Curricular Internship Abroad

Mappamondo

An internship abroad not only is a good way to gain work experience, but also a perfect opportunity to develop other skills such as knowledge of foreign languages. An internship gives you the opportunity to discover the world of work. It helps you to enrich your theoretical and methodological background and allows you to put into practice what you learnt during your studies.  

The process for an internship in Italy is different from the process for an internship aboard. That is because different countries have different rules and standards. If you want to do an internship abroad, the Host Institution/Company must register HERE

Upon registration, the Institution/Company will receive an e-mail and must confirm a link. Then they will receive the credentials to access Politecnico platform. In order to host an intern, the Institution/Company must fill in all the details about the Institution/Company and upload a copy of the identification document of a contact person (legal reppresentative, company tutor or hr manager) in section called "Internship Agreement".

At the end of this procedure, the Institution/Company will be visible in the list of host companies and you will be able to fill in the "INTERNSHIP AGREEMENT" online ("stage" tab of your personal page) which is necessary for starting the internship abroad.

Curricular internships abroad have specific rules and procedures, which vary depending on each degree programme. The procedure for the registration of your internship in your transcripts also depends on the rules of your degree programme. The duration of an internship (number of hours) is equal to the number of credits you have in your Personal Study Plan (1 credit = 25 hours). 

We suggest you check the internship regulations of your degree programme for more information (Engineering and Architecture).

 

WARNING: before travelling to a foreign country for your internship (even if the country belongs to the Schenghen Area), verify with the embassy/consulate of your host country if you need an entry visa. This depends on your nationality and current domicile. Before buying any ticket, please go to the International Students Office of Politecnico for more information.     

The INTERNSHIP AGREEMENT (Progetto Formativo) is a document that you must fill out online BEFORE you start your internship. 

It includes the following information:  

  • your personal data;
  • information on your Host Company and contact details of your Company Tutor (the person chosen by the Company to assist and guide you during your internship);
  • contact details of your Academic Tutor, a Polito faculty  member chosen by you or automatically assigned to you, depending on the rules of your degree programme. Your Academic Tutor is in charge of verifying that the contents and activities carried out during your internship actually match those declared by the Host Company;
  • work schedule and internship dates. We need this information to provide appropriate insurance coverage;  
  • expected training outcomes and contents of your internship.

How to fill out the document:

  • log in to your personal page of the Teaching Portal using your access credentials (Login);
  • select the STAGE tab and click “New Progetto Formativo”;
  • enter the company name in the “Company name” field: if you find the company in the drop-down list, it means that it has an agreement with Politecnico. In this case, you can continue filling in your Progetto Formativo;
  • if the company is not included in the drop-down list, it will mean that it is not registered on the University portal and therefore must register. After registration go to the next step;
  • fill out your Progetto Formativo in detail; if you do not have some information, ask your Company Tutor or your Academic Tutor;
  • after entering your Company Tutor’s e-mail address, the system will send him/her a message. Your Company Tutor must confirm his/her e-mail address following the procedure illustrated in the message. You need this confirmation before you can continue filling out your Progetto Formativo;
  • click “SAVE AND SUBMIT FOR APPROVAL”. Your Project will be assessed in this order by:
    - your Company Tutor, who receives an e-mail with a link to a page where he can accept or reject your Project;
    - your Academic Tutor, who can approve or reject your project from his/her personal page, and/or by the Internship Coordinator of your degree programme, who approves and VALIDATES your Project.
    These approvals are given online. Hard copies of these documents and signatures are not required;
  • after the validation of your Progetto Formativo, the Host Company can see it from its private area of the portal. You can also download a pdf version of this document and send it to the Company, if needed.
     

Template Internship Agreement (curricular)

Internships have a given duration (hours) and provide a certain number of credits as specified in your Annual Personal Study Plan. You can extend the duration of your internship (number of hours) by selecting one of the options available in the field “Expected no. of hours”. You can only do this operation before the beginning of your internship and not while you are doing it. In any case, you cannot do more than 900 hours. Any request to extend the duration of an internship must be decided together with the Host Company. It MUST also be approved by a Polito faculty member (your Academic Tutor or the Internship Coordinator for your degree programme) who may reject your proposal. In this case, you need to make a new proposal and fill out a new Progetto Formativo. If your Progetto Formativo is approved, it means that the extension of your internship and the extra hours have been accepted too. At the end of an internship with extended duration, you will see that the internship is recorded in your transcript as follows: INTERNSHIP with standard hours/credits in accordance with the rules of  your degree programme (i.e., 6 credits/ 150 hours) plus the annotation “curricular internship extension” with your extra hours/credits. These credits will be recorded in your transcript as credit overload (they do not count towards the 120-credit threshold required for Master’s graduation).         

After starting your internship:

  • you must fill out your online Timesheet for each day of work;
  • you are required to update your timesheet if there are any changes in your work schedule, business trips, temporary suspensions or extensions in the duration of your internship;
  • one week before the end of your internship, you and your Company Tutor will be asked to fill out an online questionnaire;
  • at the end of the internship you will be required to submit your timesheet to your Company Tutor for n online approval;
  • after your timesheet has been approved, upload any other documents that may be required by your degree programme (i.e. reports or portfolio) for the approval of your Academic Tutor and/or Internship Coordinator;
  • the Internship Coordinator or the Academic Tutor are responsibel for the registration of your  internship in your transcript.