General information 

AUC strongly believes in leadership and community-based learning. As part of the curriculum, all AUC students must complete at least one internship (I) or community project (CP) for course credit. Students participate in local, national or international projects or organizations. These partners are provided by AUC or sought out by students themselves. The CP/I program strives to show a commitment to giving back to the community and to provide opportunities for students to develop both their professional and interpersonal skills. The community projects and internships are a form of learning through reflection on doing. 

Differences between a Community Project and an Internship 

Community projects and Internships differ mainly in their general focus, but also in their contributions to learning goals. 

Community Projects 

Community Projects offer students the opportunity to serve a community and develop social and civic awareness. They are intended to promote engagement at local, national and global levels and to foster personal and social responsibility. Community projects focus on learning outcomes related to citizenship, life skills and personal development, and interpersonal skills. 

Internships 

Internships offer students the opportunity to gain practical work experience, develop research skills in their field of study and help prepare students for future professional or academic careers. Internships focus on learning outcomes related to professional skills, life skills and personal development, and interpersonal skills. 

An Internship generally offers students a chance to develop their professional or work-related skills, but in practice, both a Community Project and Internship may provide students with extra skills that both enhance what they have studied in the classroom and prepare them for a career in their chosen field.  

CP/I application deadlines

CP/I Deadlines for single period projects

CP/I Deadlines for cross-period projects

Assessment and Feedback 

Before starting a CP/I project, students must submit a proposal following the appropriate deadlines and format specified in the CP/I guidelines. Upon approval of the project, students will be enrolled in AUC Portal.  

6 EC CP/I projects have the following assessment components: 

• Learning Plan  
• Midterm Learning Plan Reflection Update 
• Final Reflection Report 

Double 12 EC and 30 EC research-based Internships have an additional grading 
component in the content-based report. 

The whole CP/I project will be graded fulfilled or not fulfilled. In order to get an overall fulfilled grade the students must have designated the assigned hours to the project, must have gotten a fulfilled grade from the supervisor evaluations forms, and a fulfilled grade for all assessment components. 

CP/I team 

The CP/I programme is run by of a combination of academic- and professional staff: 

• Dr. Maurits de Klepper (CP/I coordinator) 
• Angelika Port (CP/I coordinator) 
• Marliene Stolker (CP/I administrative coordinator) 

For grading and providing feedback, a larger team of academic staff is involved. 

CP/I Opportunities

You can find ongoing and current project opportunities on the Community Projects and Internships: Opportunities page.

Avoid "VolunTourism" 

There is a growing international offering of projects involving taking care of orphans or otherwise vulnerable children. E.g. UNICEF and Better Care Network strongly advice against getting involved in such projects, and AUC will not allow you to work with orphans for CP/I. You can find more detailed information about this on e.g. https://www.hopeandhomes.org/blog-article/orphanage-voluntourism/

CP/I Guidelines 

The CP/I Guidelines for 2023-2024 can be downloaded below.

Instructions Portal: how to add a CP/I project and start your application?

In Portal, on the page that displays your course planner, there is a menu with three options on the top of the page ('your details', 'available courses' and 'graduation requirements'). Select 'Available Courses' and search for 'internship' or 'community project' in the search bar. 

Once you've selected 'internship' or 'community project', '+' signs appear in your planning grid. If you click on the '+' signs (in any period, even if the '+' sign appears in a different period than the period you wish to do your project in) you will be directed to the CP/I application form. 

Complete the application form and make sure to fill in the correct period of your CP/I project. Once you've submitted the form, the course tile will  automatically appear in the correct semester/period in your planning grid in Portal.  

Extension requests for the application deadline

Extension requests for the application deadline should be submitted directly via Portal. Go to Portal and select the period in which you intend to do a CP/I project. Search for 'internship' or 'community project' in the search bar. If you click on 'start CP/I registration' there is the option to submit an extension request (for 5 working days). Note that extension request submitted after the application deadline will be denied. Extension requests submitted via email or via the AUC Digital Service Desk will not be taken into consideration.

CP/I forms,  templates and instructions 

• Supervisor Acceptance Form
• Contract (Internship) 
• Contract (Community Project)

Previous information sessions

• General CP/I Information session Powerpoint Presentation (18 October 2023)

Contacting the CP/I team

If you have any questions or concerns, you can contact the CP/I team via AUC's Digital Service Desk. We also have digital office hours every Tuesday 13.00-13.30hrs via Zoom during regular teaching periods.