Back to page 
The diversity at The University of Toledo attracted me. But the thing I liked best was the co-op program offered by the College of Engineering. I worked last spring for DTE Energy at a power plant a half-hour from Toledo. I got to experience what a 9-to-5 job would be like. This experience will make an impact on my resume. The money I earned has made me more independent.”
Devyani Donde
Class of 2021, information technology | Nashik, India
Co-ops
Internships
Research
Field Experience

Research

Rohan Rahatgaonkar
Class of 2020, math and physics | Aurangabad, Maharashtra, India
"I researched UToledo’s website and saw that professor Tom Megeath was doing research that interested me. I emailed him and for the past two years, I’ve been doing research with him and a graduate student. Our research is on the protostellar evolution of stars — how stars form and why they have the mass they do. Tom connected me to a colleague in India, and I did an internship the summer after freshman year at Tata Institute for Fundamental Research in Mumbai. I wouldn’t have gotten the internship without Tom.”

This summer, Rohan received a stipend from the Office of Undergraduate Research to continue his research.

Powering futures

“UToledo has two telescopes and a planetarium. That’s rare to find. I was part of an observation team. We operated the telescope and used our knowledge from our classes to study objects in the sky.”

Nourishing Relationships

“I wanted a typical American college education. And I also wanted to have one-on-one conversations with professors. I am getting that at UToledo. It’s the right size — not too big and not too small. I feel like I belong. The astronomy and physics department is very friendly. I know all the professors.”


Creating opportunities

“The good thing about UToledo is that I can take a theatre class. I love to act and I love that course. I also took a music course to play drums and learn how to read music. It was harder than physics! These courses are a breath of fresh air and a way for me to think in a different way. UToledo offers so much.”

Field Experience

Munira Taufik
Class of 2019, geology; master’s in higher education 2020 | Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
“I traveled all over the country on field trips. I went to Hocking Hills, a park in southern Ohio; Death Valley, a desert in California; and the Grand Canyon in Arizona. Whatever you learn in class, you see it and can apply it on these trips. We talked about earthquake faults and then went out and saw them.”


Hands-on leadership skills

“I learned leadership skills through my involvement in student organizations. As event coordinator for the International Students Association, I organized our two biggest events for 500-700 students. I never thought I could be president. Sara, in the international office, told me, ‘I’ve seen you grow. I know you can do it.’ And I did. I also stepped out of my comfort zone as marketing chair of the Muslim Student Association. I didn’t like public speaking, but I was the emcee for a leadership conference and had to speak in front of 300 students.”

Lessons from on-campus living

“I would recommend every freshman stay on campus. I lived in the Honors Academic Village my freshman year with mostly American students. It changed my life. It’s how I started to meet people. My best friend is from Michigan. I’d also see flyers about events and know what was happening on campus.”

Internships

Paola Aguilar
Class of 2018, operations and supply chain management | Bogota, Colombia
“The College of Business and Innovation offered many opportunities. My business professors helped me a lot, especially with career development. Not all students have business cards. But I did because my professor recommended we make them for job fairs and interviews. I had opportunities to network. UToledo gave me the tools. I got two internships and received job offers from both companies.”


Paola worked as a logistics coordinator with a small company in downtown Toledo in her first internship. She learned about the job from an email sent by the dean. She landed an interview and the job, coordinating freight for the company’s clients. Her second internship was in purchasing at Owens Illinois, a Fortune 500 company near Toledo where she now works full time.

Reaching goals

“My professors and the Career Services office prepared me for job fairs and interviews. They helped me write my resume. I had mock interviews with working professionals. I prepared my elevator speech. That preparation was the most important part of me getting my two internships.”

Building support

“I appreciate all the help the business school and UToledo gave me — professors’ office hours, tutoring. Since English isn’t my first language, the Writing Center helped me a lot in writing my essays. They give you the tools, and if you use them right, you can go far.”

Co-ops

Vimantha Bamunuarachchi
Class of 2020, chemical engineering | Colombo, Sri Lanka
“My favorite thing about chemical engineering at UToledo is that I am required to do three semester-long co-op work experiences. When I graduate, I’ll have more than a year of industrial experience. It’s priceless to connect with engineers and scientists as an undergraduate and get that hands-on experience. I have friends at bigger schools, but they don’t have job experience when they get their degree. I would never be able to do what I’m doing if I didn’t come to UToledo. It helped me achieve my goals.”

Creating Opportunity

“When I was looking for a co-op, I was confident and prepared. The engineering college gave me everything I needed to know to nail the interview. I was the first student from UToledo to be hired by AstraZeneca, one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world.”

AstraZeneca normally hires students only in the summer. But after Vimantha worked for the company during the summer, they made an exception. They created a position for him and invited him back for a six-month, fall co-op. Vimantha was the first UToledo student and AstraZeneca intern to be named one of three 2018 Future Scientists scholarship recipients in the U.S. by Kelly Services.

The paid co-op experiences — along with part-time jobs as a tutor and building manager at the UToledo Student Union — allow Vimantha to save for his future and pay for his living expenses when he returns to campus after each co-op experience.

Advancing Undergraduate Research

“I did research the summer of my freshman year for a chemical engineering professor. Then I joined Dr. Ana C. Alba-Rubio's research group for independent studies, and she offered me a position in her lab. I'm doing research on sustainable and green energy. I also worked part time as an intern at a startup company that manufactured scanners to test the life span of solar cells. I learned a plethora of technical skills a typical undergraduate wouldn’t. I worked with Ph.D. students and learned to be persistent and patient. Dr. Rubio was so supportive. She cares about you, not just the results. My research experience helped me get my co-op at AstraZeneca.”

We want our students to make an impact in their communities. So we reward curious minds with research opportunities as early as freshman year. Some students email professors about working in their labs.

Others use the services of our Office of Undergraduate Research, which can:

  • Connect you to faculty mentors and projects
  • Help you find funding
  • Help you present your research at conferences and other events

60+ undergraduates received funding in 2018

18,000+ hours spent on undergraduate research in 2018

Which would you rather do? Get your hands dirty at a real archeological site or read about a dig in a book? Take a patient’s blood pressure or watch a demo on YouTube?

We hear you. That’s why most UToledo academic programs incorporate service learning or field experiences into their curricula.

Our students:

  • Teach in rural and urban settings
  • Investigate mock crime scenes
  • Travel to the Galapagos Islands to learn about conservation
  • Serve the poor in Guatemala
  • Dig into history at an archaeology site in a Toledo metropark

We know it’s hard to think about life after college. You haven’t even taken a class yet! But if you want a great job after you graduate, it’s not too early to start planning. Internships often lead to full-time positions, like they did for Paola.
Internships help you:

  • Gain practical experience
  • Build your resume
  • Refine your skills
  • Cultivate contacts

Career Services can help you find internship opportunities. Depending on your major — and whether an internship is required — your college may even have its own internship coordinator. Work in the summer or during the school year. Some interns get paid. Some receive academic credit.

Our students find work in all kinds of places, including in our city government through our partnership with the city of Toledo.


85% of all undergrad business students complete internships.
About 50% of business students with internships get permanent offers from the employers.

UToledo’s engineering program is one of just eight in the U.S. that requires co-ops. A co-op is a paid job in the engineering field. Starting in their second year, engineering students alternate spending a semester working for their co-op employer and then returning to campus for a semester of classes.

Co-ops give our students an advantage in the job market because they offer:

  • Professional experience
  • Contacts/Networking
  • Full-time job leads
  • A paycheck

1,478 engineering co-ops Fall 2020 to Summer 2021

2,400 employer sites in 46 states and 44 countries

Last Updated: 6/27/22