Internship at KI for non-KI students or students from KI

Many students, especially international students, contact KI for opportunities to do research-oriented internships or traineeships. Hosting a trainee is both interesting and stimulating but also involves responsibility. If you are considering hosting a trainee, you need to know what it means in terms of responsibility and what you can expect in terms of support from KI centrally.

Who is a trainee?

Trainees who contact KI for research-oriented internships or traineeships can be sorted into three different categories:

1. Students who wish to do research-oriented internships within a student exchange agreement, that is when a study programme at KI has reached an agreement with a foreign higher education institution. These students are managed by the study programmes with the support of the international coordinators at the Education Support Office. These students are admitted as exchange students to one or more courses at KI and conduct their internship/traineeship within a course, i.e. on-site training (VIL/VFU) or laboratory sessions.

2. Students who come outside of student exchange agreements. These students are students only at their home institutions and are not registered as students at KI. They are trainees.

3. KI students who want to do research-oriented summer internships.

Clinical internships

Students who wish to do clinical internships at one of the teaching hospitals are offered this through KI only if it takes place within the framework of a student exchange agreement. In all other cases, requests have to me made directly to the hospital’s HR department as it is considered as work and not education.

Information for you who want to offer internships to students within exchange agreements

The study programmes at KI have reached exchange agreements for student and teacher mobility with partner institutions worldwide. Internships for students covered by these agreements should be prioritized over students from higher education institutions with which there are no established exchange agreements. Contact an international coordinator for more information if the student you intend to host is from one of KI's partner institutions. These students are admitted to one or more courses within a study programme at KI and the internship takes place within the course.

Information for you who want to offer internships to students outside exchange agreements

Students from foreign higher education institutions often contact a department at KI or individual researcher directly with their requests for internships. The internship can be part of the student's education at the home institution, for example a project or degree project, or an internship period after graduation (recent graduate). It is up to the department to decide whether to accept a trainee or not.

What applies to an internship at KI?

A trainee or internship student is not managed or assisted by the international coordinators at KI but instead by their counterparts at the student's home institution. A trainee is not entitled to the services offered to exchange students enrolled at KI.

  • A trainee is not admitted to a course at KI and is thus not a student of KI.  
  • The hosting department is responsible for and manages all administration and issues related to, for example, visa and accommodation.
  • A trainee should be affiliated to KI, see the instructions for affiliation at KI.
  • KI has no responsibility for arranging accommodation. 
  • The trainee is covered by KI's insurance and the group insurance "Student IN" from Kammarkollegiet.
  • A certificate of the completed traineeship or internship is issued by the department/unit.

The affiliation to KI gives trainees access to a KI account, a KI email address, health promotion activities and more.

Erasmus traineeship at KI

If the student comes from an Erasmus+ country, the student may be entitled to an Erasmus+ Traineeship scholarship from their home institution. An Erasmus+ trainee is not managed by the international coordinators at KI but instead by their counterparts at the student's home institution. Nor is the trainee entitled to the services offered to exchange students at KI.

For Erasmus trainees, a Learning Agreement for Traineeships must be agreed upon, which is initiated by the student (trainee) and their home institution. However, the receiving KI department must approve and sign the document before the student can proceed with their planning.

Information for you who want to offer internships to KI students during the summer break

KI provides insurance that covers trainees, regardless of nationality. Read more about the terms and conditions of these insurances on the page about insurance for students.

Questions concerning internships

If you have questions about internships within exchange agreements, you are welcome to contact the international coordinators at UFS.

Questions about what applies to hosting a trainee outside exchange agreements or during the summer are referred to the department's HR staff.

More about Erasmus Traineeships