  • decide on a major related to career choice
  • review resumes and cover letters
  • learn about job interviewing techniques
  • research career fields and job outlooks

Career Services is also the point of contact for local employers looking to post jobs and hire SPSCC students and alumni.

We seek to provide career, internship, and employment services to all businesses and residents in our region. We are here to work individually with students, alumni, employers, and staff and faculty to meet all internship and employment needs.

Handshake

The Handshake hiring platform allows students and employers to connect in a shared online space. Find part-time and full-time jobs, internships, and more!

You can join Handshake by logging in with your ClipperID (SPSCC email and password).

Looking for a job or internship?

Join Handshake

Career Coach

Explore careers and academic pathways, or take a 6 or 60 question "career assessment" to find careers based on your interests. Career Coach also provides local data on wages, employment, and the training you need for each career.

Explore your career options.

Visit Career Coach

Overview

Cooperative Work Experience (Co-op) is an academic internship program that integrates a student’s classroom study with planned supervised learning in positions related to the student’s program of study or area of interest. You will be awarded credit and a grade not for the work itself, but for the demonstration of learning which occurs in and throughout the work experience. The learning that takes place at the work site must be related to educational or future career goals. You will be required to pay for the credits for this course.

Co-op is an academic credit course offered to students enrolled in programs at the college. Many Associate in Applied Science degrees or certificates require an internship as a core requirement. Other programs offer internships as electives.

The internship program requires documented learning. You will collaborate with faculty and the internship site supervisor to establish measurable learning objectives. These objectives are measured and graded by your faculty at the end of the quarter.

Eligibility

You must be pursuing a degree or certificate at South Puget Sound Community College and complete at least two quarters (25 credits minimum) of college-level work in your program of study. Students must be in good standing with a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 2.00 or higher is required. Some employers may require a higher grade point average.

Set Up An Appointment

Contact Sally Murrow in the ACT Center to get started!

Career Services hosts workshops all year long. Watch the events calendar to register for one of these workshops:

  • Career Exploration
  • Seeking Job Opportunities Through Handshake
  • Resume & Cover Letter Power Hour (Writing Center)
  • Interviews 101
  • LinkedIn: Why, How, and Why

Make an Appointment

Want to visit Career Services or attend a workshop? Contact Joe Aguilar in the ACT Center.

Handshake

Post jobs or internship opportunities for free on our site and get connected with on-campus recruitment activities.

Cooperative Work Experience

SPSCC provides employers with highly motivated students wanting to gain hands-on work experience in their area of study or interest. We are thankful to employers wanting to offer work experience opportunities to our students. It shows a commitment to our community by supporting educational and career goals. Some internship benefits for employers include:

  • Short-term workers with up-to-date knowledge of current trends and technology
  • Assistance with daily workload and support for special projects
  • Participation in the educational process and personal satisfaction in helping educate tomorrow's workforce

We screen students based on qualifications and usually collect application materials and forward them to the employer via email. The employer is responsible for choosing prospective candidates, setting up the interviews, and selecting the intern.

Once selected, students go through the Co-op office to enroll and obtain the quarterly paperwork. The student will collaborate with the work site supervisor and a faculty member in their program of study to develop a set of measurable goals to be achieved for the quarter. The student will be responsible for all paperwork and will turn in the objectives to the Co-op office in the second week of the quarter. Toward the end of the quarter, the faculty coordinator will conduct a site visit coordinated by the student. The employer will be sent an employer evaluation form which will count toward 40% of the student’s grade.

Typical Internship Timeframes

Internships normally run concurrently with the fall, winter, spring, or summer quarters.

  • Summer: Early July to Late August
  • Fall: Mid-Late September to Early-Mid December
  • Winter: Early January to Late March
  • Spring: Early April to Mid-Late June

Please allow for sufficient time to screen and select appropriate candidates before the quarter begins. A great number of our students are subject to enrollment deadlines because of various funding sources, which means most students must be enrolled for the internship credits by the Friday before the quarter begins. Students being offered internship opportunities after the deadline will most likely not be able to enroll and pay for the credits.

Posting an Internship

Please contact the Co-op office to get an account set up in our database. This allows the employer or designee to enter the information regarding the internship. We ask for a description, qualifications, wage (paid/unpaid), hours, and how to apply. Most employers ask us to collect resumes and forward them electronically. We will screen the students for the employer. They are only able to view the internship description and qualifications online. Students must go through our office for a referral.

On-Campus Interview Rooms

The WSECU Center for Career Services has two interview rooms available to employers who would prefer to interview students on-campus. Please contact the Co-op office for more information.

Get In Touch

Contact Sally Murrow in the ACT Center to get connected to Career Services at SPSCC.