What is a internship offer letter?
An internship offer letter confirms an internship place with a student, recent graduate or career changer. Unlike a job offer, it is built around learning: who will supervise the intern, what they will learn and do, and how progress will be reviewed. It also sets the practical details — dates, hours and place of work — and whether the internship is paid, which in many places depends on the kind of work the intern does.
This template is laid out as a letter from your organisation. It covers the internship title and team, start and end dates, place of work and hours, the supervisor, the learning goals and main tasks, pay (or, for an unpaid internship, a statement that it is primarily educational, plus any expenses or stipend), an optional link to a university or college for academic credit, the intern's commitments on attendance, policies, confidentiality and work product, ending early, and an accept-by date. You sign the offer and the intern signs the acceptance.
- Best for
- Summer, graduate, placement-year and for-credit internships
- Signed by
- The employer (with a job title) signs the offer; the intern signs the acceptance
- Pay
- Paid per hour, week or month — or unpaid with optional expenses or a stipend
- Length
- About 2 pages
When to Use a internship offer letter
- Offering a summer internship to a university student
- A graduate internship with a named supervisor and learning plan
- An internship that counts towards a course or degree
- Small businesses and non-profits taking on their first intern
- Remote or hybrid internships with set hours
What You Fill In
19 blanks, then the name and email of each person who signs: employer, intern.
1 The organisation
- Date of the letter*
- Organisation name*
- Organisation address
2 The internship
- Intern's full name*
- Internship title*
- Team or department
- Supervisor*
- Start date*
- End date*
- Place of work*
- Hours*
- Learning goals and main tasks*
3 Pay
- Is the internship paid?* Paid · Unpaid
- Currency
- Pay
- Per hour · week · month
- Expenses or stipend (unpaid internships)
4 Other terms
- Academic institution (if for credit)
- Accept by*
5 Who signs
- Employer signature and date, job title
- Intern signature and date
What the internship offer letter Covers
- Offer of internship
- What you will learn and do
- Pay
- Your commitments
- Ending the internship
- Accepting this offer
- Acceptance
Using the internship offer letter, step by step
1 Set out the internship
Enter the internship title, team, start and end dates, place of work and hours. Name the supervisor — the letter says they'll agree goals with the intern in the first week and meet regularly to review progress.
2 List learning goals and tasks
Write the main things the intern will learn and do, one per line — a campaign they'll run, tools they'll learn, a project they'll present. Specific goals make for a better internship and a clearer record.
3 Choose paid or unpaid
For a paid internship, enter the pay and whether it's per hour, week or month. For unpaid, the letter says the internship is mainly for the intern's education, won't replace paid staff and won't mainly benefit your organisation; you can add expenses or a stipend. Many places require interns doing productive work to be paid, so check the rules first.
4 Add academic credit if relevant
If the internship is part of a course, name the university or college. The letter says you'll work with them on reports and assessments and may share attendance and progress with them.
5 Set the accept-by date and send
Choose the date by which the intern must accept. Sign the offer, add the intern's name and email, and send; they sign the acceptance online.
Tips Before You Send It
- Rules on unpaid internships differ a lot between countries and states. If in doubt, pay at least the applicable minimum wage.
- Match the learning goals to real projects — interns who know what they're working towards get far more from the placement.
- If the intern is under 18, check any extra rules on working hours and parental consent where you are.
- Go through your policies on the first day, as the letter promises, and keep a record that you did.
- If a for-credit internship needs a three-way agreement with the college, use a student work placement agreement as well.
Sign It Online In Minutes
- Fill in the blanks. Names, dates and amounts go straight into the agreement — the preview shows exactly where.
- Name who signs. Tick “This is me” for your own part. VergeHR builds the PDF with every signature, date box on the right line, and you can check or move anything before sending.
- Send it. Each signer gets a secure link and signs from any device — no account needed. The signed PDF, with an audit trail and a Certificate of Completion, is filed in Files and emailed to everyone.
Internship offer letter: frequently asked questions
Do interns have to be paid?
It depends on where you are and what the intern does. In many places, interns who do productive work that benefits the organisation must be paid at least minimum wage, while genuinely educational or for-credit placements may be unpaid. Check local rules before choosing Unpaid.
Does the internship lead to a job?
The letter says it doesn't promise a job after the internship, though you're happy to talk about future opportunities.
Who owns what the intern creates?
Anything the intern creates as part of the internship belongs to the organisation unless you agree otherwise in writing. The intern can still describe their work in a CV or course work, without sharing confidential information.
Can the internship end early?
Yes. Either side can end it early in writing, ideally with a week's notice, and a paid intern is paid for time already worked.
Is an offer accepted by e-signature valid?
Electronic signatures are generally valid for documents like this in the US (ESIGN Act and UETA), the UK, the EU (eIDAS) and Canada. VergeHR keeps an audit trail and a Certificate of Completion with the signed PDF. The intern doesn't need a VergeHR login, and the template is free.