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Academic Planning

For Current Students

The Co-op Program is an academic enhancement offered by the Eberly College of Science and supported by its departments. It is intended to complement your academic preparation, not hinder it. Therefore, you are strongly encouraged to discuss their co-op plans with your academic advisors and/or the Co-op Coordinator for your department. Co-op Coordinators can assist you in determining how your co-op credits can be used toward your degree requirements and suggest semesters that would be most appropriate to co-op. With careful prior planning, you may find you are able to incorporate co-op into your degree plan at Penn State more easily than you expected.

If you already have completed a co-op assignment and would like to determine exactly how your co-op credits can be used toward degree requirements, then please contact the departmental coordinator for your specific department to set up an appointment. You should have some idea of how your credits will be used from consulting your advisor or departmental coordinator before your assignment. However, use of co-op credits varies from department to department, and you may need to provide a petition form or other documentation of the content of your assignment for your credits to be allocated appropriately. Your departmental coordinator will be able to review your academic audit and advise you regarding any documentation you may need to provide.

Co-op Credit Usage by Major

You should ALWAYS consult with your academic advisor regarding your specific requirements and ways in which your co-op credits may be used to fulfill them. Since many students come to the University with transfer or AP credits, etc., individual circumstances vary from student to student and are best discussed with an academic advisor. The credit usage chart will provide you with basic information about how you could potentially use co-op credits within each of the major degree programs.